 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations .(August 2017) |
Generation Kill follows the Marines of the 1st Recon Battalion through the first four weeks of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The characters are drawn from this group of Marines.
The recurring characters are part of the 1st Marine Division. The division is under the command of Major General James "Maddog" Mattis, played by Robert Burke. His callsign is "Chaos".
| Character | Position | Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Colonel Joe D. Dowdy | Regimental Commander | Wayne Harrison |
Nearly all of the recurring characters are members of 1st Reconnaissance Battalion (1st Recon), commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Stephen "Godfather" Ferrando (played by Chance Kelly). His command staff include Major Todd Eckloff played by Benjamin Busch and Sergeant Major John Sixta, played by Neal Jones. Nabil Elouahabi plays the battalion's translator, "Meesh." The battalion surgeon, Lieutenant Alex Aubin (Andrew Spicer) also appears.
| Character | Position | Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant Colonel Stephen "Godfather" Ferrando | Battalion Commander | Chance Kelly |
| Major Todd Eckloff | Battalion Executive Officer | Benjamin Busch |
| Sergeant Major John Sixta (referred to twice as "Mr. Potato Head") | Battalion Sergeant Major | Neal Jones |
| "Meesh" | Battalion Translator | Nabil Elouahabi |
| Lieutenant Alex Aubin, USN | Battalion Surgeon | Andrew Spicer |
| Sergeant Christopher Wasik | Battalion Driver | Daniel Janks |
Alpha Company is commanded by Captain Bryan Patterson played by Michael Kelly. The company callsign is "Assassin".
| Character | Position | Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Captain Bryan Patterson | Company Commander | Michael Kelly |
| Gunnery Sergeant Rich Barrett | Company Operations Chief | Eric Kocher |
| Character | Position | Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Sergeant Damon Fawcett | Team 2-3, Team Leader | Theo Landey |
| Corporal John Burris | Team 2-3, Driver | Kyle Siebert |
| Corporal Smith | Team 2-3 | Jeffrey John Carisalez |
| Corporal Cody Scott | Team 2-3, Gunner | Darron Meyer |
Bravo Company is commanded by Captain Craig Schwetje played by Brian Wade. The company callsign is "Hitman". Schwetje is nicknamed "Encino Man" when out of earshot, a reference to the titular character from the film of the same name. This is meant to invoke stupidity and incompetence.
| Character | Position | Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Captain Craig "Encino Man" Schwetje | Company Commander | Brian Wade |
| Gunnery Sergeant Ray "Casey Kasem" Griego | Company Operations Chief | David Barrera |
| Team | Vehicle | Character | Position | Vehicle position | Actor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team 1 | V-01 | Sergeant Brad "Iceman" Colbert | Team 1, Team Leader/Squad Leader of Bravo 1 | Truck Commander | Alexander Skarsgård |
| Corporal Josh Ray Person | Team 1, RTO (Receiver/Transmitter Operator) | Driver | James Ransone | ||
| Lance Corporal Harold James Trombley | Driver Rear | Billy Lush | |||
| Corporal Walt Hasser | Turret position | Pawel Szajda | |||
| Evan "Rolling Stone" Wright | Civilian journalist embedded with Team 1 | Passenger Rear | Lee Tergesen | ||
| V-02 | Sergeant Antonio "Poke" Espera | Team 1, Assistant Team Leader/Squad Leader of Bravo 1 | Passenger | Jon Huertas | |
| Corporal Jason Lilley | Driver | Kellan Lutz | |||
| Corporal Nathan Christopher | Passenger rear | Stefan Otto | |||
| Corporal Hector Leon | Driver rear | Sal Alvarez | |||
| Corporal Gabriel "Gabe" Garza | Turret position | Rey Valentin | |||
| Team 2 | V-03 | Staff Sergeant Larry Shawn "Pappy" Patrick | Team 2, Team Leader/Platoon Scout Sniper | Passenger | Josh Barrett |
| Sergeant Rodolfo "Fruity Rudy" Reyes | Driver | himself | |||
| Corporal James Chaffin | Driver rear | Eric Ladin | |||
| Sergeant Michael "Budweiser" Brunmeier | Passenger rear | Justin Shaw | |||
| Corporal Anthony "Manimal" Jacks | Turret position | Rich McDonald | |||
| V-04 (Command Vehicle) | First Lieutenant Nathaniel "Nate" Fick | Platoon Commander | Passenger | Stark Sands | |
| Gunnery Sergeant Mike "Gunny" Wynn | Platoon Gunnery Sergeant, Command vehicle | Driver | Marc Menchaca | ||
| Corporal Evan "Q-Tip" Stafford | Passenger rear | Wilson Bethel | |||
| Private First Class John Christeson | Driver rear | Daniel Fox | |||
| Team 3 | V-05 | Sergeant Steven Lovell | Team 3, Team Leader | Passenger | Langley Kirkwood |
| Sergeant Leandro "Shady B" Baptista | Driver | Mike Figueroa | |||
| Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Robert Timothy "Doc" Bryan, USN | Platoon Medical Support | Passenger rear | Jonah Lotan | ||
| Corporal Teren "T" Holsey | Driver rear | Sydney Hall | |||
| Corporal Michael Stinetorf | Turret position | Bjorn Steinbach | |||
| Vehicle | Character | Role | Vehicle Position | Actor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Command vehicle | Captain Dave "Captain America" McGraw | Platoon Commander | Passenger | Eric Nenninger |
| Sergeant Eric Kocher | Team 2, Team Leader | Passenger | Owain Yeoman | |
| Corporal Jeffrey "Dirty Earl" Carisalez | Driver | J. Salome Martinez | ||
| Corporal Daniel Redman | Turret Position | Sean Brosnan |
1st Recon Battalion's third rifle company. Members are featured in a short scene in Episode 4: "Combat Jack", but no Marines are specifically named. The company commander's call sign is "Raptor".
Company of USMC reservists attached to 1st Recon Battalion. Members are featured in Episode 6: "Stay Frosty", but only one Staff Non-commissioned officer who has an acquaintance with 2nd platoon of Bravo Company is named.
| Character | Role | Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Gunnery Sergeant Jason Swarr | Battalion Parachute Rigger | Michael Mosley |
Band of Brothers is a 2001 American war drama miniseries based on historian Stephen E. Ambrose's 1992 non-fiction book of the same name. It was created by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks, who also served as executive producers, and who had collaborated on the 1998 World War II film Saving Private Ryan. Episodes first aired on HBO from September 9, to November 4, 2001. Critically acclaimed, the series won the Emmy and Golden Globe awards for best miniseries.
By Dawn's Early Light is an HBO original movie, first aired in 1990. It is based on the 1983 novel Trinity's Child, written by William Prochnau.
The 4th Marine Division is a reserve division in the United States Marine Corps. It was raised in 1943 for service during World War II, and subsequently fought in the Pacific against the Japanese. Deactivated after the war, the division was re-formed in 1966 and elements of the division deployed during the Gulf War in 1990–1991, as well as during the Iraq War. It is currently the ground combat element of the Marine Forces Reserve and is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has units throughout the United States.
A United States Marine Corps Reconnaissance Battalion is a reconnaissance unit within the Ground Combat Element (GCE) of a Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) that conducts amphibious reconnaissance, underwater reconnaissance, advanced force operations, battlespace shaping, ground reconnaissance, surveillance, raids and direct action in support of the Marine division (MARDIV), subordinate division elements, or a designated MAGTF.
The Radio Reconnaissance Platoon is a specially trained Marine Corps Intelligence element of a United States Marine Corps Radio Battalion. A Radio Reconnaissance Team (RRT) was assigned as the tactical signals intelligence collection element for the Marine Corps Special Operations Command, Detachment One. Regular RRTs also participate in SOC operations during Marine Expeditionary Unit, or MEU(SOC), deployments.
The 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion conducts amphibious and ground reconnaissance in support of the 3rd Marine Division and Marine Forces Pacific (MarForPac), operating in the commander's areas of influence. The battalion is based out of Camp Schwab, a satellite base of Marine Corps Base Camp Smedley D. Butler. It is geographically located on the Okinawa Prefecture in Japan.
The 1st Reconnaissance Battalion is a reconnaissance battalion in the United States Marine Corps. It is a stand-alone battalion with no parent regiment. Instead, it falls directly under the command of the 1st Marine Division. 1st Recon Bn is located at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in San Diego, California.
The 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion is a reconnaissance battalion in the United States Marine Corps. Located at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, the battalion falls under the command of the 2nd Marine Division and the II Marine Expeditionary Force.
The 4th Reconnaissance Battalion is a reserve reconnaissance battalion in the United States Marine Corps. It falls under the 4th Marine Division and Marine Forces Reserve.
The Battle of Nasiriyah was fought between the US 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade and Iraqi forces from 23 March to 2 April 2003 during the US-led invasion of Iraq. On the night of 24–25 March, the bulk of the Marines of Regimental Combat Team 1 passed through the city over the bridges and attacked north towards Baghdad. However, fighting continued in the city until 1 April when Iraqi resistance in the city was defeated.
Generation Kill is a 2004 book written by Rolling Stone journalist Evan Wright chronicling his experience as an embedded reporter with the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion of the United States Marine Corps, during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. His account of life with the Marines was originally published as a three-part series in Rolling Stone in the fall of 2003. "The Killer Elite", the first of these articles, went on to win a National Magazine Award for Excellence in Reporting in 2004.
The Lieutenant is an American television series, the first created by Gene Roddenberry. It aired on NBC on Saturday evenings in the 1963–1964 television schedule. It was produced by Arena Productions, one of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's most successful in-house production companies of the 1960s. Situated at Camp Pendleton, Southern California, the West Coast base of the U.S. Marine Corps, The Lieutenant focuses on the men of the Corps in peacetime with a Cold War backdrop. The title character is Second Lieutenant William Tiberius Rice, a rifle platoon leader and one of the training instructors at Camp Pendleton. An hour-long drama, The Lieutenant explores the lives of enlisted Marines and officers alike.
Generation Kill is an American seven-part television miniseries produced for HBO that aired from July 13 to August 24, 2008. It is based on Evan Wright's 2004 book Generation Kill, about his experience as an embedded reporter with the US Marine Corps' 1st Reconnaissance Battalion during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and was adapted for television by David Simon, Ed Burns, and Wright. The miniseries was directed by Susanna White and Simon Cellan Jones and produced by Andrea Calderwood. The ensemble cast includes Alexander Skarsgård as Sergeant Brad "Iceman" Colbert, Jon Huertas as Sergeant Tony "Poke" Espera, James Ransone as Corporal Josh Ray Person, and Lee Tergesen as Wright.
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The fourth season of the television series The Wire commenced airing in the United States on September 10, 2006, concluded on December 10, 2006, and contained 13 episodes. It introduces Baltimore's school system and several middle school students while continuing to examine the remnants of the Barksdale Organization, the ascendant Stanfield Organization, the Baltimore Police Department and politicians.
The United States Marine Corps's Amphibious Reconnaissance Battalion, formerly Company, was a Marine Corps special operations forces of United States Marine and Hospital corpsman that performed clandestine operation preliminary pre–D-Day amphibious reconnaissance of planned beachheads and their littoral area within uncharted enemy territory for the joint-Navy/Marine force commanders of the Pacific Fleet during World War II. Often accompanied by Navy Underwater Demolition Teams and the early division recon companies, these amphibious recon platoons performed more reconnaissance missions than any other single recon unit during the Pacific campaigns.
The Marine Corps Test Unit 1, or MCTU #1, was an experimental testing unit of the United States Marine Corps. It was established outside the Fleet Marine Force for the development of specialized tactics, techniques and organizational concepts, and to evaluate its tangible employment in the nuclear age. It reported directly to the Commandant of the Marine Corps.
Brad Colbert is a retired United States Marine, whose platoon's role in the 2003 invasion of Iraq was featured in a series of articles in Rolling Stone by Evan Wright. Wright was an embedded reporter who rode in the backseat of Colbert's vehicle during this time until his departure on May 4, 2003. Wright later expanded these articles into the book Generation Kill which was turned into a HBO miniseries of the same name in which Colbert was portrayed by Alexander Skarsgård.
Company E, 52nd Infantry, (LRP) was a 120 man-sized long-range reconnaissance patrol unit attached to the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) in Vietnam in 1967-69. Its origin begins on January 1, 1967, as "LRRP Detachment G2," 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile). It was then redesignated "Headquarters & Headquarters Company LRRP Detachment" in April 1967, and redesignated "Company E, 52nd Infantry (LRP)" on December 20, 1967.