Should I do a separate series for these fictional tanks or should I keep them in this series? I was thinking something like "Fake Tank Friday" but I don't know if its worth a whole new series.
It was my favorite comic book.... 50 years ago. M3 Stuart although they may have upgraded to the M5 by the time l found the fumes, in the mid-70s. Gas fumes and perfumes. Lol
@@nostradamusofgames5508 no way jose! It should be a M3 LEE/GRANT! . It has 100% more gun and 100% ghost per tank! Bonus points if come with an obnoxiously loud dixie horn.
That begs the question... Would there be a British tank crew somewhere haunted by Oliver Cromwell forbidding them from smiling, playing football, celebrating Christmas etc?
@@JohnMinehan-lx9ts Or, if as I've surmised, the turret and gun are from a British-used M10 ACHILLES, with the 17-pounder gun, have the ghost of the Greek hero Achilles accompany the group and spar with JEB Stuart. Draw him to look like Brad Pitt, and when Stuart reprimands the Greek warrior, he just responds, "Nay. The Gods shalt not heave me down to Tartarus, but rather upbraid me. I've been 'upbraided' before!"
I’m 55 years old now, and remember reading “G.I. combat“ avidly when I could get my hands on a copy. I also remember when the crew transferred to the Sherman and had to try to stay camouflaged they took down the confederate flag and stowed it. The ghost of Stuart showed up and said “you fight without my flag you fight without me too”. He was also obviously pissed off that the tank they were now in was named after William Tecumseh Sherman.
You really brought back some memories. I had almost every issue from the 1960's when it was started, and they had an M-3 Stuart. Even back then it would crack me up when they were able to knock out a Tiger with "special" ammunition for the 37mm gun. But like you said this is a comlc book.
I mean the 37mm could destroy a tiger from the side with regular ammunition at close range, both on paper and there are recorded instances of this. Plus in theory 37mm hvap would have penatrste the front armour. Although I do not know of such a round being built.
@@matthiuskoenig3378 In the comic book they would hit the Tiger, and it would explode in comic book fashion, the turret would blow off, and the whole tank would explode. But any commander of a real M-3 that would get that close to a Tiger's front, or even side would have to looking for a section 8. Now maybe from behind...I actually remember reading a story about an M-8 Greyhound that supposedly, knocked out a Tiger hitting it in the rear, but the story was unsubstantiated.
@@genek8630 A big pet-peeve of mine is the whole "the rear is weaker" with alot of german tanks but the Tiger more specifically. As the sides and rear have the same thickness of 80mm, but the rear is actually angled at a few degrees so effectively it could be _harder_ to penetrate the rear of the tank than the sides
I recall reading a discussion of M3 vs Tiger, and a suggestion was that all the haunted tank's crew had to do was put a shell down the main gun barrel of the Tiger while the inside breech was open. So that would be easy.
I didn’t hear the Alexander the Great part during the video because I was distracted. I had to do a double take when reading your comment and had to back thinking “this can’t possibly be what was said” Then my reaction was the same as your lmao
"A t34 modified to have Christie suspension" The T34 has Christi suspension, the line reads "a modified T34, A Christie suspension" totally different meaning
The crew were not childhood friends. Rather the opposite. Jeb was Yankee born. The rest of the crew were hard-core southerners. The black crewman came much later and was a prior Olympic athlete. Of course he had problems initially with all but Jeb. Loved the comic series.
@@crispylizard4348 Probably both are based on a real-life tank commander in WWII, who had a lot of successful operations and retired as a Warrant in 1970.
There was a much later brief series of an M1A1 Abrams in Iraq during the 2003 Operation "Iraqi Freedom", but we don't see the ghost of Gen Creighton Abrams, but rather, Stuart once again overseeing a tank commanded by one of his descendants...a black US Army Sergeant. Both the ghost and Sgt. Stuart weren't exactly thrilled by this, but nevertheless, the general protects the tank and its crew. In the last issue, we find out that in a fit of drunkeness, Stuart had his way with a comely young slave girl, siring a son whose descendants also had sons through several generations up to the Army Sergeant from Michigan. An older slave woman who doesn't care for her "massa" places some Voodoo curse upon him that he had to go on fighting in the afterlife, whether he liked it or not.
I am 70 years old and remember reading this comic a lot . Part of the reason was that my late father was driver, later commander of an M3/5 light tank during WW 2!
I remember loving this comic as a kid in the 70's. I used to look for these issues specifically at the local news stand that carried comics. Of course back then I could get a snickers bar for a dime too! My dad and his brothers all served in WWII so I loved this stuff. Thanks for a great presentation!
The REAL haunted tank was one at Lullworth, Dorset, UK (home of Bovington tank museum). The story I heard was that a tank, possibly German, was recovered after being knocked out and all its crew killed. When loading on (or off) a transporter it slid and crushed two men. Then it was put on the ranges as a target tank. A German student walking the coast path there, left the path and sheltered next to the tank during a thunderstorm. The tank was hit by lightening and an unexploded shell in the ground near by blew up killing the student.
@@CreativeZachGaminglebestvids I've been trying to track down the story. Either I read it in a book - probably a locally published 'Ghosts of Dorset' pamphlet. Or, as we live quite close to the tank museum, perhaps one of the museum guides told the story. Can't remember if the tank was German or British but I'm pretty sure I've got the other details right.
@@CreativeZachGaminglebestvids There's also 'Herman the German', who allegedly haunts either a Bovington tank or possible a German aircraft at Cosford. I'm speaking from memory here, and can't swear to which is correct. But this is Halloween
@@32shumble I never heard of that story, but I think to get killed by an exploding shell that student either had to be inside that tank, as detonation force always takes the path of lowest resistance - in this case out of the hatches, away from him. Or, he was killed by the lightning straight away and the shell went off a few milliseconds later. The sight wouldn't be pretty either - to put it lightly.
@@stanislavczebinski994 The army ranges at Lulworth have been used for about 70 years, there are many unexploded shells in the ground itself. I suppose the lightning strike set off a shell near the tank.
Even as a kid I could tell that The Haunted Tank was a big mess of historical and technical inaccuracy. They didn't use the M3 Stuart in France because by then the M5 Stuart was in service. Jeb and his crew swing that turret around in a flash whenever a panzer shows up, but in reality the turret of the M3 Stuart was a nightmare to turn, so the usual practice was for the driver to aim the tank at the target and then stop. Fortunately the Stuart's main gun had a little bit of independent traverse, and the gunner moved it with his shoulder and then fired. I could go on and on. In the end, it was just a comic book, from the same people who gave us The Losers and Sgt. Rock.
Outdated equipment was pretty common. Just because something was supposed to be in standard service didn't mean the old stuff was phased out yet. Hell, the US army still has a couple of M60s in service even though Abrams was adopted nearly 40 years ago
I almost forgot, The Haunted Tank was also on a movie theater marquee in a season 1 episode of DC's Stargirl (the theater also had a poster for The Unknown Soldier too).
@@marseldagistani1989 No, but it had a lineage that included one of Christie's designs. Most of the defining features were dumped and it was modified. Most sources, historical and contemporary, including the wikipedia page for T-34, incorrectly state the use of "true" Christie suspension; though following the link and checking the page on Christie suspension reveals they didn't actually use it.
@@marseldagistani1989 They did. However, the intended wartime successor to the T-34, the T-43, used torsion bars like the German vehicles. The trouble was, the tooling changes necessary to convert over to the T-34 would have made necessary a three-month shutdown of all Soviet factories that had produced the T-34; which in late 1943 was simply not an option. Not unlike the American solution of refraining from replacing the M4 with the T23 medium, but just using its turret, the Soviets likewise plopped the three-man turret of the T43 onto the existing T-34 chassis. It was originally planned that this upgrade would still use a 76 mm piece, although they were testing a lengthened version with a muzzle brake that had better armor penetration numbers with APCBC. Instead, although the result was a turret that, with three men, was cramped, the D-5T 85 mm gun, originally intended for the JS heavy tanks and the SU-85 tank destroyer, was put into, creating the famed T-34/85. Although nose-heavy and not easy to work with, this medium tank stood a reasonable chance of slugging it out with the German "Big Cats"! Part of the reason also was that STAVKA wanted the JS tanks to be a "breakthrough" tank, and the HE capability of the 122 mm gun was thought better than the armor penetration of the 85 mm piece. Likewise, although SU-85s still rolled out, they were replaced in early 1945 by the SU-100, with the much more potent D-10T 100 mm rifled gun, which could and did engage even the King Tiger at reasonable ranges and could destroy it.
I read “GI Combat” RELIGIOUSLY when I was a boy (1960s). I got a thrill every time Jeb Stuart and the Haunted Tank teamed up with SGT Rock and Easy Company.
I read the G.I Combat comic when I was a kid starting in the early 70's and stopped reading it in the 80's. Time line for the series was all over the place, like Jagdtigers in 1942, so you can't pin down any accurate timeline. In the years I read the series, Jeb and the crew killed the entire Germany army twice over.
This was my favorite comic series as a kid. I found the creation of the jigsaw tank as a timely upgrade from the M3 (although I thought the Gen was not only there because of Jeb but also due to the M3 being named after him). Deep down I knew the probability of a single M3 Stuart surviving against current German models was a comic plot device. I think I just attributed it to the crew’s stubborn can do ability with the assistance from Gen Stuart. Thanks for the trip down memory lane and greetings from 🇨🇦
James Ewell Brown Stuart, the ghost confederate general "haunting" this fictional tank, actually existed. The M3 "Stuart" light tank was nicknamed after him by the British. He himself did like to go by "Jeb" Stuart (J.E.B = James Ewell Brown) so it's rather strange that the tank commander's first name, in this comic, is also Jeb. On a sidenote, it's too bad that the M4 Sherman haunted by Gen. Sherman wasn't the flamethrower variant. Such a missed opportunity.
Sherman's ghost: alright, time to kick some krau-. . .wait, does this thing have a flamethrower? Commander: umm, yea, it's a special variant of the tan- Sherman: say no more. *_Brother, we're gonna do to Berlin what I did to Atlanta._*
The Haunted Tank was one of my favorite comic book series as a kid. I had dozens of their issues including the one where the jigsaw tank was built following the Stuarts destruction, the later jigsaw tanks destruction and replacement by a Sherman, and the shermans destruction resulting in Jeb and crew finding the jigsaw tank in a tank graveyard and starting it back up and rolling out to fight again. I seem to remember only one actual crew member dying and a replacement in the form of the black soldier. I also believe the tank commander Jeb was actually from a northern state along with the rest of the crew, and that upset the generals ghost at first. He also took offense and left the crew when in a Sherman at first because Gen. Sherman was famous for burning his way through Georgia. I highly recommend this series along with my other two favorites Sgt Rock of Easy Company and the original Losers. Years later I was commissioned in Armor in the US Army and had my own appreciation of the lessons of armored combat. Definitely not the comic book life.
Do you remember the origin story of Jeb Stuart? I have a vague, shadowy memoey of him being ostracized at boot camp and having to prove his mettle with a series of fist fights - And I think this led to him gaining the loyalty of his original crew, who all had alliterative names; only one I can remember is Arch Asher, and one was called Slim but I can't remember his "S" last name or the other guy, (or wait, maybe it was Rick Rawlins!) One of the original crew died/was written out and was replaced by a black tanker (in a plot that I do not think was historically accurate BTW), who was an Olympic athlete prior to the war as I was reminded elsewhere. I guess I could look it all up...
@@johnhood9567 Im thinking that was Rick. That was black and a replacement. I think he later saw the General when Jeb was wounded or out of action somehow.
I remember reading this series and General Stewart was severely miffed when the crew transferred to a Sherman tank as the general thought that gen. Sherman dismissed the burning of Atlanta by saying "war is hell". And, ironically, it was very much against war.🤔
Thanks for doing this video. One of my favorite comics growing up. I still collect back issues if I can get my hands on them especially if the art is done by Russ Heath, one of the best artists in comics who is underated due to his work primarily in war comics. And, yes, some of those covers are wild.
I loved this video. I have this entire comic book series, and read it feverishly in my pre-teen years. Thanks for covering such a little known subject.
Used to read this in my younger days. Always bugged me how the M3 Stuart could knock out Tigers and Panthers from the front. At least the gun on the jigsaw tank made sense. As for the turret... it almost makes me think of the M41 Walker Bulldog... but those didn't see service until after Korea, I believe. Otherwise... a close-topped M10? Off a Challenger?(WWII era ... 17 pounder fit into a Cromwell.) Can you do an episode on the WWII Challenger?
I was able to read them too when I was a kid. Along with the Howling Commandos and Sgt. Rock. The issues I read featured the T34 hull with a turret that looks like that of an M10. So I guess you're right about the slapped-on tank parts.
@@derf-vr1fc Yeah... but the M10 was open topped... so I guess they... put a top on it? Funny thing, they lost the M3 in France, then built the jigsaw tank... but there was an episode where they were in the desert... in the jigsaw tank. Comics. Like Xena the Warrior princess... one episode she's fighting Persians in Ancient Greece... then meets Julius Caesar in another.
I'm 70 years old. When I was in the second grade, I was having trouble keeping up in reading. My father noticed that I was always looking at comic books - particularly those that depicted WWII or the Korean war and my favorite was the comic stories about the haunted Stuart tank. He asked me if I was reading the comics or just looking at the pictures. I told him I was looking at the pictures because I still couldn't "get" the reading. He asked me what comic was my favorite. I told him I liked the haunted tank stories the most because it looked like there was something going on with a ghost. He then told me that, IF I would read every word in every comic, he'd buy me all of the haunted tank comics that I wanted, and, that if I improved my reading, he'd buy other stories as well. It was a deal that was too good to be true. I immediately went to the comic rack at the drug store and picked out one or two haunted tank stories and began trying to read every word. It wasn't easy, but I was motivated. When I'd finished the first one, which took me about a week to figure out, he took it, opened it and then started quizzing me on what had happened in the story. I answered his questions and then, satisfied, he told me to keep it up. Gradually, I began working my way through each issue more quickly and I began catching up to the rest of my class in reading. Within a few months I had a nice fat stack of new comics, paid for by my dad, added to the paltry stack that I'd previously had bought with my $.25-a-week allowance. Down at the pharmacy where I'd peruse the comic book rack, the pharmacist kept a running tab of the comics I bought and my father would pay the tab whenever he went in there to buy cigarettes or pick up the paper. Within six months I'd caught up to my class and surpassed them. The sister - I was attending parochial school - told my parents that I was reading at a skill level above my grade and wanted to know what had changed. My mom explained that I had simply been allowed to read the comic books that the sister had previously forbidden us to bring to school and for which the sister had been whacking me over the knuckles with a ruler whenever she'd caught me with one. I don't think that sister Rose-Marie ever really figured it out. For me, it not only ensured I got better grades in English - it began a lifetime love of reading and it all began because I was fascinated by a comic book story about a haunted Stuart tank and a delusional tank commander that talked to his dead ancestor while commanding a tank.
Wonderfull story - thanks for sharing - I'm dyslexic and had a very similar experience albeit "Peanuts" was my entre' to the written word, but part of the motivation was that I wanted to be able to read the GI comics series and in a short time, I started reading factual war histories - I ended up teaching military history at the graduate level - Like you my parents were very encouraging and supportive - Your Dad must have been a man worth knowing.
Awesome comic and storyline! Beats any Marvel crap past, present and future. The turret reminded me of an M47 or Walker Bulldog or similar and I remember the gun had a bore evacuator type bulge in it which I don’t recall being on any WW2 tank barrel. The DC art and drawing of allied and axis weapon systems were great too. You can see the detail on the Tigers and small arms used by the combatants and it greatly enhanced the believability of a sometimes fantastical plot. Oh, and the tank was integrated with a black crewman that replaced an original crew member that was KIA. I think the plot had all the crewman being Southerners, not not just white Americans. The Army didn’t integrate until AFTER WW2. So, THT was way ahead of its time. So was SGT Rock and The Losers. Weird War was cool too.
The Comic pro tied with this and Sgt Rock had a friend in Yugoslavia when it crumbled, his fax machine was still working. Fax from Sarajevo it's brilliant.
Yep, lol though it is funny to see the U.S. Army showing up there - being portrayed with Steel pots, M-1s and C-47s. But ya draw primarily WW2 comics for 30 - 40 years I get it might just be habit.
I read the series as a kid because I got leftover issues of every type of comic from my cousin's drugstore. The Haunted Tank was perhaps the silliest war concept in a fantasy world of silly concepts. I remember numerous complaints being posted in the Letter-to-the-Editor column of this magazine about the absurdity of taking out dozens (hundreds?) of Panthers and Tigers with a lowly 37mm "high velocity" cannon. I believe these complaints were what eventually led to the hybrid tank. I read that first issue, too, and found it even more ridiculous than the Stuart. But, hey, this was DC Comics, which once released an issue of SGT ROCK where he and the men of Easy Company held off the Germans while the British and French troops evacuated from Dunkirk!!! Boy did they get hammered for that mistake. I wish I'd kept my issue. It's probably a collector's piece today.
The cobbled together haunted tank was never popular in the G.I Combat comics. The mail call or letter section reflected this in those days. What most of the readers wanted was a return of the M3 or M5 Stuart tank, even if, in reality, the 37mm cannon wouldn't even scratch the paint off a Tiger I. Thanks for doing this video. It was a trip down memory lane.
Something different, many years ago I read a book or a short story about Churchill using a cabal of magicians/wizards to summon demons and trap them into a number of Sherman tanks, these tanks were virtually indestructible and were going to be/were used as the first assault wave on the Normandy beaches to break the shore defences and allow a bridgehead to be established. It was an interesting read as on both sides during WW2 there was a lot of interest in the occult being harnessed to provide an advantage or to produce a winning unstoppable force.
The Book version I read was called "The Devils of D-Day", where 4 demons from the medieval demon lore were sealed into Black Shermans with Silver crosses welded onto the roof of the turret. They had supernatural abilities, beyond driving around with no crew, which included giving nearby enemies tropical diseases and plagues, slicing enemies with supernatural ethereal knives, etc. Very weird.
I remember that book! One of the tanks was knocked out so they welded the hatches shut and left it. That was causing problems for the local populace plagues and such.
I grew up reading this comic series!!!! I collected all the issues that I could find at comic shops, flea markets, etc. I had them all the way back to the early 70's and even have the last installment by DC comics! Thank you for bringing this to light! Too bad you had to blur out the rebel flag,though.
not really, the confederacy was a bunch of people crying about the economic impact of being banned from owning people as property, they deserve every ounce of hate "heritage not hate" my fucking ass
@@gaiamission7200 While slavery was a big part of that conflict, it wasn't the only reason. I don't disagree that flying the flag isn't the best idea, but having to blur it is silly.
@@gaiamission7200 I mean it’s the main reason but not the only, it was definitely a war for slavery. The south wanted slaves and the north wanted to keep the Union together, and later slaves becoming free became important to the Union.
First comic I ever subscribed to. Yeah, there was not much "historical" about this. I think they destroyed about 2,000 of the 1,350 Tiger I's ever built. Plus aircraft, submarines, railroad guns, and whatever the writers could dream up. Great fun! I always used an M41 Bulldog as a stand-in for the jigsaw tank when I played in the sandbox. Thanks for doing this one!
I fully support reviews of fictional tanks like this in the future, also didn't you already kinda do this when checking out those crazy "future tanks" dreamt up in those technology of the future magazines?
When I was a kid this was one of my favorite comics and sparked my interest in history. I actually owned the comic where the jigsaw tank was built. Even as a kid I knew this was ridiculous, but it was all fun. You know the art was really good. BTW, JEB Stuart was only 31 when he died, something as a Southerner I knew as a youngster so I was always confused by his being shown as old….
I loved that comic book series, and got all choked up watching your video. To this day, a subscript of haunted tank is burned in my mind. It was a story about a team that was testing a new gun/rifle. The gun worked too good and the guy destroyed it at the end. Vivid childhood memories.
This is making me feel really old. I remember reading this comic at the drug store when my dad was picking up his prescriptions back in the late '60s early '70s.
I remember this comic book. I would read every issue I could get my hands on. But I was a kid then and it was just a cool comic book back then. Sorry I cant help with details. But this might be a cool build like you did with the Maus
I am 75 years old and I remember reading the haunted tank you did the best job ever using what you had I just bought some old back issues of the haunted tank thank you now I have to find a new haunted tank comic book
It's been decades but man I don't remember all the details just vague recollections. As children my cousins and friends swapped/shared various comics back and forth. But, I thank you for prompting a recollection from my childhood.👍
i have seen most of them since i am over 60... Main reason how i got into tanks! great story and video. issue #150 is when they had to replace Stuart with the made up tank..
I'm 68 & read these as a kid and it was a riot , knowing from building models , it amaze me how a tank with a 37mm main gun could on a daily bases , know out not only Tiger Tanks ,but shoot down planes ! I don't remember the conversion to the newer tank , but there is special place in my heart for that old tank with the ghost !
The Haunted Tank was also featured in a 4 part story in "The Demon" comic, starting in the April 1994 issue. "Haunted Glory" It has the original crew and tank being dragged back for one final operation fighting Nazi zombies and it's just as great as it sounds.
The appearance of the tank varied quite a bit depending on the artist. There have been quite a few modeling efforts over the years. A few have started off with the T34 base, only to find that the comic volume they're using doesn't fit that look. There's even a couple-month run of the comic where it looks more like a Pershing body with an M48 Patton turret.
@@pz_4296 As I remember it, there was only one issue that showed them building the scrap tank. I think the variations were simply artists' takes on the tank. There is a scale modeling forum that held a scrap tank build challenge and there was quite a bit of discussion on the variations from the original. Most seemed to go with the T34 base and then some custom-built turrets, while others went with Chaffee or in a couple cases Pershing turrets.
That looks like comics that I used to read at YMCA summer camp 1965-1969. The 2 weeks of summer camp each year was the only time I was "allowed" to look at comic books, because according to my dad, comic books were for illiterate Seaman that spend their enlistments cleaning the head. I don't know if Haunted Tank was one of them, the only one I remember the name of was Sergeant Rock. SIDE NOTE: My summer camp was right next to Ft Knox and it was a busy, loud place back then.
I remember this comic quite well and the fantastic tank kills obtained with a Stuart's 37mm gun. I also remember the creation of the Jigsaw tank. If I remember correctly, the turret was that of an M18 Hellcat with an added metal roof structure. I don't remember the hull mount being a 20mm gun. I think the writers had to upgrade from the M3 because of the amount of flak they were catching about the unrealistic tank kills with the 37mm gun.
I'd say either the M10 Wolverine or M10 "Achilles", but, yeah, either used an OPEN-top turret, so extensive modifications would have been necessary to convert it into a tank turret.
I started reading this comic when I was six years old. That was fifty three years ago. It is still my favorite war comic. It is to bad that now, we have to blot out things so others would not be offended. Thanks for this episode. Also, the jigsaw tank had a Christie Suspension and a upper hull from a Panther. Notice the hatches on top of the hull? They are not on a T-34.
Fun video, Cone Of Arc. I’ve always loved reading the comic book adventures of the Haunted Tank. I purchased a couple G. I. Combat issues off the stands at the PX at the Alameda Naval Base. Issue #222 was my first one. I’ve been sporadically picking up G.I. Combat back issues. Nice video. Thanks !
I'm one of those people who read this series (on and off) way, way back. I recall that there was another replacement tank they cobbled together out of parts at "the depot" in one episode. They put a turret with what looked like a 57 mm gun onto an M5 chassis. In that comic, they were fighting in Italy, alongside a whole lot of Pershings. The comic was not big on logistical accuracy, since only 20 Pershings made it to Europe, and none of those went to Italy...
... by the way, I now remember one particular episode of Sargent Rock of Easy Company, that had me in sheer awe, at the seemingly detailed artwork of the German Tiger tank, Mark 1... that issue was titled "Easy Meets Their First Tiger" and was set during the African campaign, as I recall :-)
I read “The Haunted Tank”, and “Sgt.Rock” as a kid, waaaaaay back in the late ‘60s/early ‘70s. I sorta wondered, if the turret was a poorly drawn Firefly turret. Thanks for this blast from the past!!!
When I was a kid back in the 1960s (in the UK), one of the comics I read had a series of stories about a WW2 tank crew who called their tank "Bargain Counter" - instead of the normal stowage items, it was hung all over with items which they had captured, salvaged or looted, and which they then sold for profit. As I recall, the tank was a Sherman and the setting was France 1944.
I used to read this comic regularly during the 70's along with-Our Army at War, and SGT. Rock-when I was a kid. I LOVED it. Though being a kid the inconsistencies of the tank did not enter into my mind as I had no tank knowledge at all. But then, how can you take it seriously when one issue had a C47(I believe) transporting it over the Channel. The plane was hit by enemy fire so they pushed the tank out of the plane complete with a parachute tied to it where it floated to earth. But wait!! It gets better! The tank then landed on the deck of a German submarine! As goofy as it is, I LOVED IT. The SGT. Rock comic had by far the best artwork of them all. You should definitely check them all out.
I attended the Joe Kubert School in 1983. Joe was the creator/artist of The Haunted Tank. Joe taught one of the classes I was in. As I had recently left the service having been a tank driver in the 1st Armored Division I knew a little about it. One day in class I addressed the Ahistorical aspects of the comic: the wrong vehicle, the wrong CVC helmets and others (I also told him his Sgt Rock was the wrong rank). He was not impressed and became a bit miffed. I dropped it having made my point. He never did care for me after that. It's all fun and games until the historian shows up.
Remember following the series as a kid. Commander was a relative of J.E.B. Stuart. There was a 4 man crew at first but along the way they lost one crew member and got Jackie Robinson (first black crewmember, keep in mind this happened in the late 60's early 70's). They were fighting panthers and Tigers all through the series so trying to follow the timeline by the tanks is not going to work. Do remember having the issue where they got the M4 Sherman after losing their Stuart and the ghost of J.E.B. getting mad at him for driving a tank named after "That Yankee Firebrand" Used to get it as a kid when the series was called the Haunted Tank. Others I used to read were Sgt Rock and Easy Company, Nick Fury and the howling Commandos (Yes, That Nick Fury but he was a white guy with Red hair back then), the Unknown Soldier, Weird War, and Fighting army/Navy.
@3:38 the 20 mm machine gun / autocannon cannot be "coaxial". Co-axial guns moving on same axis (hence the name), therefore you can be sure, they're firing mostly to the same direction. In this case the machine gun isn't on the main gun's axis, so they are not co-axial guns.
Greetings! I only use the information you provided in the video, including the pictures. So, this is how I would build it. Take a T-34 hull, running gear, suspension and engine. Remove the hull top plate first. Since we are about to go for front sprocket anyway, remove the transmission entirely. We freed up some space, and after you turned it 180 degrees, place the engine further back. So now the engine's back facing forwards. Also, place the engine compartment wall further back. The angles of the tunnels for each suspension unit has to be changed, especially around the turret ring(as we are about to see the reason later). Judging by your video, the driver's hatch (and the co-driver's hatch as well) is on the top plate instead of the front plate, so I assumed the original one is just welded shut. Which was a mistake from my part(see image at 6:36). But it's no longer an escape hatch,something is in it,maybe some sort of cooling for the transmission? Since both crew members are probably placed further back,there is maybe some room for a transmission and a differential,but probably not the preferred one,hence the slow top speed. I would either use a governor for the engine or for the transmission,but if the engine still gives 500 HP, than they probably use some governing in the transmission to prevent failure. It has to be mentioned that the sprocket wheel in tanks are usually larger in diameter than the idlers, therefore their center can be put somewhat further backwards. Also, T-34 doesn't have a turret basket or torsion bars to prevent a transmission shaft(or sectioned shafts) going on the floor. They placed the crew hatches on top of the hull,so the have to move the turret backwards. The T-34's hull top plate is just a simple rectangle. Cut the section (most likely a square shape) with the turret ring in it. The top of the engine compartment has to be altered,maybe cut in half, or use an entirely new design for it. As far as I can tell from your video, they gathered together some steel for sure. Since they are building a new tank,they probably have the means to do alterations. One way or another,the top cover for the engine compartment is going to be shorter than it was before,so you can put the turret section further back and you have space for the extra top plate needed to cover the driver and co-driver with their hatches. Speaking of the turret, on some images it looks like somebody has the Crusader in mind before started welding the plates together but it's wider. The authors of the comic book seems to be somewhat inconsistent about one or two feature, like the commander's cupola tends to change position from left to right. It was an interesting thought experiment,but I have to work tomorrow,so I can't finish it right now. I wish you well, A Hungarian Armour Enthusiast
I'm 67 and I read this comic around 65-66. I only had the ones when they were in the M-3. One of my favorites along with one about a native American P-51 pilot who had the spirit/ghost of a native warrior looking out for him. Johnny Cloud, Navajo Ace. Wish I still had those. Father made me give them all away. Lots of first editions like X-Men
I remember this comic as a kid. I wasn't a avid comic book reader but when we would visit my grandmother's cottage and we went to "town" my dad would buy me a copy of this or sgt rock.
The Jigsaw Tank did have a few breakdowns, and that gave the writers a chance to repeat some stories by temporarily giving Jeb and his crew an M3 to use while the Jigsaw Tank was being repaired.
I read the original series when I was a kid and I couldn't wait for it to come out! There was another series that I think came out in another comic but I can barely remember that was a war series that followed various Horror happenings that afflicted Infantry soldiers. I wish I still had those comics because they would be worth a ton of money now and I basically shredded them as a kid, with no understanding that they would be worth lots much later in life. I read them so long ago that I can't even remember if what you were saying was truly accurate or not and I had no idea that they did another series in the 2000's in Afghanistan related to an Abrams tank! Super cool! I remember trying to figure out what kind of tank they had and they seemed to have a bunch of tanks and the T-34 cobbled tank seemed to me to have a Bulldog Turret at times and at other times it was something else as I think the artists had no real idea what they should be drawing, they were comic artists not tank experts.
I'm 71. I read "The haunted tank" avidly for sometime in the early 1960s (I think I once own the very first story). My memory of the stories is more than a little vague but the only haunted tank I remember was a Stuart and I don't remember it being destroyed, in fact, I remember part of the story line being the tank and its crew being "magically" lucky because of their "protector." I am sure I didn't pwn or read nearly all of them even at the time I was trying to.
Thus was fun! If you'd be ready to do more fictional tanks. I'd *love* if you could do a small video on Bolo tanks. Maybe something from Hammers Slammers? There are plenty of fictional tanks to choose from if you ever feel like it. No lack of content there :)
The "Brave and the Bold" clip at 2:57 had me rolling the first time I saw it. Soon as I saw the bridge, I was like "They're not. They're not going to make a Dukes of Hazard allusion" When they even added the "Yeee-haw!" and the Dixie horn, I had to pause the video until I stopped laughing.
Should I do a separate series for these fictional tanks or should I keep them in this series? I was thinking something like "Fake Tank Friday" but I don't know if its worth a whole new series.
Separating them might be a good idea, but it depends on how many of these tanks there are
@@JarOfDirt. yep i agree
I'd say they would be fine in the Cursed By Design series, since there just isn't that many failed tanks that are also well documented.
A fiction tank Friday sounds fun
Seperating them would make them more interesting.
My grandpa talked about this comic. He said he read it all the time when he was younger.
It was my favorite comic book.... 50 years ago. M3 Stuart although they may have upgraded to the M5 by the time l found the fumes, in the mid-70s. Gas fumes and perfumes. Lol
Hey I recognize you
@@bumblebeebob wait you were there?
@@SlowpokeSpartan Where was l? Lol
Good chances I'm who you think l am. I have no imagination and use the same username just about everywhere.
@@bumblebeebob lol sorry the recognition was to the original commenter
"The Story of the haunted tank."
Oh yeah, so every tank I'm using when playing a video game.
World of Tanks comes to mind 🤣. Ever look in an open tank on that game nothing but emptiness 🤣🤣
@@sketchdajuggalo _yes_
@@heenthousiast383 i say it's time World of Ghost Tanks for the re name !
@@sketchdajuggalo i play World of Ghost Tanks Blitz but n'k
Lmao
Transfer to Sherman tank.
Commander: "Ok ghostie, what should we do about those krauts?"
Ghost: "Burn Atlanta."
If Haunted Tank gets a reboot, I totally want it to be Sherman
@@nostradamusofgames5508 they did upgrade to the Sherman and jeb Stuart ghost got mad and left for awhile.
@@nostradamusofgames5508 no way jose! It should be a M3 LEE/GRANT! . It has 100% more gun and 100% ghost per tank!
Bonus points if come with an obnoxiously loud dixie horn.
JEB Stuart: *Riding a Raid intensifies.*
Could get a Pershing.
That begs the question... Would there be a British tank crew somewhere haunted by Oliver Cromwell forbidding them from smiling, playing football, celebrating Christmas etc?
Or a Churchill tank that decides that it actually likes the Germans and wants to fight the French and Spanish
Watch out if the Tank Commander were from Eire . . . .
@@JohnMinehan-lx9ts Or, if as I've surmised, the turret and gun are from a British-used M10 ACHILLES, with the 17-pounder gun, have the ghost of the Greek hero Achilles accompany the group and spar with JEB Stuart. Draw him to look like Brad Pitt, and when Stuart reprimands the Greek warrior, he just responds, "Nay. The Gods shalt not heave me down to Tartarus, but rather upbraid me. I've been 'upbraided' before!"
@@selfdo Get Pitt's release first . . . .
. . . or Scotland, the Lowland Scots still remember Dunbar!
I’m 55 years old now, and remember reading “G.I. combat“ avidly when I could get my hands on a copy. I also remember when the crew transferred to the Sherman and had to try to stay camouflaged they took down the confederate flag and stowed it. The ghost of Stuart showed up and said “you fight without my flag you fight without me too”. He was also obviously pissed off that the tank they were now in was named after William Tecumseh Sherman.
And they had a battle with a Tiger that was haunted by Attila the Hun. Lol
also the the japanese a6m zero haunted by ghost of samurai
Where was the ghost of Sherman? I'd rather fight with him, anyway.
@@Aetherometricist agreed.
@@Aetherometricist Sherman: smart but not heroic. He fought the enemy’s economy, not its army.
You really brought back some memories. I had almost every issue from the 1960's when it was started, and they had an M-3 Stuart. Even back then it would crack me up when they were able to knock out a Tiger with "special" ammunition for the 37mm gun. But like you said this is a comlc book.
I mean the 37mm could destroy a tiger from the side with regular ammunition at close range, both on paper and there are recorded instances of this. Plus in theory 37mm hvap would have penatrste the front armour. Although I do not know of such a round being built.
@@matthiuskoenig3378 In the comic book they would hit the Tiger, and it would explode in comic book fashion, the turret would blow off, and the whole tank would explode. But any commander of a real M-3 that would get that close to a Tiger's front, or even side would have to looking for a section 8. Now maybe from behind...I actually remember reading a story about an M-8 Greyhound that supposedly, knocked out a Tiger hitting it in the rear, but the story was unsubstantiated.
@@genek8630 A big pet-peeve of mine is the whole "the rear is weaker" with alot of german tanks but the Tiger more specifically.
As the sides and rear have the same thickness of 80mm, but the rear is actually angled at a few degrees so effectively it could be _harder_ to penetrate the rear of the tank than the sides
I recall reading a discussion of M3 vs Tiger, and a suggestion was that all the haunted tank's crew had to do was put a shell down the main gun barrel of the Tiger while the inside breech was open. So that would be easy.
Me too! They killed Tigers every week with that Stuart. I wasn’t reading when they built their own tank though.
"Alexander the Great sends a confederate gen. to haunt & protect a stuart tank."
lmao??????
This is a certified hood classic
I didn’t hear the Alexander the Great part during the video because I was distracted. I had to do a double take when reading your comment and had to back thinking “this can’t possibly be what was said”
Then my reaction was the same as your lmao
Since when the heck do American generals, alive or dead, take orders from some freaking Greek???
This is not worth doing a video for.
@@davidwoods7408 I thought it was interesting and funny enough to cover and its a topic that otherwise I would have never known or found out about.
Haunted Tank, Sgt. Rock, Unknown Soldier, and Weird War Tales were all awesome comics to read. Being Gen X is awesome
GI Combat, sgt Fury and his howling commandos, and the Nam. Loved the different art too.
Hey! I'm the last of the boomer gen. That stuff was still fresh on the racks when I was a kid! I collected those back then. Great comics!
it's good to know to good old shows were aired for good reasons
The Viking Soldier, Creature Commandoes, etc, etc.
Except until everyone calls you a boomer just like everyone calls Gen Z millennials. This labeling had lost any semblance of working long ago.
"A t34 modified to have Christie suspension"
The T34 has Christi suspension, the line reads "a modified T34, A Christie suspension" totally different meaning
the T-34 does not have the christie suspension, the T-34 has the torsion bar suspension
@@richardkmoch2208
Aghm,since when?
From the BT series,them tanks were based on Christe suspension.
Unlike KV series,that is.
The crew were not childhood friends. Rather the opposite. Jeb was Yankee born. The rest of the crew were hard-core southerners. The black crewman came much later and was a prior Olympic athlete. Of course he had problems initially with all but Jeb. Loved the comic series.
So Jeb was kinda like the tank commander from FURY
@@crispylizard4348 Probably both are based on a real-life tank commander in WWII, who had a lot of successful operations and retired as a Warrant in 1970.
There was a much later brief series of an M1A1 Abrams in Iraq during the 2003 Operation "Iraqi Freedom", but we don't see the ghost of Gen Creighton Abrams, but rather, Stuart once again overseeing a tank commanded by one of his descendants...a black US Army Sergeant. Both the ghost and Sgt. Stuart weren't exactly thrilled by this, but nevertheless, the general protects the tank and its crew. In the last issue, we find out that in a fit of drunkeness, Stuart had his way with a comely young slave girl, siring a son whose descendants also had sons through several generations up to the Army Sergeant from Michigan. An older slave woman who doesn't care for her "massa" places some Voodoo curse upon him that he had to go on fighting in the afterlife, whether he liked it or not.
I am 70 years old and remember reading this comic a lot . Part of the reason was that my late father was driver, later commander of an M3/5 light tank during WW 2!
I remember loving this comic as a kid in the 70's. I used to look for these issues specifically at the local news stand that carried comics. Of course back then I could get a snickers bar for a dime too! My dad and his brothers all served in WWII so I loved this stuff. Thanks for a great presentation!
The REAL haunted tank was one at Lullworth, Dorset, UK (home of Bovington tank museum). The story I heard was that a tank, possibly German, was recovered after being knocked out and all its crew killed. When loading on (or off) a transporter it slid and crushed two men. Then it was put on the ranges as a target tank. A German student walking the coast path there, left the path and sheltered next to the tank during a thunderstorm. The tank was hit by lightening and an unexploded shell in the ground near by blew up killing the student.
I wanna hear more about this
@@CreativeZachGaminglebestvids I've been trying to track down the story. Either I read it in a book - probably a locally published 'Ghosts of Dorset' pamphlet. Or, as we live quite close to the tank museum, perhaps one of the museum guides told the story.
Can't remember if the tank was German or British but I'm pretty sure I've got the other details right.
@@CreativeZachGaminglebestvids There's also 'Herman the German', who allegedly haunts either a Bovington tank or possible a German aircraft at Cosford. I'm speaking from memory here, and can't swear to which is correct. But this is Halloween
@@32shumble I never heard of that story, but I think to get killed by an exploding shell that student either had to be inside that tank, as detonation force always takes the path of lowest resistance - in this case out of the hatches, away from him. Or, he was killed by the lightning straight away and the shell went off a few milliseconds later. The sight wouldn't be pretty either - to put it lightly.
@@stanislavczebinski994 The army ranges at Lulworth have been used for about 70 years, there are many unexploded shells in the ground itself. I suppose the lightning strike set off a shell near the tank.
Even as a kid I could tell that The Haunted Tank was a big mess of historical and technical inaccuracy. They didn't use the M3 Stuart in France because by then the M5 Stuart was in service. Jeb and his crew swing that turret around in a flash whenever a panzer shows up, but in reality the turret of the M3 Stuart was a nightmare to turn, so the usual practice was for the driver to aim the tank at the target and then stop. Fortunately the Stuart's main gun had a little bit of independent traverse, and the gunner moved it with his shoulder and then fired. I could go on and on. In the end, it was just a comic book, from the same people who gave us The Losers and Sgt. Rock.
Outdated equipment was pretty common. Just because something was supposed to be in standard service didn't mean the old stuff was phased out yet. Hell, the US army still has a couple of M60s in service even though Abrams was adopted nearly 40 years ago
Ah yes, two more of my favorite comics from my childhood.
Sgt. Rock was cool. Boy I wish I kept all those comic books. I remember I had the #1 Silver Surfer. I feel sick everytime I see how much it's worth.
@@genek8630 I can feel your pain on that one. The Kirby Silver Surfer, and not the Moebius Silver Surfer, right?
Its a FREAKING comic book!!!!!!!
I remember the Haunted Tank was featured briefly in an episode Batman: the Brave and the Bold.
The Haunted Tank also signed Starfire's yearbook in an episode of Teen Titans Go. 🤣
I almost forgot, The Haunted Tank was also on a movie theater marquee in a season 1 episode of DC's Stargirl (the theater also had a poster for The Unknown Soldier too).
Jumps a bridge. Jeb driving. Batman as passenger. Dixie Horn sounds. Ala Dukes of Hazzard
“T-34 modified to have a Christie suspension” hmmm Chieftain would be interesting in that word usage
didn't all T-34s have a Christie suspension
@@marseldagistani1989 No, but it had a lineage that included one of Christie's designs. Most of the defining features were dumped and it was modified. Most sources, historical and contemporary, including the wikipedia page for T-34, incorrectly state the use of "true" Christie suspension; though following the link and checking the page on Christie suspension reveals they didn't actually use it.
@@marseldagistani1989 They did. However, the intended wartime successor to the T-34, the T-43, used torsion bars like the German vehicles. The trouble was, the tooling changes necessary to convert over to the T-34 would have made necessary a three-month shutdown of all Soviet factories that had produced the T-34; which in late 1943 was simply not an option. Not unlike the American solution of refraining from replacing the M4 with the T23 medium, but just using its turret, the Soviets likewise plopped the three-man turret of the T43 onto the existing T-34 chassis. It was originally planned that this upgrade would still use a 76 mm piece, although they were testing a lengthened version with a muzzle brake that had better armor penetration numbers with APCBC. Instead, although the result was a turret that, with three men, was cramped, the D-5T 85 mm gun, originally intended for the JS heavy tanks and the SU-85 tank destroyer, was put into, creating the famed T-34/85. Although nose-heavy and not easy to work with, this medium tank stood a reasonable chance of slugging it out with the German "Big Cats"! Part of the reason also was that STAVKA wanted the JS tanks to be a "breakthrough" tank, and the HE capability of the 122 mm gun was thought better than the armor penetration of the 85 mm piece. Likewise, although SU-85s still rolled out, they were replaced in early 1945 by the SU-100, with the much more potent D-10T 100 mm rifled gun, which could and did engage even the King Tiger at reasonable ranges and could destroy it.
I read “GI Combat” RELIGIOUSLY when I was a boy (1960s). I got a thrill every time Jeb Stuart and the Haunted Tank teamed up with SGT Rock and Easy Company.
Hello there👋👋,how are you doing today? Hope you’re having a good?❤️!!
I read the G.I Combat comic when I was a kid starting in the early 70's and stopped reading it in the 80's.
Time line for the series was all over the place, like Jagdtigers in 1942, so you can't pin down any accurate timeline.
In the years I read the series, Jeb and the crew killed the entire Germany army twice over.
This was my favorite comic series as a kid.
I found the creation of the jigsaw tank as a timely upgrade from the M3 (although I thought the Gen was not only there because of Jeb but also due to the M3 being named after him).
Deep down I knew the probability of a single M3 Stuart surviving against current German models was a comic plot device. I think I just attributed it to the crew’s stubborn can do ability with the assistance from Gen Stuart.
Thanks for the trip down memory lane and greetings from 🇨🇦
James Ewell Brown Stuart, the ghost confederate general "haunting" this fictional tank, actually existed. The M3 "Stuart" light tank was nicknamed after him by the British. He himself did like to go by "Jeb" Stuart (J.E.B = James Ewell Brown) so it's rather strange that the tank commander's first name, in this comic, is also Jeb.
On a sidenote, it's too bad that the M4 Sherman haunted by Gen. Sherman wasn't the flamethrower variant. Such a missed opportunity.
A missed opportunity for sure, but maybe a tad too on the nose
_BURNIN' SHERMAN_
Sherman's ghost: alright, time to kick some krau-. . .wait, does this thing have a flamethrower?
Commander: umm, yea, it's a special variant of the tan-
Sherman: say no more. *_Brother, we're gonna do to Berlin what I did to Atlanta._*
They tried a story arc where gen Sherman haunted a Sherman used by the National Guard to quell rioting in Atlanta
The M3 was an AMERICAN light tank, and was not named by the British.
It WAS however named after J.E.B Stuart.
The Haunted Tank was one of my favorite comic book series as a kid. I had dozens of their issues including the one where the jigsaw tank was built following the Stuarts destruction, the later jigsaw tanks destruction and replacement by a Sherman, and the shermans destruction resulting in Jeb and crew finding the jigsaw tank in a tank graveyard and starting it back up and rolling out to fight again.
I seem to remember only one actual crew member dying and a replacement in the form of the black soldier. I also believe the tank commander Jeb was actually from a northern state along with the rest of the crew, and that upset the generals ghost at first. He also took offense and left the crew when in a Sherman at first because Gen. Sherman was famous for burning his way through Georgia.
I highly recommend this series along with my other two favorites Sgt Rock of Easy Company and the original Losers.
Years later I was commissioned in Armor in the US Army and had my own appreciation of the lessons of armored combat. Definitely not the comic book life.
Hello there👋👋,how are you doing today? Hope you’re having a good?❤️!!
Do you remember the origin story of Jeb Stuart? I have a vague, shadowy memoey of him being ostracized at boot camp and having to prove his mettle with a series of fist fights - And I think this led to him gaining the loyalty of his original crew, who all had alliterative names; only one I can remember is Arch Asher, and one was called Slim but I can't remember his "S" last name or the other guy, (or wait, maybe it was Rick Rawlins!) One of the original crew died/was written out and was replaced by a black tanker (in a plot that I do not think was historically accurate BTW), who was an Olympic athlete prior to the war as I was reminded elsewhere. I guess I could look it all up...
@@johnhood9567 Im thinking that was Rick. That was black and a replacement. I think he later saw the General when Jeb was wounded or out of action somehow.
I remember this series . There was also The Unknown Soldier and Sergent Rock . Thanks for that little flashback to my childhood .
That short clip of the waffentrager looked awesome, I need to find a model of that,I think amusing hobby makes one,it looks vicious
Modelcollect makes a nice one in 1/72 scale
@@edwina.8426 yeah, I think I've seen it listed on eBay
I remember reading this series and General Stewart was severely miffed when the crew transferred to a Sherman tank as the general thought that gen. Sherman dismissed the burning of Atlanta by saying "war is hell".
And, ironically, it was very much against war.🤔
I’m with Stuart on that one.
The Haunted Tank was one of my favorite comics back when I was a kid. This is the first time I have heard about it in decades.
Thanks for doing this video. One of my favorite comics growing up. I still collect back issues if I can get my hands on them especially if the art is done by Russ Heath, one of the best artists in comics who is underated due to his work primarily in war comics. And, yes, some of those covers are wild.
I used to read this comic book as a kid and enjoyed I it very much. 😊
I would say personally for a reboot of the series maybe put in a Grant tank and ya know but Grant as the ghost. Idk my option.
Nah just go full in on it and give them a Lee, lol
How about the crew manning a Tiger? And it's haunted by, uhm, just a tiger. Doing big cat things.
@@zwojack7285 Like the Tiger from the Captan Underpants movie. Just a PNG
@@NEEDMORECOW8ELL they definitely gonna fail then
I loved this video. I have this entire comic book series, and read it feverishly in my pre-teen years. Thanks for covering such a little known subject.
Used to read this in my younger days. Always bugged me how the M3 Stuart could knock out Tigers and Panthers from the front.
At least the gun on the jigsaw tank made sense.
As for the turret... it almost makes me think of the M41 Walker Bulldog... but those didn't see service until after Korea, I believe.
Otherwise... a close-topped M10? Off a Challenger?(WWII era ... 17 pounder fit into a Cromwell.)
Can you do an episode on the WWII Challenger?
I think the U.S gave the ARVN some
I was able to read them too when I was a kid. Along with the Howling Commandos and Sgt. Rock. The issues I read featured the T34 hull with a turret that looks like that of an M10. So I guess you're right about the slapped-on tank parts.
@@derf-vr1fc Yeah... but the M10 was open topped... so I guess they... put a top on it?
Funny thing, they lost the M3 in France, then built the jigsaw tank... but there was an episode where they were in the desert... in the jigsaw tank.
Comics. Like Xena the Warrior princess... one episode she's fighting Persians in Ancient Greece... then meets Julius Caesar in another.
@@brunozeigerts6379 They call it "artistic license"! Lol!
I think you nailed it; I think the artist had the Walker Bulldog turret in mind, and he just didn't care if it wasn't chronologically accurate.
I'm 70 years old. When I was in the second grade, I was having trouble keeping up in reading. My father noticed that I was always looking at comic books - particularly those that depicted WWII or the Korean war and my favorite was the comic stories about the haunted Stuart tank. He asked me if I was reading the comics or just looking at the pictures. I told him I was looking at the pictures because I still couldn't "get" the reading. He asked me what comic was my favorite. I told him I liked the haunted tank stories the most because it looked like there was something going on with a ghost. He then told me that, IF I would read every word in every comic, he'd buy me all of the haunted tank comics that I wanted, and, that if I improved my reading, he'd buy other stories as well.
It was a deal that was too good to be true. I immediately went to the comic rack at the drug store and picked out one or two haunted tank stories and began trying to read every word. It wasn't easy, but I was motivated. When I'd finished the first one, which took me about a week to figure out, he took it, opened it and then started quizzing me on what had happened in the story. I answered his questions and then, satisfied, he told me to keep it up. Gradually, I began working my way through each issue more quickly and I began catching up to the rest of my class in reading. Within a few months I had a nice fat stack of new comics, paid for by my dad, added to the paltry stack that I'd previously had bought with my $.25-a-week allowance. Down at the pharmacy where I'd peruse the comic book rack, the pharmacist kept a running tab of the comics I bought and my father would pay the tab whenever he went in there to buy cigarettes or pick up the paper.
Within six months I'd caught up to my class and surpassed them. The sister - I was attending parochial school - told my parents that I was reading at a skill level above my grade and wanted to know what had changed. My mom explained that I had simply been allowed to read the comic books that the sister had previously forbidden us to bring to school and for which the sister had been whacking me over the knuckles with a ruler whenever she'd caught me with one. I don't think that sister Rose-Marie ever really figured it out. For me, it not only ensured I got better grades in English - it began a lifetime love of reading and it all began because I was fascinated by a comic book story about a haunted Stuart tank and a delusional tank commander that talked to his dead ancestor while commanding a tank.
Wonderful story.
Wonderfull story - thanks for sharing - I'm dyslexic and had a very similar experience albeit "Peanuts" was my entre' to the written word, but part of the motivation was that I wanted to be able to read the GI comics series and in a short time, I started reading factual war histories - I ended up teaching military history at the graduate level - Like you my parents were very encouraging and supportive - Your Dad must have been a man worth knowing.
I gotta say that looks like a crusader with a 76 Sherman mantle on first sight
I remember reading these comics as a kid they were 10 cents a copy then, it ate up alot of my spending money, this was a lot of money in the 1950s.
I used to read this in the 1960’s and it inspired me to be forever interested in tanks and become a tank commander
A lot of mechanic assign weird faults and breakdowns to gremlins a ghost could help prevent breakdowns.
Awesome comic and storyline! Beats any Marvel crap past, present and future. The turret reminded me of an M47 or Walker Bulldog or similar and I remember the gun had a bore evacuator type bulge in it which I don’t recall being on any WW2 tank barrel. The DC art and drawing of allied and axis weapon systems were great too. You can see the detail on the Tigers and small arms used by the combatants and it greatly enhanced the believability of a sometimes fantastical plot. Oh, and the tank was integrated with a black crewman that replaced an original crew member that was KIA. I think the plot had all the crewman being Southerners, not not just white Americans. The Army didn’t integrate until AFTER WW2. So, THT was way ahead of its time. So was SGT Rock and The Losers. Weird War was cool too.
The Comic pro tied with this and Sgt Rock had a friend in Yugoslavia when it crumbled, his fax machine was still working. Fax from Sarajevo it's brilliant.
Yep, lol though it is funny to see the U.S. Army showing up there - being portrayed with Steel pots, M-1s and C-47s. But ya draw primarily WW2 comics for 30 - 40 years I get it might just be habit.
I bought this comic many times, that and Sgt Rock as well as Nick Fury and the Howling Commandos
I read the series as a kid because I got leftover issues of every type of comic from my cousin's drugstore. The Haunted Tank was perhaps the silliest war concept in a fantasy world of silly concepts. I remember numerous complaints being posted in the Letter-to-the-Editor column of this magazine about the absurdity of taking out dozens (hundreds?) of Panthers and Tigers with a lowly 37mm "high velocity" cannon. I believe these complaints were what eventually led to the hybrid tank. I read that first issue, too, and found it even more ridiculous than the Stuart. But, hey, this was DC Comics, which once released an issue of SGT ROCK where he and the men of Easy Company held off the Germans while the British and French troops evacuated from Dunkirk!!! Boy did they get hammered for that mistake. I wish I'd kept my issue. It's probably a collector's piece today.
The cobbled together haunted tank was never popular in the G.I Combat comics. The mail call or letter section reflected this in those days. What most of the readers wanted was a return of the M3 or M5 Stuart tank, even if, in reality, the 37mm cannon wouldn't even scratch the paint off a Tiger I. Thanks for doing this video. It was a trip down memory lane.
Something different, many years ago I read a book or a short story about Churchill using a cabal of magicians/wizards to summon demons and trap them into a number of Sherman tanks, these tanks were virtually indestructible and were going to be/were used as the first assault wave on the Normandy beaches to break the shore defences and allow a bridgehead to be established. It was an interesting read as on both sides during WW2 there was a lot of interest in the occult being harnessed to provide an advantage or to produce a winning unstoppable force.
The Book version I read was called "The Devils of D-Day", where 4 demons from the medieval demon lore were sealed into Black Shermans with Silver crosses welded onto the roof of the turret. They had supernatural abilities, beyond driving around with no crew, which included giving nearby enemies tropical diseases and plagues, slicing enemies with supernatural ethereal knives, etc. Very weird.
I remember that book!
One of the tanks was knocked out so they welded the hatches shut and left it.
That was causing problems for the local populace plagues and such.
I grew up reading this comic series!!!! I collected all the issues that I could find at comic shops, flea markets, etc. I had them all the way back to the early 70's and even have the last installment by DC comics! Thank you for bringing this to light! Too bad you had to blur out the rebel flag,though.
not really, the confederacy was a bunch of people crying about the economic impact of being banned from owning people as property, they deserve every ounce of hate "heritage not hate" my fucking ass
They had a black loader in the crew for awhile too if I remember correctly.
@@gaiamission7200 While slavery was a big part of that conflict, it wasn't the only reason. I don't disagree that flying the flag isn't the best idea, but having to blur it is silly.
@@AdamantLightLP it was the only reason and was stated as such in the articles of succession anything else is lost cause bullshit
@@gaiamission7200 I mean it’s the main reason but not the only, it was definitely a war for slavery. The south wanted slaves and the north wanted to keep the Union together, and later slaves becoming free became important to the Union.
First comic I ever subscribed to. Yeah, there was not much "historical" about this. I think they destroyed about 2,000 of the 1,350 Tiger I's ever built. Plus aircraft, submarines, railroad guns, and whatever the writers could dream up. Great fun! I always used an M41 Bulldog as a stand-in for the jigsaw tank when I played in the sandbox. Thanks for doing this one!
I remember the 'Haunted Tank' hated the miraculous rebuild 4 crewmen and a Russian junkpile Oh Lawdy
I fully support reviews of fictional tanks like this in the future, also didn't you already kinda do this when checking out those crazy "future tanks" dreamt up in those technology of the future magazines?
Like I mentioned at the beginning those were concepts for real tanks so although never built they weren't fictional in this way
When I was a kid this was one of my favorite comics and sparked my interest in history. I actually owned the comic where the jigsaw tank was built. Even as a kid I knew this was ridiculous, but it was all fun. You know the art was really good. BTW, JEB Stuart was only 31 when he died, something as a Southerner I knew as a youngster so I was always confused by his being shown as old….
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I LOVED reading the Haunted Tank and GI Combat comics back in the 70's and 80's. Bravo for picking it for the video. It was a blast to read!
Thanks. One of my favorites from my childhood. 50+ yrs ago.
I loved that comic book series, and got all choked up watching your video. To this day, a subscript of haunted tank is burned in my mind. It was a story about a team that was testing a new gun/rifle. The gun worked too good and the guy destroyed it at the end. Vivid childhood memories.
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can't wait for it to start !!!!
This is making me feel really old. I remember reading this comic at the drug store when my dad was picking up his prescriptions back in the late '60s early '70s.
I remember this comic book. I would read every issue I could get my hands on. But I was a kid then and it was just a cool comic book back then. Sorry I cant help with details. But this might be a cool build like you did with the Maus
I am 75 years old and I remember reading the haunted tank you did the best job ever using what you had I just bought some old back issues of the haunted tank thank you now I have to find a new haunted tank comic book
It's been decades but man I don't remember all the details just vague recollections. As children my cousins and friends swapped/shared various comics back and forth.
But, I thank you for prompting a recollection from my childhood.👍
i have seen most of them since i am over 60... Main reason how i got into tanks! great story and video. issue #150 is when they had to replace Stuart with the made up tank..
"The biggest problem this tank has..."
Me: "It's haunted, duh"
I’m 24, and I am happy to say that I grew up reading these comics, along with the Sgt Rock comics
I'm 68 & read these as a kid and it was a riot , knowing from building models , it amaze me how a tank with a 37mm main gun could on a daily bases , know out not only Tiger Tanks ,but shoot down planes ! I don't remember the conversion to the newer tank , but there is special place in my heart for that old tank with the ghost !
The Haunted Tank was also featured in a 4 part story in "The Demon" comic, starting in the April 1994 issue. "Haunted Glory" It has the original crew and tank being dragged back for one final operation fighting Nazi zombies and it's just as great as it sounds.
Looking at the 1 comic panel, it looks like it has 5 wheels on the suspension I stead of 4
The appearance of the tank varied quite a bit depending on the artist. There have been quite a few modeling efforts over the years. A few have started off with the T34 base, only to find that the comic volume they're using doesn't fit that look. There's even a couple-month run of the comic where it looks more like a Pershing body with an M48 Patton turret.
@@jeffscott3186 did they make more than one scrap tank through the series, or were these just between-artist descrepencies?
@@pz_4296 As I remember it, there was only one issue that showed them building the scrap tank. I think the variations were simply artists' takes on the tank. There is a scale modeling forum that held a scrap tank build challenge and there was quite a bit of discussion on the variations from the original. Most seemed to go with the T34 base and then some custom-built turrets, while others went with Chaffee or in a couple cases Pershing turrets.
@@pz_4296 Between artist discrepancies
I read this comic and I still have them, GI Combat...
Holy shit, this thumbnail just unlocked some memories for me that were DEEPLY packed down there.
That looks like comics that I used to read at YMCA summer camp 1965-1969. The 2 weeks of summer camp each year was the only time I was "allowed" to look at comic books, because according to my dad, comic books were for illiterate Seaman that spend their enlistments cleaning the head. I don't know if Haunted Tank was one of them, the only one I remember the name of was Sergeant Rock. SIDE NOTE: My summer camp was right next to Ft Knox and it was a busy, loud place back then.
Wow, I remember reading the GI Combat comic books back in the 1970s along with Sgt. Rock.
I remember this comic quite well and the fantastic tank kills obtained with a Stuart's 37mm gun.
I also remember the creation of the Jigsaw tank. If I remember correctly, the turret was that of an M18 Hellcat with an added metal roof structure. I don't remember the hull mount being a 20mm gun.
I think the writers had to upgrade from the M3 because of the amount of flak they were catching about the unrealistic tank kills with the 37mm gun.
I'd say either the M10 Wolverine or M10 "Achilles", but, yeah, either used an OPEN-top turret, so extensive modifications would have been necessary to convert it into a tank turret.
Loved that comic as a kid. Thanks for sharing
The turret sort of looks like a t28 concept, the concept had a turret and was open-topped
I started reading this comic when I was six years old. That was fifty three years ago. It is still my favorite war comic. It is to bad that now, we have to blot out things so others would not be offended. Thanks for this episode. Also, the jigsaw tank had a Christie Suspension and a upper hull from a Panther. Notice the hatches on top of the hull? They are not on a T-34.
Fun video, Cone Of Arc. I’ve always loved reading the comic book adventures of the Haunted Tank. I purchased a couple G. I. Combat issues off the stands at the PX at the Alameda Naval Base. Issue #222 was my first one. I’ve been sporadically picking up G.I. Combat back issues. Nice video. Thanks !
do the Tolmekian tanks from 'Nausicaa and the valley of the wind'
To be honest, the turret looks more like a Pershing/Bulldog turret before it was even a thing
The turret looks a little like a mash up of a Pershing, Walker Bulldog and a slight hint of Crusader.
I'm one of those people who read this series (on and off) way, way back. I recall that there was another replacement tank they cobbled together out of parts at "the depot" in one episode. They put a turret with what looked like a 57 mm gun onto an M5 chassis. In that comic, they were fighting in Italy, alongside a whole lot of Pershings. The comic was not big on logistical accuracy, since only 20 Pershings made it to Europe, and none of those went to Italy...
Don’t forget that this tank has S T A L I N I U M Armor on the hull.
... by the way, I now remember one particular episode of Sargent Rock of Easy Company, that had me in sheer awe, at the seemingly detailed artwork of the German Tiger tank, Mark 1... that issue was titled "Easy Meets Their First Tiger" and was set during the African campaign, as I recall :-)
8:08 Common man! The crew of the Haunted Tank were the original MacGyvers. 🤣🤣🤣
I read “The Haunted Tank”, and “Sgt.Rock” as a kid, waaaaaay back in the late ‘60s/early ‘70s. I sorta wondered, if the turret was a poorly drawn Firefly turret.
Thanks for this blast from the past!!!
When I was a kid back in the 1960s (in the UK), one of the comics I read had a series of stories about a WW2 tank crew who called their tank "Bargain Counter" - instead of the normal stowage items, it was hung all over with items which they had captured, salvaged or looted, and which they then sold for profit. As I recall, the tank was a Sherman and the setting was France 1944.
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I used to read this comic regularly during the 70's along with-Our Army at War, and SGT. Rock-when I was a kid. I LOVED it.
Though being a kid the inconsistencies of the tank did not enter into my mind as I had no tank knowledge at all. But then, how can you take it seriously when one issue had a C47(I believe) transporting it over the Channel. The plane was hit by enemy fire so they pushed the tank out of the plane complete with a parachute tied to it where it floated to earth. But wait!! It gets better! The tank then landed on the deck of a German submarine! As goofy as it is, I LOVED IT.
The SGT. Rock comic had by far the best artwork of them all. You should definitely check them all out.
Funny enough I just came from reading sci-fi lore about a haunted Marauder Battlemech called The Black Marauder.
3:58 the turret looks like from an A.C.IV to me...
I attended the Joe Kubert School in 1983. Joe was the creator/artist of The Haunted Tank. Joe taught one of the classes I was in. As I had recently left the service having been a tank driver in the 1st Armored Division I knew a little about it. One day in class I addressed the Ahistorical aspects of the comic: the wrong vehicle, the wrong CVC helmets and others (I also told him his Sgt Rock was the wrong rank). He was not impressed and became a bit miffed. I dropped it having made my point. He never did care for me after that. It's all fun and games until the historian shows up.
Remember following the series as a kid. Commander was a relative of J.E.B. Stuart. There was a 4 man crew at first but along the way they lost one crew member and got Jackie Robinson (first black crewmember, keep in mind this happened in the late 60's early 70's). They were fighting panthers and Tigers all through the series so trying to follow the timeline by the tanks is not going to work. Do remember having the issue where they got the M4 Sherman after losing their Stuart and the ghost of J.E.B. getting mad at him for driving a tank named after "That Yankee Firebrand" Used to get it as a kid when the series was called the Haunted Tank. Others I used to read were Sgt Rock and Easy Company, Nick Fury and the howling Commandos (Yes, That Nick Fury but he was a white guy with Red hair back then), the Unknown Soldier, Weird War, and Fighting army/Navy.
Loved this comic, I still have quite a few of them. Great idea for your channel!
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@3:38 the 20 mm machine gun / autocannon cannot be "coaxial". Co-axial guns moving on same axis (hence the name), therefore you can be sure, they're firing mostly to the same direction. In this case the machine gun isn't on the main gun's axis, so they are not co-axial guns.
read this as a kid from my dad's old comics. It's nice to see one of my favorite comics and tanks get some recognition.
Greetings!
I only use the information you provided in the video, including the pictures. So, this is how I would build it.
Take a T-34 hull, running gear, suspension and engine. Remove the hull top plate first. Since we are about to go for front sprocket anyway, remove the transmission entirely. We freed up some space, and after you turned it 180 degrees, place the engine further back. So now the engine's back facing forwards. Also, place the engine compartment wall further back. The angles of the tunnels for each suspension unit has to be changed, especially around the turret ring(as we are about to see the reason later). Judging by your video, the driver's hatch (and the co-driver's hatch as well) is on the top plate instead of the front plate, so I assumed the original one is just welded shut. Which was a mistake from my part(see image at 6:36). But it's no longer an escape hatch,something is in it,maybe some sort of cooling for the transmission? Since both crew members are probably placed further back,there is maybe some room for a transmission and a differential,but probably not the preferred one,hence the slow top speed. I would either use a governor for the engine or for the transmission,but if the engine still gives 500 HP, than they probably use some governing in the transmission to prevent failure. It has to be mentioned that the sprocket wheel in tanks are usually larger in diameter than the idlers, therefore their center can be put somewhat further backwards. Also, T-34 doesn't have a turret basket or torsion bars to prevent a transmission shaft(or sectioned shafts) going on the floor.
They placed the crew hatches on top of the hull,so the have to move the turret backwards. The T-34's hull top plate is just a simple rectangle. Cut the section (most likely a square shape) with the turret ring in it. The top of the engine compartment has to be altered,maybe cut in half, or use an entirely new design for it. As far as I can tell from your video, they gathered together some steel for sure. Since they are building a new tank,they probably have the means to do alterations. One way or another,the top cover for the engine compartment is going to be shorter than it was before,so you can put the turret section further back and you have space for the extra top plate needed to cover the driver and co-driver with their hatches.
Speaking of the turret, on some images it looks like somebody has the Crusader in mind before started welding the plates together but it's wider. The authors of the comic book seems to be somewhat inconsistent about one or two feature, like the commander's cupola tends to change position from left to right.
It was an interesting thought experiment,but I have to work tomorrow,so I can't finish it right now.
I wish you well,
A Hungarian Armour Enthusiast
I'm 67 and I read this comic around 65-66. I only had the ones when they were in the M-3. One of my favorites along with one about a native American P-51 pilot who had the spirit/ghost of a native warrior looking out for him. Johnny Cloud, Navajo Ace. Wish I still had those. Father made me give them all away. Lots of first editions like X-Men
I remember this comic as a kid. I wasn't a avid comic book reader but when we would visit my grandmother's cottage and we went to "town" my dad would buy me a copy of this or sgt rock.
The Jigsaw Tank did have a few breakdowns, and that gave the writers a chance to repeat some stories by temporarily giving Jeb and his crew an M3 to use while the Jigsaw Tank was being repaired.
I read the original series when I was a kid and I couldn't wait for it to come out! There was another series that I think came out in another comic but I can barely remember that was a war series that followed various Horror happenings that afflicted Infantry soldiers. I wish I still had those comics because they would be worth a ton of money now and I basically shredded them as a kid, with no understanding that they would be worth lots much later in life. I read them so long ago that I can't even remember if what you were saying was truly accurate or not and I had no idea that they did another series in the 2000's in Afghanistan related to an Abrams tank! Super cool! I remember trying to figure out what kind of tank they had and they seemed to have a bunch of tanks and the T-34 cobbled tank seemed to me to have a Bulldog Turret at times and at other times it was something else as I think the artists had no real idea what they should be drawing, they were comic artists not tank experts.
Holy shit, now i want him to do a video about that one SCP wich is a sentient tank that refuses to shoot at innocents
I'm 71. I read "The haunted tank" avidly for sometime in the early 1960s (I think I once own the very first story). My memory of the stories is more than a little vague but the only haunted tank I remember was a Stuart and I don't remember it being destroyed, in fact, I remember part of the story line being the tank and its crew being "magically" lucky because of their "protector." I am sure I didn't pwn or read nearly all of them even at the time I was trying to.
Always the best content! Thanks man!
“Alr Stuart we switched to the Sherman.”
“Good, but why is it driving toward Georgia?”
Thus was fun! If you'd be ready to do more fictional tanks. I'd *love* if you could do a small video on Bolo tanks. Maybe something from Hammers Slammers?
There are plenty of fictional tanks to choose from if you ever feel like it. No lack of content there :)
The "Brave and the Bold" clip at 2:57 had me rolling the first time I saw it. Soon as I saw the bridge, I was like "They're not. They're not going to make a Dukes of Hazard allusion" When they even added the "Yeee-haw!" and the Dixie horn, I had to pause the video until I stopped laughing.
This was one of my favorite comics in the 1970s and why I love the Stuart tank.
I grew up in the 60s and 70s collecting G.I Combat and Sgt Rock. Great video and presentation.
The turret looks like a crusader styled turret 6-sided from the look of it