Outside the wire

Fox football pregame to feature Fort Benning

By Kevin Lilley on November 6, 2014 Army, Entertainment, Outside the wire

Football fans at Fort Benning, Georgia, will have the chance to be a part of live NFL pregame broadcasts on Sunday from York Field, then stick around to watch the games on a jumbo screen. Fox Sports NFL reporter Jay Glazer tops the list of personalities who’ll broadcast live from Benning as part of the network’s salute to veterans, with segments airing on the “Fox NFL Sunday” broadcast that begins at noon as well as “Fox NFL Kickoff,” which airs earlier on the Fox Sports 1 cable network. Glazer’s no stranger to military outreach, having visited troops in Afghanistan, Qatar…

Airline apologizes after rejecting NCO's request to hang up uniform jacket

By Kevin Lilley on October 13, 2014 Outside the wire

An airline apologized over the weekend after a flight attendant’s reported refusal to hang up a decorated noncommissioned officer’s dress uniform jacket because the NCO wasn’t flying first class. Passengers on the US Airways flight from Portland, Oregon, to Charlotte, North Carolina, on Thursday relayed details of the situation to Charlotte’s WSOC-TV and other media outlets. According to reports, 1st Sgt. Albert Marle accepted the flight attendant’s rejection quietly, but other passengers didn’t, including some in first class who offered their seats to the NCO. Marle, 33, a member of the Virginia Army National Guard, is a Ranger- and Special…

'Enlisted' creator heads back to Fox with 'Big'

By Kevin Lilley on October 1, 2014 Entertainment, Movies, Outside the wire

The team behind the canceled Fox sitcom “Enlisted” will trade in fictional Fort McGee for a super-sized keyboard and a coin-operated fortune teller. Kevin Biegel and Mike Royce will produce and write a TV adaptation of “Big,” the 1988 coming-of-age-in-a-hurry movie starring Tom Hanks, according to reports from Entertainment Weekly and The Hollywood Reporter. The show reportedly would air as an “event series,” meaning it likely would have a predetermined end date — unlike the commotion that surrounded the pair’s previous project. The move comes after extensive, but ultimately unsuccessful, negotiations between 20th Century Fox Television and Yahoo to bring…

Pinning of Bronze Star nine years in the making

By Jeff Schogol on September 15, 2014 Afghanistan, Army, Outside the wire

When retired Army Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry pinned the Bronze Star on retired Army Maj. Eric Phillips, it provided resolution to a long saga that began in Afghanistan in 2005. Phillips had waited years to tell Eikenberry his story, and he finally got the opportunity on Sept. 8 when both attended the screening of the National Geographic documentary “American War Generals.” In July 2005, Phillips was serving as commander of a convoy enroute from Kabul to Gardez when they ran into an ambush, he said. With his troops bogged down and taking fire, Phillips called in for air support. As…

Your quick, incomplete military viewing guide to 'The Simpsons' marathon

By Kevin Lilley on August 21, 2014 Army, Entertainment, Outside the wire

Service members who joined up when the first full-length episode of “The Simpsons” hit the air have been eligible to retire for about five years. And while the long-running animated series rarely dabbles in military-themed humor, it’s tough for any scripted television to go a quarter-century without somebody stealing a tank, somebody else entering into a blood pact over World War II plunder, and somebody else becoming a red-team leader in an Army war game through a series of inexplicable circumstances. It’s simple math. FXX recently secured the rights to the show’s massive back catalog, and it’s celebrating by airing…

Soldier, UFC fighter Tim Kennedy challenges Jesse Ventura … for charity

By Kevin Lilley on August 12, 2014 Outside the wire

You’ve probably heard about the distinguished member of the Kennedy family who challenged a prominent politician, one who’s been frequently targeted by the military social media community, to dump ice water over his head as a way to support a worthy cause. If not, click here to read up, because this is something completely different: [HTML1] That’s UFC fighter, Texas Army National Guardsman and noted Internet thespian Tim Kennedy, taking what appears to be a cold shower and issuing a challenge to Jesse Ventura to “donate some money to the Heroes Project.” Ventura, whose logic-defying career arc already includes Navy…

Need help with PT, finance, leadership or public speaking? Former Capt. Lee Kind offers up some 'kind' advice

By Joe Gould on July 29, 2014 Outside the wire

Former Capt. Lee Kind has worn many hats — he’s a former Army officer, master jumpmaster, real estate agent, PT guru and author with an MBA from George Mason University — and he wants to use them all to help service members. His passion for it has yielded five books, which address physical fitness, finance, public speaking, leadership and a how-to guide to becoming a jumpmaster, respectively. He spent six years in the 82nd Airborne Division. “It doesn’t matter what branch they’re in,” Kind said, taking a break from a recent book signing at the Pentagon. “Unfortunately most folks don’t know the…

Manchester United the Los Angeles Galaxy at the Rose Bowl on July 23, 2014 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Man United provides discounted tickets to upcoming U.S. matches

By Ken Chamberlain on July 24, 2014 Outside the wire

The wait for the next World Cup may be another four years, but international soccer continues, including two upcoming games here in the United States. And for current and retired members of the military, attending these matches can be affordable. Manchester United, the British Premiere League team, will play AS Roma in Denver on Saturday and Inter Milan in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday as a part of the pre-season International Champions Cup tournament. The club announced Wednesday that they are teaming up with govx.com to provide free and discounted tickets to members of the armed services for both games. Govx.com…

Watch: Medal of Honor recipient Ryan Pitts breaks gavel at New York Stock Exchange

By on July 24, 2014 Outside the wire

Two days after being awarded the Medal of Honor at the White House, Staff Sgt. Ryan Pitts had the honor of ringing the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday. Pitts made the most of it. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5-Nsn93TcU[/youtube]

VIDEO: Army head coach's Afghanistan diary

By Kevin Lilley on July 15, 2014 Afghanistan, Army, Outside the wire, West Point

The superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy wanted the school’s new head football coach to get a first-person understanding of the jobs his players — current Black Knights and future recruits — will be doing after they hang up the pads. So Lt. Gen. Robert Caslen, himself a starting offensive lineman while at West Point in the 1970s, brought Jeff Monken along on a fact-finding trip to Afghanistan last month, with the three-star speaking with recent academy grads as well as more senior leaders to find out how to improve the school in ways that will help future students succeed…

Browsing: Outside the wire