Matt Bacon Posted March 24 Posted March 24 (edited) X Plus snap together (well, very firm push really) kit... Apologies for the large size of the pictures, but it's the portrait format! The skin is all AK 3rd generation acrylics, the uniform mostly Citadel including their contrast paints, and the jacket is Vallejo acrylics. Her hair was far and away the most difficult part, and I'm indebted to Hobby Cheating's Vince Venturella for the "Blonde Hair" tutorial that helped me take it on, and to a fellow Classic British Kit modeller and good friend for introducing me to him. There's a decent amount of reference material with some rare colour snapshots online for what she looked like at the time, and handily you can buy a replica of the blue flying jacket to details of that are easy to come by. The one "gotcha," right at the end, was that I had to take out 3/4" from the vertical upright at the front to get the handrail to sit where it needs to for her hand to be able to hold it. Fortunately it's easy to do it just below the top elbow fitting so that it's not obvious. I don't know how they missed that. best, M. Edited March 24 by Matt Bacon 4
Mike 1017 Posted March 25 Posted March 25 Great piece of USO History. I remember seeing some Bob Hopes USO Tours. 1
Spruslayer Posted March 25 Posted March 25 Excellent work. I'm currently working on that kit and whole heartedly agree the hair is difficult to get right. My version is not a snap Tite but is going together well except that i couldn't get the blond hair color right 1
Matt Bacon Posted March 25 Author Posted March 25 (edited) 48 minutes ago, Spruslayer said: i couldn't get the blond hair color right This is the tutorial that I was sent: I found it very helpful… best, M. Edited March 25 by Matt Bacon 2
Model Guy Posted March 25 Posted March 25 To bad the uso didn't have a air grate back then but it still looks nice. Good job@ 1
Spruslayer Posted March 25 Posted March 25 43 minutes ago, Model Guy said: To bad the uso didn't have a air grate back then but it still looks nice. Good job@ I have to plead uninformed, what is a air grate?
Matt Bacon Posted March 26 Author Posted March 26 (edited) I’m guessing he means the iconic shot from “The Seven Year Itch” where Marilyn is wearing a white dress and standing on a subway ventilation grate and the air from a passing train blows her skirt up all around her… 😜 best, M. Edited March 26 by Matt Bacon Really should know which film it was, shouldn’t I? 1
Model Guy Posted March 26 Posted March 26 3 hours ago, Matt Bacon said: I’m guessing he means the iconic shot from “Bus Stop” where Marilyn is wearing a white dress and standing on a subway ventilation grate and the air from a passing train blows her skirt up all around her… 😜 best, M. Dido! 1
TonyK Posted March 26 Posted March 26 Great job! Always in awe of people who do figures so well. Lots of detail and talent to make it look right. 1
Ace-Garageguy Posted March 26 Posted March 26 Very nice job. I wondered what this kit would look like built by a regular human and not extensively retouched in the photos. 1
Wickersham Humble Posted May 4 Posted May 4 Neat work! I suppose you have the poster art of her posing with an F-84 in Korea? I have an uncredited photo from an article in Air Trails or some other monthly aviation pulp that shows Norma Jean posed 'bedding down' in a sleeper airliner. Still brunette, but undoubtedly her! Sorry they're rotated! Wick 1 1
Wickersham Humble Posted May 4 Posted May 4 Forgot to mention, tho everyone probably knows this: apparently, she was an employee at a company owned by Brit actor Reginald Denny which (as I recall) was begun by his father, an early expert in R/C model airplanes. Brought to LA area to work for US aircraft suppliers, and eventually the technology integrated into target drones -- like the Culver Cadet, etc. -- but that's just what I gleaned... The studio shot, dark hair and all, was done posing with a wooden prop, probably from on of those McCulloch-opposed-4 target drones both Army/Navy used. I have a brand-new condition example that I bought in about 1955; for about eight bucks (long time to save with a fifteen-cent a week allowance; must've gotten a five-dollar birthday gift!?) out of the treasure-laden back pages of POP SCI or POP MECH mags. I have an ad from one in about '51 or so where you can buy low-timed Allison 1710-V-16's for around a grand each, right hand or left hand spin, FOB New Orleans LA. I'm trying to get a car buddy to donate a McCulloch 2-stroke bangers to our local Chico Air Museum; I'd detail it, and donate my nice prop for a display. My bro-in-law was a USN Aviation Machinists Mate in the late-sixties (eventually on the USS Hornet) and he was trained in servicing those drones. They were also featured in an article in 'National Geographic' magazine, on the CIvil Air Patrol, c. 1957 -- as I recall; still have it somewhere! Ole' Wick Always liked Reginald Denny: 'Algy' in Bulldog Drummond, later perfect in 'Cat Ballou"! 1 1
Deathgoblin Posted May 11 Posted May 11 Would love to get one of these kits. Great job! I've got a picture of her above the desk in my model room. It's an original studio promotional still/lobby card from "Don't Bother To Knock" 1952. She's on one side and Jim Bakkus is on the other. The picture came from the estate of Freida Hull, one of the "Monroe Six"; a group of teenagers that would hang out at her events to get autographs and photos. She eventually became close friends with the group and would invite them to her apartment while living in NY. I built a few models of some of her cars. Did her '56 T-Bird, the '62 Chrysler 300 she was driving shortly before she died, and I made an attempt at "Cynthia" from her Royal Triton commercial. 1 1
mustang1989 Posted May 12 Posted May 12 One thing I have NOT done yet in scale modeling is to paint a figure. Builds like this inspire me to try every time I see one painted up this well. Some good work went into this one Matt. 1
Wickersham Humble Posted May 13 Posted May 13 Figures like this deter me from even trying them! Q: if MM was wearing combat boots in that year, wouldn't they have been black? Army never saw those sand-colored suede-looking boots until at least the late 'seventies, or I don't think so. Most of the grunts in 'Nam eventually got the looser tropical fatigues and OD/black jungle boots with the steel instep and nylon fabric panels, but I don't think they ever were issued camo uniforms, unless it was the Green Beanies, or maybe right at the bitter end. That's an outstanding figurine, by any standards. Wick 1
Matt Bacon Posted May 13 Author Posted May 13 http://www.usww2uniforms.com/BQD_114.html @Wickersham Humble these are what I used for reference… best, M.
Wickersham Humble Posted May 13 Posted May 13 I stand newly-informed! I recall the movie "Iron Giant" where the kid hero, Hogarth Hughes (?) was fantasizing about being a soldier and the artists gave him a Desert Storm, etc., style helmet; not appropriate for the mid-fifties --my kid era. Thx for the correction! Very nice model; and not a bad subject! Wick SP/ Did you google the poster that came out a few years ago with MM standing next to an F-84 on that tour?
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