T is for Terry Wise - A Tribute

The recent news of the passing-away of Terry Wise came to me as a sadness for the slow demise of a more innocent age. Without his little book of war gaming, I probably would not have collected in the way I have, and this blog would never have come into being, although it must be said - if I weren't so disorganized, dysfunctional and savant-like it would have been here in around 2006! Some of the pages that fired my desire to collect every pose of every small scale figure I could find, from the chapter 'Organizing Your Army' these were quite simple ways of using paint, or minor conversion with blade, thumb-tack, paper or wire to produce - primarily from the first 30 or so sets of Airfix HO/OO figures - any member of any army that ever was! Thousands of modelers were, or following publication of the book would go on to be producing just such armies through the 1970's, and now that the turning up on eBay of such figures has slowed to the occasional dribble and a new generation of 'Internet bubble' war gamers spend their spare moments whinging about the lack of some esoteric set of mounted foot artillery catering executives (best parodied by the Pomeranian Piccolo Players, a running joke invented by Mr. Wane Wood over at the HaT forum) despite nearly 1000 new sets being issued in plastic since 1997, I thought it would make a fine tribute to Terry to show a few of his inspirations here tonight. I am responsible for the Egyptian skirmishers here, from the American Indian set, with hair-cuts, truncated head-dresses and cartridge-paper shields. All the rest have come in with mixed lots over the years, and if you recognize your work drop us a message in the comment box. Working anti-clockwise from above the Indians; South American Revolutionary/Independence wars? From ACW Confederates Foreign Legion MG crew, from WWI Germans Colonial Marine Artillery, from WWI RHA German East African campaign? From WWI Americans Firer from crawler and cased ATGW Napoleonics from Guards Roman cavalry from Cowboys Clockwise from top left; Congolese soldier from two Russians (me) Roman/US Cavalry marriage Captain Scarlet from Cowboys Various conversions of Robin Hood's men some by me WWI German cavalry from RHA and US Cavalry Mounted Briton from Romans Light Infantry? From ACW Union and Japanese flag bearer 8th Army with tartan clothing, from one of Terry's contemporary's articles in Airfix Magazine or Military Modeling? More of my efforts! And no, I don't know why I gave them all Scottish football supporters hats, I'm sure it was in the original article though!! As other makes appeared they got the Terry treatment as well, here are some of them; cut, shut, glued & painted into something else. Top left to bottom right; Indians, some Airfix, some Hong Kong, some grafted! Blanket-rolls added to Revell Prussian Infantry Atlantic Vignettes divided into separate figures Various ACW standards etc...(some by me, some by others) Pure Terry! French 'Eagle' - Italeri Romans/ECW Pike-men? From HK copies of Airfix 8th Army Mounted Lifeguard from HK copy of Crescent and Indians legs Giant Mongols given pin-swords Hope that's tripped a few memories in the older followers of this blog, remains only to say goodbye Terry and thanks, you enriched my life with your inventiveness and enthusiasm, and leave us all better for having come into contact with your work. Caught by the final conversion, which comes to all of us. [It's very rarely that I will publish something (other than packaging or advertising/catalogue material) that carries copyright, and - given recent events elsewhere - would like to point out that the leading image, a compound of pages from the - in my eyes - seminal work; 'Introduction to Battle Gaming' by Terrance Wise is reproduced here after clearing it with Chris Lloyd the owner of Special Interest Model Books (current holders of the rights to MAP Publications). The Copyright has reverted to Terry and if anyone is in touch with his widow, would they please pass on my condolences for her recent loss, and be assured that the image can be removed should she so wish.]