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Russian allies. Trautman responds angrily, unable to help Rambo, but knowing that Rambo will survive and return for revenge. He argues with
Murdock about the situation, warning him of Rambo's anger. After Rambo comes back to the base and gives Murdock an ultimatum to rescue the remaining POWs, Rambo shares a few words with Trautman before leaving, refusing Trautman's efforts to convince Rambo to return to the United States.
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288:. As Rambo is being hunted by Sheriff Wilfred Teasle, Trautman arrives and introduces himself as director of the Green Beret program that trained Rambo. Trautman helps reorganize the National Guard units to better track Rambo. In the end, when Rambo has returned to Teasle's town and both men have been mortally wounded, Trautman finishes Rambo off with a shotgun, and then tells the dying Teasle this.
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571:. Here, he is not only the commanding officer of Rambo, but also of his allies. He would call in Rambo and his allies to fight the criminal organization S.A.V.A.G.E. led by General Warhawk. The cartoon generated a mild controversy at the production studio, with writers wondering how they could present a child-friendly main character who was created as a troubled
415:
that he trained Rambo personally, and commanded him directly in
Vietnam. At the end of the novel, with both Rambo and Teasle gravely wounded, Trautman shoots Rambo in the head, mercifully killing him. In the film, however, Trautman stops Rambo from killing Sheriff Teasle, listens to his traumatic war memories and persuades Rambo to surrender.
407:. The officers do not take Trautman's warnings seriously, though Trautman is the only one who can effectively communicate with Rambo. One source notes that Trautman, when describing the situation to the local officials as "a war you can't win", was echoing warnings previously made against continuing involvement in the
414:
The relationship between the characters differs between the novel and the film. In the novel, it is explained that Rambo had never met
Trautman in person, and had only heard Trautman's voice as a constant presence over the loudspeakers of the camp where Rambo was trained. In the film, Trautman states
548:
were both also written by David
Morrell, who insisted on ownership of the characters as part of the negotiations for the sale of the film rights to the first book, and was given more leeway than is typically provided to writers creating novelizations. He provided additional insight into Trautman and
383:
as he alluded in the film to Rambo he "wasn't spending much time in Bragg lately" as his superiors had him in
Washington D.C. "shining a seat with his ass." As an accomplished combat officer Trautman was a recipient of several awards including the Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star, the
291:
Trautman's relationship to Rambo in the novel sharply contrasts that portrayed in the movie of the same name. In the book, Rambo barely remembers
Trautman, and in fact, after hearing his voice, he strains to recall him. Trautman then identifies himself as "Director of the school that trained you"
479:
rebels, fighting the invading Soviet armies. Rambo refuses to join, because he wants to put his violent past behind him and start a new life, and
Trautman understands. Trautman undertakes to deliver the shipment himself, but is captured by the Soviets in Afghanistan and Rambo decides to launch a
446:
in
Vietnam. Trautman visits Rambo in prison and offers him an opportunity to get out by undertaking a mission. Trautman then uses his influence to have Rambo released from prison to join the mission in the Far East, so that Rambo can get a pardon. Trautman is initially more trusting in Marshall
451:
bureaucrat overseeing the mission, than Rambo is, as Rambo catches
Murdock in a lie about his service. When Rambo rescues a POW, Murdock realizes that his war profits may be in jeopardy and forces his people to abort the mission, allowing Rambo to be captured by the Vietnamese and their Soviet
292:
over the car radio. In the book, Rambo doesn't reply to him, and, in fact, says to himself, "The
Bastard. Turning on your own kind ." Their one significant interaction comes at the end of the book, when Trautman tells Teasle that he "took the top of his head off with this shotgun."
262:
was then offered the role, but was scheduled to undergo heart surgery and had to turn it down. Richard Crenna was then contacted and arrived on set the next day. Marketing stills of Kirk Douglas in the uniform of Col. Trautman exist and are now part of the extras on the DVD of
418:
An alternate ending shot for the film had Trautman preparing to shoot Rambo at the end but unable to go through with it. Rambo then grabs Trautman's hand to force him to shoot, effectively committing suicide. This ending was scrapped after it did poorly with
245:
was initially cast in the part, had been outfitted and shown up on the first day of shooting. Douglas had previously expressed displeasure with the scripted ending, and as filming commenced he decided more rewrites were required. Director
44:
371:("Green Berets") in 1964. He was first deployed to the Southern Vietnamese Theater May 1966. Four years later, he was promoted colonel in 1970. From 1970 to 1973, Colonel Trautman was unit commander of "Team Delta" that included his
587:, the show's head writer, Michael Chain, denies this and instead states that his previous experience in producing children's programming led him to make sure that Rambo would not "have an adverse effect on the psyche of children".
480:
one-man rescue mission into the Russian prison camp so he can get his only friend back home. Once again, Trautman's warnings about Rambo's brutality fall on deaf ears, and Trautman is saved by John. Trautman's role in
518:, Stallone felt it would be disrespectful to replace Crenna. In the fourth film, Trautman only appeared in flashbacks using archive footage from the previous films. The fourth film is dedicated to Crenna's memory.
203:
The character has been variously described as a father figure to the main character, and as a symbol for the military or the American government and its relationship with soldiers. In the original novel of
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579:(PTSD). While some have alleged that the show used child psychologists who recommended that the cartoon not make any references to Vietnam, POWs, or Rambo's experiences in 1982's
549:
Rambo's complex friendship, revealing that Rambo confided his painful childhood memories from his abusive father to Trautman, and states that Trautman has become his real father.
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1234:
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618:, the character Sasha asks people who claim to have served in the military (as he had in Afghanistan), "who was your colonel?", in reference to Colonel Trautman.
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Trautman primarily exists as a background figure engaging in arguments with other figures who are pursuing or using Rambo for their own purposes, while in
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to warn the Hope, Washington, sheriff's department of the extent of Rambo's fighting and survival capabilities once Rambo starts a one-man war against
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himself explained that the character died the same day Richard Crenna died. Even though Trautman was originally supposed to be replaced by
380:
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368:
609:, Crenna plays a mentor to the main character, and Crenna's character is captured and tortured by the enemy, requiring his rescue.
304:. He graduated from Hilldale High School in Columbus in 1946. Trautman began his career in the United States Army after completing
300:
According to the DVD special features to the film First Blood, Trautman's dossier records him as being born on July 6, 1929, in
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has been described as "a well-meaning, but naive extension of the broken and mismanaged American military system".
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border from 1973 to 1979. It is likely that between 1979 and 1982, Trautman was assigned stateside to work in the
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Soldier's Medal, the Legion of Merit, 2 Bronze Stars, and the Purple Heart to name a few. At the time of Rambo's
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with local Washington state authorities, Trautman was listed as divorced with no children.
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829:"Sylvester Stallone's Rambo Has Devolved Into a Hyperbolic Symbol of Right-Wing Politics"
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Harvey R. Greenberg, "Dangerous Recuperations: Red Dawn, Rambo, and the New Decaturism",
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novel and film series, and other media in the franchise. His first appearance was in
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Brian James Baer, "Fathers, Sons, and Brothers: Redeeming Patriarchal Authority in
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in 1959. Between 1960 and 1963, Trautman underwent cross-training and became a
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and tries to convince Rambo to join him on a mission in Afghanistan to supply
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234:, Trautman becomes a more central figure in the physical action of the film.
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Crenna played Colonel Denton Walters, a parody of Trautman in the 1993 film
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Trautman first served in the Vietnam War as a First Division member of the
196:. His character was expanded on in the film series where he was played by
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The Trautman character and model resembles Colonel Roy Campbell in
353:
527:, the character appears in archival footage during the credits.
361:
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880:"10 Secrets From the Cast & Crew of the '80s Rambo Cartoon"
282:
Trautman is first introduced as a character in the 1972 novel,
690:
Cinepaternity: Fathers and Sons in Soviet and Post-Soviet Film
448:
760:"'First Blood' Original Ending: Dead Rambo and Kirk Douglas"
747:
Ultraviolent Movies: From Sam Peckinpah to Quentin Tarantino
375:
protégé John Rambo. He directed CIA operations near the
714:
Outlaw Heroes as Liminal Figures of Film and Television
866:
The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows
1210:
Fictional United States Army Special Forces personnel
258:
strongly disagreed and Douglas left the production.
212:", i.e., the United States Government which created
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1240:Characters in American novels of the 20th century
734:A Companion to Literature, Film, and Adaptation
688:", in Helena Goscilo and Yana Hashamova, eds.,
601:, a parody of action movies, particularly the
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8:
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796:The American War Film: History and Hollywood
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16:Fictional character in the Rambo franchise
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636:, according to many fans of the series.
442:and was part of the operation to rescue
312:in 1950, where he also graduated with a
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216:to serve their military needs. In both
1235:Literary characters introduced in 1972
812:Journal of Popular Film and Television
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678:
676:
496:was never explained in the 2008 film,
208:, Trautman serves as an allegory for "
23:
1230:Fictional military personnel in films
463:Trautman tracks John Rambo down to a
7:
846:Archbold, Phil (November 18, 2016).
827:Abrams, Simon (September 23, 2019).
814:Volume 15, Issue 2 (1987), p. 60-70.
14:
557:Sam Trautman was featured in the
1174:
1173:
1153:Paladins: Champions of the Realm
878:Chernov, Matthew (May 4, 2015).
180:is a fictional character in the
144:
630:'s 1998 Playstation video game
1220:Fictional Vietnam War veterans
1:
1215:Fictional Korean War veterans
905:Action!: The Action Movie A-Z
577:posttraumatic stress disorder
467:Monastery in the jungles of
348:officer. He went on to join
848:"The untold truth of Rambo"
564:Rambo: The Force of Freedom
540:The movie novelizations of
492:The character's fate after
1256:
1086:Rambo: First Blood Part II
974:Rambo: First Blood Part II
612:In the Russian TV series,
585:Rambo: First Blood Part II
542:Rambo: First Blood Part II
428:Rambo: First Blood Part II
399:Trautman is flown in from
136:Covey Leader (field names)
55:Rambo: First Blood Part II
1171:
434:After Rambo's rampage in
41:
31:
656:List of Rambo characters
521:In the 2019 installment
575:veteran suffering from
128:Samuel Richard Trautman
120:In-universe information
1225:Action film characters
661:Colonel James Braddock
170:Colonel Samuel Richard
1118:Rambo: The Video Game
381:Department of Defense
340:in 1956 and later to
336:. He was promoted to
1059:The Force of Freedom
764:Entertainment Weekly
598:Hot Shots! Part Deux
784:DVD: Artisan. 2002.
778:Drawing First Blood
745:Laurent Bouzereau,
712:Rebecca A. Umland,
536:Later novelizations
405:the brutal deputies
310:University of Texas
273:Fictional biography
51:as Sam Trautman in
21:Fictional character
1205:Fictional colonels
864:David Perlmutter,
736:(2012), p. 333-34.
732:Deborah Cartmell,
512:Sylvester Stallone
324:, Trautman was an
154:United States Army
1200:Rambo (franchise)
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1186:
998:Rambo: Last Blood
903:Marshall Julius,
646:Rambo (franchise)
524:Rambo: Last Blood
350:Covert operations
322:second lieutenant
320:. Commissioned a
314:bachelor's degree
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766:. April 7, 2017.
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633:Metal Gear Solid
569:Alan Oppenheimer
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326:infantry officer
306:officer training
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114:Alan Oppenheimer
64:First appearance
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1017:First Blood
966:First Blood
782:First Blood
686:The Brigade
583:and 1985's
581:First Blood
573:Vietnam War
531:Other media
488:Later films
440:Delta Force
436:First Blood
409:Vietnam War
393:First Blood
285:First Blood
266:First Blood
260:Rock Hudson
219:First Blood
206:First Blood
193:First Blood
160:Nationality
69:First Blood
1194:Categories
1051:Television
1037:John Rambo
1029:Characters
889:August 31,
852:Looper.com
667:References
651:John Rambo
477:Mujahideen
401:Fort Bragg
330:Fort Bragg
141:Occupation
90:Created by
1102:Rambo III
982:Rambo III
607:Rambo III
546:Rambo III
504:Rambo III
494:Rambo III
482:Rambo III
457:Rambo III
377:Cambodian
373:boot camp
358:Guatemala
318:Sociology
231:Rambo III
210:Uncle Sam
190:'s novel
125:Full name
110:Voiced by
82:Rambo III
37:character
1180:Category
640:See also
469:Thailand
465:Buddhist
178:Trautman
163:American
1129:Related
833:Esquire
716:(2016).
615:Brigada
338:captain
308:at the
238:Casting
150:Colonel
1164:(2019)
1156:(2018)
1148:(2016)
1140:(2014)
1121:(2014)
1113:(2008)
1105:(1989)
1097:(1987)
1089:(1986)
1081:(1985)
1062:(1986)
1020:(1972)
1009:Novels
1001:(2019)
993:(2008)
985:(1988)
977:(1985)
969:(1982)
591:Parody
459:(1988)
430:(1985)
395:(1982)
85:(1988)
72:(1982)
58:(1985)
1137:Smite
1110:Rambo
1094:Rambo
1078:Rambo
990:Rambo
958:Films
950:Rambo
603:Rambo
508:Rambo
499:Rambo
354:Chile
342:major
225:Rambo
214:Rambo
183:Rambo
133:Alias
34:Rambo
891:2019
544:and
506:and
444:POWs
362:Cuba
360:and
254:and
222:and
947:'s
449:CIA
352:in
346:CIA
332:in
316:in
174:Sam
1196::
882:.
850:.
831:.
819:^
803:^
780:.
762:.
721:^
697:^
675:^
561:,
510:.
423:.
411:.
364:.
356:,
269:.
200:.
176:"
152:,
937:e
930:t
923:v
893:.
854:.
835:.
172:"
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