The following are some of the EXTRA activities taking place

at our May 7-8, 2010 Event

We are very excited to welcome Eastern Costume as a dealer at our May 7-8 show. This well known Hollywood costume company has been fortunate enough to purchase a large number of the uniforms and gear used in the filming of the HBO miniseries “The Pacific”. This will be the FIRST TIME any items will be available for sale in the U.S.! Eastern Costume will be offering hundreds of quality uniforms that were made and used specifically, and solely, for “The Pacific”. Available for sale to the public will be a variety of U.S. HBT, camouflage, service and dress uniforms (Japanese uniforms are not available this time around). Remember, these items were USED in the filming of the mini series, so they are offered in a variety of grades from clean, slightly used, to well used and battle damaged. For the most part, they will be sold as complete uniform sets. Note that some extra parts and head gear may be available as well (inventory subject to change without notice). Do not miss this unique opportunity to own a high quality uniform AND very cool movie costume from HBO’s “The Pacific” – only at The West Coast Historical Militaria Collectors Show!

The Fort MacArthur Museum will once again display a variety of historical military vehicles at our May event – they always bring out something unique and exciting! This museum is dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the history of Fort MacArthur, a U.S. Army post which guarded the Los Angeles harbor from 1914 to 1974. The Museum was established in 1985, and it is housed in the corridors and galleries of historic Battery Osgood-Farley. The Fort MacArthur Reservations hold an important collection of historical structures which were part of the U.S. Army's role in the defense of the American continental coastline from invasion. These structures clearly trace the development of American coastal defenses, from the all big gun era of the turn of the century to the missile era of today.

HBO’s “The Pacific” Ignites Interest In WW2 Japanese Good Luck Flags

There were thousands of fluttering flags on the Pacific battlefields of World War Two, and each told a story: a tale of a soldier who went to war carrying fond wishes from the people who loved him, slogans of courage and luck, religious symbols and exquisite images. Japanese good luck flags, unlike the American Stars and Stripes, were unique, one-of-a kind mementoes presented by families to military members who left home and never expected to return.

Dr. Michael Bortner, a Melbourne Beach, Florida resident is the author of the recently released book, Imperial Japanese Good Luck Flags And One-Thousand Stitch Belts. Bortner, who graduated from Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana in 1975 and the Univ. of Calif., Irvine in 1979 has been interested in military history and its material culture since childhood. He will be on hand to autograph copies of his book at The West Coast Historical Militaria Collector’s Show on Fri., May 7, 2010 from 1-6 and Sat., May 8, 2010 from 9-5 at The Fairplex in Pomona. Bortner’s book, along with HBO’s long anticipated ten part mini-series, “The Pacific” which broadcast its first episode a couple of weeks ago, has drawn praise from among military historians and military antique collectors both in the United States and abroad, especially in Japan.

Japanese Public Television (NHK) recently traveled to the United States where they interviewed Bortner for a television documentary on good luck signed flags. That special, which examined portions of the author’s extensive collection was released in Japan just a few months ago. Dr. Bortner’s is the first and only book of its kind in any language that focuses solely on the subject of World War Two era Japanese signed flags (hinomaru yosegaki) and their good luck companion items, one-thousand stitch belts (senninbari.) Through an extensive use of color photographs and detailed research, hundreds of these rare artifacts were examined, translated and documented within the 286 page work released by Schiffer Books of Atglen, PA.

During World War Two, Japanese soldiers, sailors and airmen were presented with a good luck flag prior to their departure from home. Each banner was a unique and personal gift, decorated by friends and family who used a brush to paint their names and personal messages of luck upon the flag’s white field. The red sun in the center was normally left unmarked. Once a man was transferred to his duty station overseas, the signed flag might be stowed inside his pack or helmet liner and carried into the field as a reminder of home. It was in these kinds of places that American servicemen typically found the flags after battle and collected them as spoils of war.

Discarded wooden crates, ration boxes, duffel bags and foot lockers typically served as packing containers in which battlefield relics were stored and then later shipped home. “Next to the samurai sword, the good luck signed flag was probably the most highly sought after bring-back souvenir of World War Two,“ says Bortner. The author said that no one knows for sure how many flags made their way into the homes of returning American servicemen, although the number was likely in the hundreds of thousands.

Thomas Family Displays

Robert C. Thomas III

The son of a life-long collector, Robert literally grew up around militaria collectors. In fact, his first costume contest at the old Great Western gunshow was at age 2 in 1985. This Spring, Robert will be displaying some of his best WW2 US militaria including a fantastic Wake Island grouping, as well as other unique and rare USMC, Airborne, Mountain and Ranger memorabilia.

Of special interest will be a separate table displayed by Robert’s father, Bob Thomas Jr. devoted to the WW2 memorabilia of the patriarch of the Thomas Family, Bob Thomas Sr., who served in the Pacific Theater with the 2nd Special Brigade, Army Amphibious Engineers.

Sacred Sword Inc.

Sacred Sword Inc. the official supplier of web gear and props to HBO’s THE PACIFIC and other Hollywood blockbusters will be in attendance at the West Coast Historical Militaria Collectors Show. Available for sale for the first time are complete USMC 782 sets and props used in the HBO series. Select props from GREEN ZONE, BEHIND ENEMY LINES, BLACKHAWK DOWN, THE KINGDOM and TERMINATOR 4 will also be available for sale.