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The Winds of War, My first Superdiorama!

bob letterman

Master at Arms
Staff member
Bob Letterman said:
I sold the first diorama I ever built back in '89. After that, I made a practice to never sell my work and have never regretted it. The collector simply bugged me for so many years I finally gave in. I still regret it because it meant so much to me. Back then, the amount of money he offered me was hard to resist. Seriously, it was really bad, (Remember your first project), but it was significant in so many ways. At the time I remember being really excited about it. It made the covers of model magazines all over the world, what magazines there were at the time, and every TV station and newspaper in St. Louis. It was on display for years at the Soldier's Memorial Museum in St. Louis.

Although the quality is embarrassingly poor by today's standards, it was built in the early seventies and when finally publicly shown, there had never been anything like it in size. Also, back in those days, there was only one how to book, no PE, no resin, I had never heard of drybrushing or washes. The hobby at that time was practically a barren desert. The only figures available back then were Tamiya very poor quality plastic figures and some Monogram race car figures that I converted. All vehicles except an Opel Blitz and motorcycles were model cars in 1/32nd scale. Compared to today, it was like doing brain surgery with stone knives and bear claws! :blush: :blush: :blush:

I started building this more than 40 years ago!

The collector had recently read about my finding all those old photographs and I had told him long ago I had absolutely no photos of my first diorama. He sent these to me today. Don't laugh, just remember your first attempts at this or that. :blush: :blush: :blush: :blush: The dio is 7 feet X 4 feet in size. All the rooms in all the windows had little vignettes goin on, some very risque!

ygpC574.jpg


The period was in 1938, just prior to the war. I know about the Book and TV movie of the same name, but, honestly, the book was probably out and the movie wasn't until several years later. The name was just a coincidence. Also, At the first show I took it to, people thought I was some kind of Neo-nazi! :evil: :evil: :evil:

ygpC571.jpg


The huge building at the rear was loosely based on the Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof, (Main train station). OMG, check out the lychen on both the tree and as grass. Nobody had ever heard of static grass back then! I did make a clear resin pond. Absolutely cutting edge technology back then. :hmmm :hmmm :hmmm Little did I know then that soon resin products would become a major part of my life.

ygpC57B.jpg


Well, here it is 2017, and I found a photo I did have of the Winds of War! It was in a stack of photos given me by the Post-Dispatch newsroom. It was taken in July, 1982, I had just turned 41, 37 years ago!

[
Bob_WoW1985_copy_zpsue2q6iuz.jpeg


That's it,

Bob
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

Without close-ups Bob, I'd be hard pressed to see how bad this is in comparison to your newer works... That said, I will take your word for it :laugh:

It really looks monumentous and I like that you have mentioned certain limitations of the day and what you have achieved without some things we now take for granted ;)
Brad :side:
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

Pekka and Brad,

Thanks guys, I appreciate that!

I am not being modest with the text in this. Compared to what I do today, it is just awful. From a distance, it is impressive because of the size and detail. It is the quality of the work, figures, vehicles and even the buildings. I have learned so much in the forty years since I built that!

Once, in 1993, I started Miniature World Museum. It had the works of all the greats of that time and I had a very early piece of Lewis Pruneau's. Compared to what he went on to do, it was very poor. When he saw it was there, he said, "Bob, no way you are gonna display that damned thing, It's terrible"! I pointed to the "Winds of War" near it and said, "If that thing is gonna be in here, then yours will be too"! We laughed and forgot about it!

Bob
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

Wow Bob. Awesome. Is a honor to see your works...
The first diorama, but it is not the last, hahahahaha.
I want to see more works like this ever...

See you!

Yago.
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

Bob I feel your pain......I did a large diorama and when it was time to let it go it was like watching a child leave home .
The only consolation I have is it resides in a museum now , as disturbing as it may seem it was actually the selection process at gate 3 auschwitz.
It does not compare to the beauty of your work , but i was able to learn a great deal like casting figures.ill have too see if i have pics
Now all of that being said I really want to see more of the three deminisional art you produce.
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

Come on Yago, Your work is just incredible!

You are a great modeler, I am an old modeler. I really love your work!

Seriously!

Bob
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

Yeah, The big ones almost become children. Many times, when I finish one of the really big ones, it is surreal. I have to stop and realize that it isn't the end, it is the beginning, and there will be another. I have always got into those big ones as though they were my life and when they were finally finished, I had to jolt myself, wake up from the dream, and jump start my life over again. Well, that is a bit dramatic, but it is a very strange thing to me and always has been.

I'm glad you can relate! And yes, I'm really weird!!!!! :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

Would love to see pics!!!!!

Bob
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

bob letterman wrote:
Come on Yago, Your work is just incredible!

You are a great modeler, I am an old modeler. I really love your work!

Seriously!

Bob

No Bob.
You are the best!
I know your work since I was a child, and always I have admired everything what you have done and whenever I see one of your dioramas learn something new.

Thank you for being one great modeller.

Yago.
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

Bob,
I would like to take a minute and disagree with your statement. It's an amazing diorama! And if I am not mistaken, and Dad, you might have to back me up on this one, but I'm pretty sure that I have seen this in person while we drove through St. Louis a long while back. But simply put, amazing job! I wish I could claim a work like that as my "first."

//Travis
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

I understand how you feel Bob. I just can never bring myself to sell my work. Granted I work on a much smaller scale than you, but the feelings are the same. Glad you have the pictures!
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

modelguru wrote:
yes i will post some under the title WHY PROJECT.

I'll check it out!!

Bob

tjgehling wrote:
Bob,
I would like to take a minute and disagree with your statement. It's an amazing diorama! And if I am not mistaken, and Dad, you might have to back me up on this one, but I'm pretty sure that I have seen this in person while we drove through St. Louis a long while back. But simply put, amazing job! I wish I could claim a work like that as my "first."

//Travis

That's possible Travis, from 1983 to 2002, that was in the museum at both VLS in O'Fallon and Miniature World in St. Charles during those years. It went to a private collector who is now deceased and I have no clue where it is.

Bob

JSteinman wrote:
I understand how you feel Bob. I just can never bring myself to sell my work. Granted I work on a much smaller scale than you, but the feelings are the same. Glad you have the pictures!

Well, when you put your heart and soul into something, size does NOT matter, Right?

Bob

Ted wrote:
Nice piece of modeling history Bob.

Ted

Thanks Ted!

Bob
 
Re:My very first Diorama!

Thanks Harv!

The first one I built, I had no idea it was bigger than usual!

That's the truth. Then I took it to a show and was surprised that all the others were little! :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

Bob
 
Re: The Winds of War, My very first Diorama!

I connected with a very old friend the other day who had these pictures she took back in 1981. As I no longer have the diorama or many pictures, I'll post these. I started this in 1976, finished in 1981, long before any aftermarket stuff was available. Pretty crude by today's standards, but the modeling world's reaction to it back then changed my life forever.

I remember I didn't know what dry brushing or washes meant back then. I achieved the weathered look by using furniture antiquing stain.

Clocktower.jpg


The magazine cover.

fsmwindsowar.jpg


A doctor's office. There was a hot babe coming out of the shower in another window, but she took the one with the dude.

DoctorsOffice.jpg


GovtBldg.jpg


PartyBuilding.jpg


Tunnel.jpg


Trainstation.jpg


Bob
 
Re: The Winds of War, My very first Diorama!

Incredible!

What scale is this Dad?

You would ask that, Son. I kinda used both 1/32 and 1/35th. There was so little available I used whatever I could find! You younger guys have no idea what a wasteland the diorama market was back then. Most of the cars and more than half the figures are 1/32nd. The figures are from Monogram 1/32nd race, (Slot) car accessories. I did my very first figure conversions back then. There weren't many 1/35th military figures then and no civilian figures.
 
Re: The Winds of War, My very first Diorama!

(y) remember looking at the dioramas in the tamiya catalogue and tried to make something similar, still remember one of some paratroopers walking by a big house (think it was british paras in holland, name of the dio could have been "Arnhem") and there where a big tree to, always wanted to build something like that since then, but still not dared to do it :unsure:
Great dio Bob!! :notworthy
 
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