As a young boy, I used to play army men for hours, usually alone, as others would mess up my intricate battlefields and forts I built out of Lincoln Logs and building blocks. I used to mix in my Fort Apache indians and cavalry, as well as whatever else I thought would add color to the battlefield as long as it was made of plastic. Then the war would begin - sometimes by high-altitude aerial attack (blocks levered into the air using green Lincoln Log roof slats). I am sure I was not alone in these pursuits in the 1950's, but it does seem a little sadistic now! Everyone had their "house rules" as to how the game should be played, and if you played "army men" at a friend's house, you would usually have to switch to his rules (similar to the rules on our backyard basketball court that took into account the extra point for shooting from behind the aluminum clothes line that slotted into the cement in the middle of the court). For those of you that are not initiated, check out the website Green Plastic Massacre for an example of how the rules would go - I can't remember now the exact specifics of the Anderton house rules.
