B.O.B "Currahee" - Capt Herbert Sobel

Herbert M. Sobel (January 26, 1912 - September 30, 1987) was an officer in the United States Army during World War II. He was initially the commanding officer of Company "E" in the 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division, the unit that is the subject of the book Band of Brothers by author Stephen Ambrose. In the BBC/HBO miniseries adaptation of the book, Captain Sobel was portrayed by actor David Schwimmer.

Promoted to first lieutenant, Sobel commanded Company E for all of their basic training at Camp Toccoa, Georgia, and was credited with having the finest company in the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. He was promoted to the rank of captain in recognition of his ability as a trainer. According to the book Band of Brothers, Sobel was disliked by the soldiers of Company E for his extreme strictness at Camp Toccoa, and though he was mentally strong, Sobel often had difficulties with physical activities, including combat training. His proficiency in skills critical for combat officers was somewhat lacking - for example, Sobel had difficulties in map reading (as depicted in the Band of Brothers miniseries episode "Currahee") and his grasp of military tactics was apparently poor.

After a period of training in the United Kingdom before the Normandy invasion, Captain Sobel was removed from command of Easy Company after several of the unit's non-commissioned officers refused to fight under him, believing him to be an incompetent combat commander who would get many of his own soldiers killed. He was then transferred to command the Chilton Foliat jump school. First Lieutenant Thomas Meehan replaced Sobel, and was one of several officers (including Richard Winters) to succeed him in that post before the war was over.

After the invasion of Normandy, Sobel was again moved to a combat assignment, where he was wounded by enemy machine gun fire.

Shortly before Easy Company took part in Operation Market Garden, Sobel was assigned to the 506th once again, this time as the regimental S-4 (logistics) officer.

Though Sobel was not qualified to be a combat leader, many veterans of Easy Company have stated that they believe they would not have survived the war without Sobel's hard training regimen at Camp Toccoa. There is no evidence in the public record regarding Sobel's performance as the jump school commander or as the regimental S-4. His duties in those positions would have relied on skills quite different from those needed to command an infantry company.

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[michaelkrois]

No one came to his funeral, i bet the Easy Company wouldnt have survived, if he wasnt that asshole in training

[TheRingil]

I'm not a huge fan of Sobel, but he does deserve credit where it's due.

Many veteran members of Easy Company going all the way back to Toccoa acknowledged it was Sobel's harsh training that kept them alive.

His poor grasp of military tactics aside, he was essential to the success of Easy Company.

Nonetheless, Sink was wise to remove him from a tactical command. Sobel's talents simply lay elsewhere, however much it spited him.

[berserker276]

@WolfhoundMercenary His relatives thought that too I think.

[WolfhoundMercenary]

@aMarinedaughter You know, I think Ambrose vilified him a bit too much in the series/books.

[aMarinedaughter]

I think this scene was the most important in making the character of Capt. Sobel real to viewers. I nearly cried the first time I saw it, where they zero in on his face, as he realizes that he has not going to lead Easy Company into battle. I have also read the book, and pretty much everything in the series about Sobel was accurate, including the spaghetti and Luz's imitation of Maj. Horton, resulting in his cutting the barbed wire fence in England.

[aMarinedaughter]

@Kasino80 Amen to that! When I heard that someone from "Friends" was going to be in Band of Brothers, I thought that maybe it wasn't really the serious undertaking I had heard it was. However, I think he was absolutely perfect for what I am sure was a very challenging role. I thought he should have had an Emmy nomination for it.

[Kasino80]

David Schwimmer was fantastic in this role. He went far beyond the role of Ross and showed in what league he really belongs.

[Marcusx1980]

Captain Sobel was an excellent drill commander but lacked battle skills.

However he did make easy company what they are.

And I felt sorry for him. Seing your soldiers rising in rank faster than yourself is bloody painfull. Being an ex officer myself.

[dano7411]

Seen it many times in the military. Square peg in a round hole. People can do great things, if they are put in a job that matches their skills. When mismatched, it causes misery. Also, people tend to get promoted to their level of incompetence. Meaning someone is a good team leader, so them get promoted to squad leader. They do good at that, so they get moved up to flight (platoon) leader. If the suck at that, they don't put them back down to where they were good, they move them over.

[98vanguard]

what's the name of the music playing at 2:10?

[littlemisshedgehog]

2:03 "Zoo Transfer?! Oh no no no I can't be transferred! I have an appointment with Dr. Goldburg at five! And I am not going HMO!"

Oooh dear, sorry, I had to.