For most of our audience, the last time the French Foreign Legion came up was likely in a context related to old movies or stories from the ’30s or ’40s. Movies like Beau Geste, based on a 1924 novel by P.C. Wren, parodies on Looney Toons, Disney cartoons, Laurel & Hardy or Abbott & Costello comedies; that sort of thing. More recently, the Brendan Fraser Mummy movies began with his character as a member of the French Foreign Legion.
The notion behind the Legion is that it’s a military unit for people that need to get away from their troubles at home and end up going to harsh environments on the other side of the world. Well, like any military force that gets a reputation for being full of tough, expendable soldiers, there are many aspects of the Legion that make it definitely worth your time to get to know better.