Line #64 Main/DadTheVeteran


1	[[quoteright:286:[[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Dad_The_Veteran_32.jpg]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:286:Don't ask, don't tell.]]
3
4	->''"Dad! No one wants to hear your stupid Vietnam stories!"''
5	-->-- [[Radio/GTARadio Radio commercial]], ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity''
6
7	Quite often, especially in shows set in The50s and The60s, the father figure will be a veteran. Whether he's a Standard50sFather or otherwise, he's capable of being a real hardcase in the right circumstances. Yes, even the Dads who appear to be nothing but creampuff [[PapaWolf can be tough guys when they need to be]], and he bases it all on his years of military service.
8
9	Often this is pulled in situations where a younger (almost always male) character needs to be browbeaten or intimidated -- during TwerpSweating is a common example. Whether the dad was merely a Marine, or the equivalent of [[VideoGame/MetalGear FOXHOUND]], at some point, they'll bring it up in a not-so-casual way when they need to remind the younger character that they aren't as soft and yielding as they seem to be.
10
11	Quite a few female characters are given a Veteran Dad as an excuse for why she's [[NeverASelfMadeWoman tough and independent]], but it can also be a FreudianExcuse if he was a tyrannical martinet who lorded over his family with an iron hand. Sometimes this allows female characters to have access to unusual skills or assets, on the assumption that senior military officers use their aviation regiments as their kid's private chauffeurs.
12
13	This effect can also happen if Dad used to be a cop, or a government agent of some sort. In comedies, it often turns out that yeah, Dad was in the Army... but he was a cook, or a file clerk, or a mechanic, or had some other less than intimidating job.[[note]]This is actually the [[RealityIsUnrealistic far more likely scenario.]] There is the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tooth-to-tail_ratio Tooth-to-tail ratio]] concept, which is the ratio between people in active combat, and their support personnel, and the latter is usually the overwhelming majority in the US. In the Vietnam War for example, someone who served in the US Army would be nearly 13 times as likely to be primarily non-combat personnel. See: EasyLogistics.[[/note]]
14
15	This was a JustifiedTrope not too long ago for American families, given the almost back-to-back nature of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, UsefulNotes/TheKoreanWar, and UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar. At any given time in that era around 40% of the male population were veterans, with some age groups reaching well over 80%. Sometimes a fictitious GreatOffscreenWar is used when the parental characters would have been too young (or hadn't been born yet) to have participated in any of the aforementioned wars, depending on the current PresentDay. Given the ongoing [[UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror War on Terror]], one can expect this trope to [[CyclicTrope come back into prominence]]. It shows up quite often when the plotline involves TheGenerationGap.
16
17	Often coincides with MilitaryBrat.
18	----
19	!!Examples:
20
21	[[foldercontrol]]
22
23	[[folder:Advertising]]
24	* The trope image on this very page is a recruiting poster that shows the cultural assumption of that era that most men of childraising age would be veterans--in this case, of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI. That being said, there's further explaination on ThisImageIsNotAnExample.
25	[[/folder]]
26
27	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
28	* Zepek in ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'' is a fairly unsympathetic one of these. He still has his old equipment and seems to have fought in at least one battle, but it's made clear that as he is now, he's an abusive wretch who does nothing but get drunk with his war buddies and demand respect he doesn't really deserve.
29	[[/folder]]
30
31	[[folder:ComicBooks]]
32	* Bill of ''ComicBook/GoldenEyesAndHerHeroBill'' is a decorated veteran of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, and he [[BabiesEverAfter becomes a father]] at the end of the serial. Interestingly enough, his wife[[note]] the protagonist of the story [[/note]] enlisted as an ambulance driver, was briefly a prisoner of war, and is ''also'' a decorated veteran, making her a RareFemaleExample of this trope.
33	* Jack Drake, father of Tim Drake (ComicBook/{{Robin\|1993}} III[=/=]ComicBook/RedRobin), was formerly in the Army though he rarely brings it up. Tim addresses him as "sir" fairly regularly.
34	* ''ComicBook/StarTrekEarlyVoyages'': Captain Pike's father Josh Pike is a retired admiral who was highly decorated by Starfleet.
35	* ComicBook/SteveTrevor's father is usually a veteran, originally of WWI but later reboots and alterations to the timeline have shifted both the war in question and at what point in Steve's life his father retired. Originally both Steve and [[ComicBook/WonderWoman Diana]] were examples for their daughter Lyta as they were both WWII combatants but Lyta was erased from history with the Crisis.
36	* ''ComicBook/ThePunisher'':
37	** Frank Castle was briefly this, returning from the Vietnam war to enjoy life with his family before a mafia shootout killed his wife, son, and daughter, then using his combat skills to kill criminals.
38	** In the MAX version, he felt unable to relate to any of his family after returning, and even intended to get a divorce so they could be free of him. Then they went to the park in a last-ditch attempt at a family outing and...
39	* Kate "ComicBook/{{Batwoman}}'' Kane is the daughter of Special Forces veteran Jacob Kane, and her mom Gabi was in military intelligence. It shows.
40	[[/folder]]
41
42	[[folder:Fan Works]]
43	* ''Fanfic/BaitAndSwitchSTO'': Main character Kanril Eleya's father Kanril Torvo and deceased grandfather both fought in the Bajoran Resistance, and though she claims he didn't encourage her to enlist in the Bajoran Militia, it's mentioned that her father taught her some wilderness survival skills and how to shoot.
44	* ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm''
45	** Thor was James Potter as a first run at the humility thing (it worked right up until it didn't). While he's pretty easygoing as a dad (despite the stress factor of Harry's knack for finding the shortest route between his nose and deep trouble), and he generally acts as a superhero, the point is sometimes made that he's got over a ''millennium'' of military experience, and he won't hesitate to use it. More generally, it also gives him a much better understanding than most of his son's struggles with facing real war and [[ShellShockedVeteran PTSD]].
46	** Separately, Alison Carter (little sister of Peggy [[spoiler: or rather, Peggy's daughter by Steve]]) is both Mum the Veteran and Grandma the Veteran, having been a highly decorated original Agent 13 of SHIELD and Deputy Director - and the only reasons she didn't make full Director were that the WSC didn't want to risk a Director with the power of the Carter name (who, as it happened, could more or less control the actual Director anyway), and that she didn't want people looking too closely into her family. This led her son, [[Series/StargateSG1 Jack O'Neill]], becoming a highly decorate Air Force General, and her granddaughters to idolise her, one (Sharon Carter) becoming Agent 13 in her own right, and the other (Carol Danvers) going down a similar path. However, it also caused her daughter, who she tried to push into joining SHIELD, to choose a more peaceful role as nurse and homemaker (and an understated MamaBear), wanting to 'make good' rather than fight evil, and caused a significant rift between the two, with Alison admitting that she was "a much better spy than a mother".
47	* Much of ''Fanfic/TheTranslationInBlood'' is told from the Mom the Veteran's perspective as she watches her daughter, [[Franchise/MassEffect Commander Shepard]], grow up and become a decorated officer in her own right.
48	* In the lore of the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' blog ''Blog/TheRoyalSketchbook'', Luna and Celestia's father was an ex-soldier who when retired became a blacksmith.
49	* ''Fanfic/ShaggyTheHandler'': Fred, Daphne, and Velma all have fathers who are veterans (likely WWII veterans). Their experience with their fathers helps them understand why Shaggy won't talk about his past in Vietnam.
50	[[/folder]]
51
52	[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]
53	* ''Film/AnAutumnAfternoon'': Shuhei was a captain in the Imperial Japanese Navy. He runs into one of his former subordinates and joins him for a drink.
54	* The step-dad in ''Film/{{Boyhood}}''. At one point, Olivia marries Jim, who has just come off of tours in both Afghanistan and Iraq. In his initial scenes, he comes off as responsible and driven, reciting his experiences in a down-to-earth way while revealing that no one in his platoon lost a life during the time he was in the service. However, it's hinted that his time in combat had a greater effect on him than he'd been willing to admit, as he turns to drinking later on in the film, and repeatedly reprimands Mason whenever he perceives the latter as slacking in his life decisions.
55	* ''Film/{{The Island\|1980}}'' (1980): While at the gun range, Maynard mentions to proprietor that he was in Korea and that you never forget those skills. Presumably this explains how he knows how to operate a Browning .50 caliber machine gun later in the film.
56	* In ''Film/{{Juno}}'', Juno's dad blatantly states that he's a war veteran. The precise war is never quite pinned down. He is more proud of his life's true purpose, heating and air conditing. He subverts the tyrannical aspect of this as he is very close to Juno and been there for her far more than her absentee mother has been.
57	* In ''Film/PacificRim'', both Stacker Pentecost and Hercules Hansen have served in the military for nearly two decades. Prior to K-Day and the {{Kaiju}} invasion, Stacker had served in the British Royal Air Force with his sister, Luna, while Herc was already enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force. After that, they joined the Pan Pacific Defense Corps and eventually became the longest serving (and surviving) Jaeger pilots. By the time of the film, Stacker is the Marshal of the PPDC and Hong Kong Shatterdome; Herc ''still'' pilots Striker Eureka alongside his young son, Chuck.
58	* ''Film/{{Patton}}'': The final line in Patton's speech to his solders at the opening of the film alludes to this.
59	--> "Now, there's one thing that you men will be able to say when you get back home. And you may thank God for it. Thirty years from now when you’re sitting around your fireside with your grandson on your knee, and he asks you: "What did you do in the great World War II?" You won't have to say, "Well, I shoveled shit in Louisiana."
60	* In ''Film/SecondhandLions'' during Hub [=McCann's=] Crowning Badass Speech of Asskicking, when he single-handedly takes down the greasers who invade the diner, he rather pointedly mentions that he is a veteran:
61	-->'''Greaser Punk:''' "Who the hell are you, old man?"\
62	'''Hub [=McCann=]:''' "I'm [=Hub McCann=]. I've fought in two World Wars and countless smaller ones on three continents. I led thousands of men into battle with everything from horses and swords to artillery and tanks. I've seen the headwaters of the Nile, and tribes of natives no white man had ever seen before. I've won and lost a dozen fortunes, killed ''many'' men, and loved only ''one'' woman with a passion a '''''flea''''' like you could never begin to understand. That's who I am. NOW, GO HOME, BOY!"
63	* Captain von Trapp in ''Film/TheSoundOfMusic'' served in WWI and was decorated for his actions. He runs his house like a military camp as a result, but Maria gets him to loosen up. [[spoiler:Then the ''Anschluss'' happens and UsefulNotes/NaziGermany tries to reactivate his commission. The von Trapps flee to Switzerland instead.]][[note]]Despite what the film--and the play, for that matter--claim, the family didn't climb over any mountains, they merely took the train instead.[[/note]] It's worth noting that the RealLife Maria von Trapp said that this has no basis in reality, and that the Captain was a highly permissive father who [[FreeRangeChildren encouraged his children to roam on their own]] while ''she'' was the iron-fisted disciplinarian.
64	* Played with in ''Film/WarHorse'', where it isn't quite the trope it'd be in a post-Great War setting. Mr. Narracott is shown as having fought in the Boer War, and it's hardened him somewhat, but not in a positive sense. He [[ShellShockedVeteran refuses to talk about what he did or even acknowledge his medals and regimental pennant]]. His wife explains the situation to Albert, his gentle and somewhat simple-minded son, but it doesn't keep him from attempting to enlist in World War One at the first opportunity.
65	[[/folder]]
66
67	[[folder:{{Literature}}]]
68	* John Clark, a character who makes multiple appearances in Creator/TomClancy's books, is a Vietnam veteran, a former Punisher-style vigilante, and leader of an elite anti-terrorist unit. He's also a PapaBear to his three daughters. One of them related a story about he frightened off-for good- a boyfriend whom he found less-than-acceptable ''just by giving him a death glare.''
69	* ''Literature/AbsolutelyTruly'': Truly's father is a Lieutenant Colonel in the army.
70	* In the ''Literature/ArrivalsFromTheDark'' series, Mark Valdez's father Sergey Valdez fought in the Fourth Void War against the [[HumanAliens Faata]] at the rank of commander and in the Earth Federation's ongoing war with the [[FrogMen Dromi]], quickly moving up in the ranks and becoming an admiral. Between the two wars, Valdez Sr. was a mercenary for the [[SpaceElves Lo'ona Aeo]] and frequently fought Dromi raiders assaulting Lo'ona Aeo trade ships. Mark himself served during the Dromi War but then became the first in his family to leave the service after two decades (his parents were killed in battle, as was his great-grandfather Commodore Paul Richard Corcoran during the Second Void War). Commodore [[OverlyLongName Olaf Peter Carlos Trevelyan-Krasnogortsev]] is a career officer, who spends most of his life fighting the Dromi, eventually dying aboard his flagship. He's had several wives and abandoned a number of children. Even when he was married to their mothers, he rarely saw them and typically couldn't wait to get back into space while on leave.
71	* In ''Literature/ABrothersPrice'', all of the Whistler grandmothers had been common line soldiers, descended from soldiers, blacklisted for treason, trained as thieves, and turning their hands to becoming spies. They passed this training down to their daughters, who passed it down to ''their'' daughters. The granddaughters all have military discipline, on down to [[ChildSoldiers the little ones]], and they are well able to defend their youngest and their menfolk. Thanks to the Whistler grandfather and his odd ideas, said menfolk are also somewhat trained. Jerin Whistler benefits from this. He's a NonActionGuy like every male in the setting.
72	* In ''December Stillness'' Kelly's father is revealed to be a Vietnam Veteran, contrasting with Mr. Weems as he has adapted to life after the war much better than the other.
73	* ''Literature/ADogsWayHome'': Lucas' mother Terri is a war veteran. Due to her traumas, she neglected him in his childhood. She also became dependent on alcohol and drugs, which she still deals with years after being clean. Lucas doesn't care to think about the past but it troubles his mother deeply.
74	* Wood from ''Literature/{{Dragoncharm}}'' has one, after a fashion. Although Barker isn't an army dragon he's a dedicated activist in the run-up to the war between the Naturals and the Charmed.
75	* Park's father from ''Literature/EleanorAndPark'' was stationed in Korea during the Vietnam War (his brother died there, too) and met Park and Josh’s mother there.
76	* The official {{novelization}} of ''Film/Godzilla2014'' reveals that [[Characters/MonsterVerseFamilies Joe Brody]] was a Navy sailor in his younger days.
77	* For Literature/KrisLongknife, it's Great-Granddad the Veteran, as well as Great-Grandma: her father's a politician and her grandfather a {{Fiction 500}} CEO, but all three of her surviving great-grandparents are veterans of the Iteeche War and subsequent human-on-human unification wars, and one more died in action. One of them, Terrence "Trouble" Tordon, helped Kris out of a troubled childhood and got her into orbital skiff racing as a teenager, and Kris eventually defied her parents and followed the greats into the SpaceNavy.
78	* ''Literature/TheMachineGunners'' has main character Chas' grandfather, with whom he lives, be a veteran of World War I, the Battle of Caporetto specifically; unlike the more badass versions of this trope in fiction, the book plays it very realistically showing the actual trauma of battle to contrast it with the jingoistic propaganda surrounding war which Chas and friends are taken in by. Chas' grandad has very serious PTSD and even a rattling pot or kettle lid can trigger damaging flashbacks to the perils of combat.
79	* In ''Reunion'', the Jewish protagonist's father, a decorated WWI veteran, responds to a Nazi goon putting up boycott posters on their shop by putting on his uniform and all his medals and standing at attention next to the goon without saying a word. The Nazi gives up and leaves in shame.
80	* ''Literature/TheSagaOfTuck'': The protagonist's father, Bill Tucker, [[TheVietnamVet joined the Marines during the Vietnam War]] to get away from an abusive pastor who had the rest of his family under his thumb. He saw heavy combat, losing several close friends, and would suffer {{Past Experience Nightmare}}s following the war. Despite this, he remained (in his own words) a 'Leftist Gun Nut' who made sure to teach his children wilderness survival, basic military tactics, and [[ArtisticLicenseGunSafety proper gun usage]], mostly [[CrazyPrepared in case things went sideways]]. After talking Tuck down from his late-night suicidal impulses following a break up, Bill discusses his wartime experiences with Tuck until sun-up, deeply impressing his child.
81	* Played with in William Beamon's novel ''Literature/TheSunshineState''. Teenage Darryl is warned by his girlfriend Sandra's father that "he'd been in the Army during the war" (the war in question being the Vietnam War) and that if Darryl "got fresh", dad might have to hurt the boy. Later when he's alone with her, he jokes about the warning, theorizing that her dad (described as "round, well-padded, balding, and genial" earlier in the novel by Darryl himself) had probably been a cook or a file clerk. She hastily corrects him:
82	-->"Who dad?" she asked. "No, he was an Army ranger. He'd be dropped behind enemy lines to rescue prisoners of war and stuff. He knows how to kill people about a dozen ways with his bare hands. I saw him beat up a guy who was trying to break into our car outside of the movie theater with a rolled up magazine. You know... special forces kinda stuff."
83	* Paula's father in ''Literature/UglyMemories'' attended VMI (a real-life military college in Virginia). The audience never finds out if he's a veteran of an actual war or not. Still, his behavior - especially the profanity-filled lecture he gives his daughter - fits this character type.
84	* The ''Literature/VillageTales'' series is, after all, set in Wiltshire. Home of the British Army. It's stuffed full of more-or-less RetiredBadass sorts. (One local curate won the Military Cross, and can ''glare'' wrongdoers into repentance; the local duke is a decorated former Intelligence Corps officer you don't want to cross; the local Headmaster, whose school is markedly free of discipline issues, ahem, was a subaltern of 1 PARA; the landlord of [[MyLocal the pub]], where there is never a BarBrawl for some reason, served in the Falklands; the only social housing in the district was built for [[spoiler: retired [[UsefulNotes/NepaliWithNastyKnives ''Gurkhas'']]]]....) Good luck finding a father or father figure of the right age who ''didn't'' serve in HM Forces.
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
88	* Actor Gerald [=McRaney=] often played Vietnam War veterans or other military character; with the example best fitting this trope being his role on ''Series/TouchedByAnAngel'' spinoff ''Series/PromisedLand1996'' as Vietnam veteran Russell Greene.
89	** He also played the lead in ''Series/MajorDad'', where he was a mustang, former enlisted (in Vietnam) who became an officer, serving during Desert Storm.
90	* On ''Series/ThirdRockFromTheSun'', Mary's father is a WWII veteran. He bores everyone except Sally with his war stories. HilarityEnsues when he and Sally decide to hook up (note he's still married).
91	* On ''Series/ThirtyRock'', Liz's father was stationed at Pearl Harbor... during the Korean War.
92	* Archie Bunker from ''Series/AllInTheFamily'' fought in Italy during "The Big War" in the army air corps, and he loves to bring it up.
93	** With shades of FakeUltimateHero - he was in charge of the motor pool.
94	%%* Bill Engvall did this to his daughter's prom date on ''Series/TheBillEngvallShow''.
95	* ''Series/BlueBloods'': All three generations of Reagan men served overseas in the Marines. All three are also fathers. Danny served in Iraq, specifically Fallujah, and was at one point the SoleSurvivor of his unit. His father, Frank, served in Vietnam. ''His'' father, Henry, served in Korea, though a throwaway line hints he may have previously served in the Pacific Theatre of WWII. And Henry's own father Charles served in UsefulNotes/WorldWarI.
96	* On ''Series/TheCosbyShow'' Cliff Huxtable served in the Navy. Additionally, his father Russell served in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII.
97	* ''Series/DoctorWho'': In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS28E7TheIdiotsLantern "The Idiot's Lantern"]], Eddie Connolly is zealously proud of his service in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. However, he's also an abusive {{jerkass}} to his wife and son.
98	* In ''Series/EverybodyLovesRaymond'', Ray's father Frank was a veteran. He served in Korea and tends to bring it up when he's trying to get away with something.
99	* Martin from ''Series/{{Frasier}}'' was both a Korean war veteran and a retired homicide detective. This didn't come up that much in the RetiredBadass way, but was simply another facet of Martin's generally masculine persona in (comedic) comparison to his more effete sons Frasier and Niles.
100	* ''Series/FreaksAndGeeks'' is set and made in a time when conscription was a recent memory.
101	** Harold Weir served in the Korean War, and Mr. Andopolis was in the Air Force.
102	** A non-parental example: Mr. Kowchevski (Lindsay's grumpy and hard nosed math teacher) served in Vietnam.
103	* Howard Cunningham from ''Series/HappyDays'' is a perfect example of a kindly, wise Standard50sFather. But when he needed to be, he could remind his children (and he even reminded the Fonz at one point) that he'd been in the army during "the war" (it is assumed he's talking about UsefulNotes/WorldWarII), and could still throw down if he needed to. It was later revealed that he had been a file clerk or a cook, depending on which episode you're watching.
104	* ''Series/HomeImprovement'', Jill Taylor's father is a gruff war veteran who fought in World War II and the Korean War.
105	* On ''Series/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia'', Frank tries to come across as this, back when he still thought he was Dennis and Dee's dad, mentioning the time he spent in Vietnam, where "a lot of good men died". Dee points out that Frank went to Vietnam as a civilian, in The90s, to open a sweat shop.
106	-->'''Frank:''' [[ComicallyMissingThePoint And a lot of good men died in that sweat shop!]]
107	* In ''Series/{{JAG}}'', Harmon Rabb's dad was naval aviator who was MIA in UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar. Also the series' TeamDad, Rear Admiral A.J. Chegwidden, served as a Navy SEAL in the same war. Sturgis Turner's father, Chaplin Turner, also served in Vietnam.
108	** And in the SpinOff, ''Series/{{NCIS}}'', Leroy Jethro Gibbs was a Marine sniper and fought in the invasion of Panama and the first [[UsefulNotes/TheGulfWar Gulf War]]. And ''his'' father flew a P-51 in WWII.
109	* On ''Series/{{Justified}}'' Arlo Givens and Bo Crowder served together in Vietnam. Arlo came back as a ShellShockedVeteran which turned him into a fairly unstable drunk who beat his wife and son. Raylan Givens acknowledges his father's experiences during the war but considers it no excuse for the terrible things Arlo has done. Bo's war service is not discussed much on the show but we later find out that during the war he made an important contact that later catapulted him into becoming the criminal kingpin of Harlan County.
110	* ''Series/LeaveItToBeaver'': Ward Cleaver is a veteran of World War II. In "Beaver's Hero", Beaver brags that his father was a big hero in the war. It turns out Ward Cleaver served in the Seabees, an important job but he wasn't really in combat.
111	* Played with in ''Series/MadMen''. Technically, Don is a Korean veteran, and he has a Purple Heart, but the more pertinent fact about his service is that he caused the accident that wounded him and killed his commanding officer, then stole the dead man's identity and used it to desert and start his post-war life (his CO was due to be discharged). Naturally he feels less than pure unadulterated pride when he's asked to stand up along with other veterans at a Memorial Day event and sees his kids beaming and applauding. Later, Betty's father comes to live with them and brings his grandson a box full of his WWI memorabilia, including a helmet belonging to a German he's pretty sure he killed. Don is disturbed and tells him not to put romantic ideas about war into Bobby's head. In Don's other life at the office, his best friend Roger Sterling never misses a chance to brag about his WWII service--he served in the Navy in the Pacific Theater--particularly to young SmugSnake Pete Campbell. It gave him a virulent hatred of the Japanese that seriously threatens a deal with Honda at one point.
112	%%* Nikki's dad from ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle''.
113	* In ''Series/TheMonkees'' episode "The Chaperone", Davy tries to date the daughter of a military man, but has a difficult time finding time alone with her because he runs his household like a barracks.
114	* Jay Pritchett on ''Series/ModernFamily'' served in Vietnam. In an early episode, he talks about his job in the army handling explosives. Later episodes, though, say that he was in the navy.
115	* ''Radio/OurMissBrooks'': During World War II, Mr. Conklin (Harriet's father) served as a army major at Camp Barbrick, Ohio. Conklin occasionally mentions having been "a major in the last war" ("Hobby Show", a SoundToScreenAdaptation of "The Workhorse"). In TheMovie GrandFinale, Mr. Conklin gets into trouble for trying to run Madison High School like a military base.
116	* ''Series/TheRedGreenShow'' once featured an advice segment for what to do if there was no war when you were the right age, yet people still expect a war story.
117	-->'''Red:''' Oh yeah, I was in the war. The big one. [[MundaneMadeAwesome The Gasoline Price War of '69]]…
118	* ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}'':
119	** Parodied when Frank Costanza told a war story about being in the military during the Korean War... as a cook. It was played in full-blown MundaneMadeAwesome flashback.
120	** Played straight with Elaine's father, although he only appeared in one episode.
121	* ''Series/{{Smallville}}'': His military service so defines Lois Lane's father that even ''she'' refers to him only as "[[EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep The General]]".
122	%%* The Major from ''Series/{{Soap}}'' was a WWII veteran.
123	* ''Series/StargateSG1'': Major General Jacob Carter was this for main cast member Samantha Carter, in a double-edged manner. While we don't know too much about her upbringing, we know that he was both an influence on her joining the Air Force herself, and is estranged from her brother due to being away on deployment when their mother passed away.
124	* In ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', John Winchester was a Marine Corporal in Vietnam, home again some time in his early twenties to marry his sweetheart. We know him as the hard-bitten, driven {{Crusading Widow}}er who raised his two sons in a kind of traveling boot camp, so it's quite a shocker when TimeTravel in season four reveals that he came back from the war still a cheerful, outgoing young fellow. Whose idea of a date was apparently [[MaltShop going out for milkshakes]].[[labelnote:*]]This time travel is not to the fifties. It is to ''1973''.[[/labelnote]] The Marines may have given him the tools to kick ass with, but the BloodKnight TheStoic hunter thing was all him and his vendetta.
125	* Red Forman on ''Series/That70sShow'' is a vetaran of both UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and UsefulNotes/TheKoreanWar. And he likes to bring it up.
126	** In one episode, due to rising gas prices, he buys a small, economical Japanese car. His pride in his military service clearly took a back to his habit of stretching his dollars as far as possible. "The last time I was that close to a Japanese machine, it was shooting at me."
127	* In ''Series/TrueDetective'', Rust Cohle's single father was a hard-bitten Vietnam veteran.
128	* The Dad in ''Series/TheWonderYears'' was a veteran of the Korean War. It came up fairly frequently (including as a justification for why he didn't need to stop and ask for directions).
129	* In ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow'', Mick Rory's father Dick was a Green Beret sergeant in Vietnam and preferred to fight with a flamethrower (explaining Mick's own pyromania). After being forced to massacre innocent villagers, Dick came home with a severe case of PTSD and took his frustrations out on his son. Mick eventually accidentally set the house on fire, killing his parents.
130	* In ''Series/StrangerThings'', it’s mentioned that Lucas and Erica’s father served in Vietnam before they were born. While he doesn’t like to talk about it, Lucas clearly admires him.
131	** In Hopper’s tie-in book ''Literature/StrangerThingsDarknessOnTheEdgeOfTown'', he was this to his daughter Sara and [[spoiler: adopted daughter El]], having spent two tours of duty in Vietnam.
132	* ''Series/YoungSheldon'': George Sr. once served in the army and fought in the Vietnam War.
133	[[/folder]]
134
135	[[folder:Music]]
136	* Music/{{Queensryche}}'s critically-acclaimed record ''American Soldier'' was borne out of singer Geoff Tate's conversations with his father about his experiences serving in the military in Korea and Vietnam.
137	* The song "What Did You In The War, Dad" by Music/SonataArctica is about the viewpoint character asking the titular question from his father, who seems to possibly suffer from PTSD. To quote the opening lines of the song:
138	-->'''Dad, what did you do in the war?\
139	Something to answer for?\
140	You say too young I am to know...'''
141	* The music video of Music/TwistedSister's "We're Not Gonna Take It" featured Creator/MarkMetcalf essentially playing [[Film/AnimalHouse Neidermeyer-turned-father]], who runs his house like a disciplined army, and carried an M16, and is just disgusted at his worthless, weak son's choice to play ''that sick, twisted, electric TWANGER'' (a guitar).
142	* The song “Rooster” by ''Music/AliceInChains'' was written by guitarist Jerry Cantrell as an homage to his father who had served as a machine gunner paratrooper in Vietnam.
143	[[/folder]]
144
145	[[folder:Video Games]]
146	* In ''VideoGame/WorldInConflict'', Captain Bannon's step-dad (a comrade in arms of his late actual father) is a retired veteran who constantly belitters Bannon for not being a good enough soldier, even in situations where Bannon couldn't do anything.
147	* The male Sole Survivor from ''VideoGame/Fallout4'' is a veteran of the Sino-American war, who is married to a lawyer with a year-old son named Shaun. Then the bombs start falling.
148	* ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite'' has Comstock, the main villain, father of Elizabeth, and veteran of both the Battle of Wounded Knee and the Boxer Rebellion. Also Booker, the main character who lost his daughter a long time ago and whom also fought at Wounded Knee. [[spoiler:Then again, Comstock and Booker are just alternate-universe versions of each other, and technically, Elizabeth is ''Booker's'' child (Comstock had long been rendered infertile) whom Comstock stole, but the trope applies nonetheless.]]
149	** A parody of the page image is also seen in the game, replacing the words "the Great War" with "Siege of Columbia".
150	* ''Franchise/MassEffect'':
151	** One of the origin stories for Commander Shepard in ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'' has him/her as the child of a Systems Alliance military officer, Hannah Shepard, who is promoted to rear admiral in ''VideoGame/MassEffect3''. She's a minor character and never appears on-screen.
152	** In ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'', though, the Ryder twins' father Alec is a huge presence in the game [[PosthumousCharacter despite dying in the prologue]]. Alec Ryder served in the first mass relay exploration missions as well as seeing combat against the turians in the First Contact War as an N7 special forces operator, before being dishonorably discharged for his part in illegal AI research.
153	[[/folder]]
154
155	[[folder:Webcomics]]
156	* Flora's father in ''Webcomic/ForestHill'' is an Army veteran turned hippy farmer who is [[PapaWolf fiercely protective]] of his children when he needs to be.
157	[[/folder]]
158
159	[[folder:Western Animation]]
160	* ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' has Hank's dad, Cotton. He frequently abuses his status as a veteran, and remains a [[StrawMisogynist misogynistic]], [[AbusiveParents abusive]], and downright unpleasant wanker to his death at the hands of... [[WeaksauceWeakness shrimp allergies.]]
161	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': Abe Simpson fits this trope, particularly in flashbacks to his younger days. Now, as an old man, he's more of a ShellShockedVeteran.
162	* In ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'', Gerald was raised on the idea his father, a paper pusher, was a war hero. [[spoiler:Turns out he was a clerk in an in-country office during Vietnam. That said, he did save a man's life when he found a wounded soldier in the field on a trip and saved his life using the files he was transporting as an emergency med kit.]]
163	* Louie's dad in ''WesternAnimation/LifeWithLouie'' was ''very'' quick to remind everyone within earshot he served in the second world war, though his story changed with every telling. For example, he was apparently at both Omaha Beach AND Iwo Jima. The truth does come out eventually. It turns out he served in the army [[spoiler: as a cook, with the nickname "Keister."]]
164	* PlayedForLaughs in ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' where Billy's idiot dad Harold is listed as an "Ex-Navy Seal" during a talk-show segment.
165	* On ''WesternAnimation/{{Daria}},'' Jake has a HilariouslyAbusiveChildhood about his father, "Mad Dog" Morgendorffer, and his nasty parenting techniques. It culminated in Jake spending his teen years in an equally-unpleasant military school, so he has a smidge of this trope himself.
166	* Frank Murphy from ''WesternAnimation/FIsForFamily'' is both a veteran of the UsefulNotes/KoreanWar, and a father of three children. In spite of his HairTriggerTemper and [[SirSwearsALot constant profanity]], he tends to be a [[PushoverParents pushover]] with his kids.
167	* Mr Krabs from ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' is a former navy veteran and the father of a teenage Whale daughter. While he was a cook, he's not ashamed of it and often tells his employees about Naval life.
168	[[/folder]]
169
170	[[folder:Real Life]]
171	* Inverted in the case of UsefulNotes/TheBerlinRepublic which has a generation (between the WW 2 generation and UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror generation) that could not have conceivably served in any war under German command. While older generations were exempt from conscription entirely (known as the ''Weißer Jahrgang'' or 'white year'), even younger ones might only regale their kids stories of The ''Bund'' or NVA, but they were both peacetime armies preparing for a war that never came. However, while the new ''Bundeswehr'' is an all volunteer army since the 2010s, it is also an army involved in actual shooting war in UsefulNotes/{{Kosovo}} and UsefulNotes/{{Afghanistan}} since 1999 and 2001 respectively. So there have been newspaper specials about adult sons (and in some cases daughters) talking to their peacetime dads about war and being a veteran.
172	[[/folder]]

Context Main / DadTheVeteran