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While walking down Dong Khoi Streeti, Saigon’s main uoscale shopping street, some years ago we passed a collectables shop that was closed. In the windo was a display of Viet Nam war era American Zippo lighters. Because I had served in Viet Nam the collection had a major emotional impact on me that was part flashback and a bit of reflection on how things had changed in this country.
While I was a bit concerned about going back our trip to Viet Nam was a remarkable experirnce. The people were friendly and we felt genuinley welcome and officially the Vietnamees government now recognized the U.S. as a valued trading partner and an allie.
Zippo Lighters And The Vietnam War
For American service men in Viet Nam the Zippo lighter was ubiquitous.. Everyone carried one, even if you didn’t smoke. It was a necessity for a number of reasons just like the pocket knife (or the popular Buck Knife) and most GIs decorated or engraved them with their unit or maybe time location or time in country.
During the war those Zippo lighters became a cultural icon in Vietnam. Often custom engraved with unit designations, girls names and many with an obscenity or two. At times they were given as a sign of gratitude and became prized gifts with the Vietnamese imbeds (ARVN).
At that time servicemen bought basic Zippos at Exchanges (PX) or ships stores and then paid local Vietnamese to engrave them. Inscriptions ranged from unit insignias, dates of service, geographic locations to cynical humor, dark poetry, and anti-war sentiments (such as “If I die in Vietnam, bury me face down so the whole world can kiss my ass”).
Over the years authentic Vietnam-era Zippos have became prized military antiques worth many hundreds of dollars depending on the unit and condition. For more information on GIs and Zippo lighters visit LighterGallery.com
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