Gunnery Sergeant Jack "Gunny" Lauton is a character in Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, mostly known for being Cpl. Joseph Griffin's first commander.
Description[]
Gunny Lauton was a worker in a steel mill in Pittsburgh before he signed up to fight in the First World War. He received two Purple Heart medals during the First World War but he remained in the military.
Attack on Pearl Harbor[]
Twenty years later, he was part of the USS California's compliment of marines for a short while until Pearl Harbor, where his ship, was stationed, was attacked by the Japanese. When Cpl. Griffin gets on the deck, Lauton gives him a BAR to help fight off the Japanese Zero planes. Later, Lauton, Griffin, Whitfield, and Spinelli grab a PT boat and head to cover for various other ships with Griffin manning the gun and Lauton giving orders. After the ordeal is over, Lauton tells the others to look at the wreckage, for while the attack may have ended it is only the beginning of the ensuing war.
Battle of the Philippines[]
Lauton and Griffin are later transferred to serve alongside the US Army in the Philippines, where they meet up with Griffin's brother, Donnie. Griffin manages to fix an M2A4 tank while under fire from Japanese soldiers. Lauton and Donnie man the Stuart with Griffin defending it from soldiers and lancers as the Stuart goes through the town. Lauton then orders Griffin split up. Griffin manages to take out Japanese soldiers and a tank attacking Lauton and Donnie, and Griffin signals the demo team at the bridge with a church bell. Lauton manages to leave the tank and get into a truck's driver's seat with Griffin in the back to defend it. Unfortunately, they could only to watch as the tank is swarmed by the Japanese, with Donnie still inside. After they drive back to the bridge, meeting some resistance, Lauton and Griffin manage to escape to safety before the bridge is blown up by the demo team. They lament the loss of Donnie, who is written off as dead, but is later discovered to be a prisoner held by the Japanese.
Guadalcanal[]
Lauton and Griffin are later transferred, once again to the 1st Marine Division in Guadalcanal. Along with Davis and Adams, they go to sabotage some enemy defenses on the Tenaru River before the assault at dawn. Davis gets shot and pulled over by a crocodile before long. They eventually manage to arrive onshore, meeting the second squad who already arrived. Lauton, Griffin, and Adams later encounter a truck full of Japanese soldiers, which are quickly killed. Adams stays behind while Lauton and Griffin continue on through a Japanese base camp and some tunnels towards their objective, the ammo dump. Griffin manages to destroy it with an Anti-Aircraft gun and they manage to escape. Lauton congratulates Griffin and proudly states that the U.S is through with retreating and was "back in the war".
Final Mission with Griffin[]
Afterwards, Lauton briefs Griffin, Brooks, and Thomason on the mission before sending them off to destroy an artillery position that was causing problems, known as "Pistol Pete". Shortly after Griffin succeeds in doing so, Lauton shows up again with Michael Floyd from the Office of Strategic Services. Even though it meant losing him, Lauton reassigned Griffin to the OSS.
Appearance[]
One way that Lauton is noticeable is that he is never seen without a cigar in his mouth. He usually wears a patrol cap, his sleeves are often rolled up with the rank insignia of Gunnery Sergeant visable and he wields a shotgun as his weapon of choice.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- He is voiced by Captain Dale Dye, the military advisor for the Medal of Honor development team.
- He is somewhat based on R. Lee Ermey's character in Full Metal Jacket, most notably in his appearance, as well as sharing his nickname. Although, Lauton certainly does not treat his men as harshly.
- "Gunny" is a common nickname for USMC Gunnery Sergeants, although only with their consent.
- His name is spelled "Lawton" in the multiplayer player selection screen.
- Gunny is never seen or mentioned again in the game after Pistol Pete Showdown, making him one of the many disappearing characters of the game.
- In an early screenshot of the game, Gunny used a scoped Springfield rifle.