the battle of cambrai... napoleon's defeat at waterloo...shes from the boer war all the way up through world war ii. stare at them long enough, and you can imagine them coming to life. [ gunfire, men yelling ] toy soldiers become a passion for orson munn when he moves from manhattan to long island as a little boy, says his widow, pat. >> he came out here because he has ill health. the doctors felt that he should be in the country. >> orson's chronic ear ailment often keeps him confined in his room. >> that's when he started playing with soldiers on a tray in his bed. >> were they substitutes for friends? >> i think that they were. >> orson iii says his dad kept building his armies through prep school, princeton, and law school. then orson decides, rather than collecting troops, he'll become one. >> he was in the navy during the second world war, and he actually lied to get in because he was stone deaf in one ear. but he felt it was his obligation. >> after the war, orson returns home, marries pat, starts a family, and launches his career. >>

the battle of cambrai... napoleon's defeat at waterloo...shes from the boer war all the way up through world war ii. stare at them long enough, and you can imagine them coming to life. [ gunfire, men yelling ] toy soldiers become a passion for orson munn when he moves from manhattan to long island as a little boy, says his widow, pat. >> he came out here because he has ill health. the doctors felt that he should be in the country. >> orson's chronic ear ailment often keeps him confined in his room. >> that's when he started playing with soldiers on a tray in his bed. >> were they substitutes for friends? >> i think that they were. >> orson iii says his dad kept building his armies through prep school, princeton, and law school. then orson decides, rather than collecting troops, he'll become one. >> he was in the navy during the second world war, and he actually lied to get in because he was stone deaf in one ear. but he felt it was his obligation. >> after the war, orson returns home, marries pat, starts a family, and launches his career. >>