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Long Range was a kid who never grasped simple arithmetic. He did, however, master complete trigonometric and calculus problems with ease. When he was old enough, Long Range joined the Army, in particular, the Artillery corps. It was here that he utilized his trigonomic capabilities to plot the trajectory of artillery shells aimed at long-distance targets! In no time, he amassed the highest percentage rate of on-target knock outs the corps had ever seen. That is why he is commonly referred to as "The Knock Out Man"!
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Sub-Zero was an Instructor at the Army Northern Warfare Training Center in Fort Greely, Alaska and a consultant to the Cold Regions Test Center at the same facility. He beat all records on cold weather endurance solely on MEANESS! Before he was tapped to join G.I. Joe, he used his 'deep-freeze' combat tactics in Europe's Operation Chill so that troops would be well prepared if any winter confrontation should erupt.
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Roadblock's dream was to be a gourmet chef. He was working as a bouncer to earn money to attend the Escoffier School in France when an army recruiter convinced him that the army could train him. Roadblock joined but found army menus and preparation techniques too appalling. Transferred to the infantry. Qualified expert: M-2 Browning .50 cal., Heavy Machine Gun, all Warsaw Pact Heavy MGs, M-16, M-1911A1 Auto Pistol.
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Rampart spent most of his teenage years in video arcades or glued to his home video game monitor. Being gifted with abnormally rapid reflexes and extraordinary hand/eye coordination, he quickly mastered every known video game in existence. By the time he graduated from college, Rampart realized there was only one line of work best suited to challenge his abilities – the military. He enlisted in the Navy, specialising in air defense artillery, and in no time, attained the highest combat success ratio in the 7th Fleet for "splashing" enemy aircraft.
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After five seasons of playing centerfield in the minor leagues, Hardball came to the realization that the big league scouts just weren't interested in athletic prowess; they wanted star quality. The Joe Team was more interested in team-players than in stars, and they had a real need for a guy who could judge distances accurately and react quickly with deliberation.
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Psyche-Out got his degree in psychology from Berkeley and worked on various research projects involving the inducement of paranoia by means of low frequency radio waves. Upon his enlistment he was posted to the Deceptive Warfare Center at Fort Bragg where he continued his pioneering work in the field of wave induced behavior modification.