Original U.S. WWII M1 Helmet Worn by Private First Class Richard Reiben in Film Saving Private Ryan - 2nd Ranger Battalion - Comes with Original Notarized Letter of Authenticity
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Original Item: Only One Available. This is one of the original steel prop helmets used during the filming of Steven Spielberg's seminal work "Saving Private Ryan", worn by Private First Class Richard Reiben played by the actor Edward Burns. The name REIBEN is written on the interior of the liner, and the rear of the helmet was painted with a 2nd Ranger Battalion insignia. The shell itself is an original Vietnam War Rear Seam Swivel Bale bearing heat lot number H 336 A.
The helmet bears the initials CRC written in black marker on the interior of the shell. This denotes that the helmet originated from Costume Rentals Corporation (CRC), which supplied a substantial portion of the World War II–era wardrobe and uniform pieces used in the film. This helmet—along with other materials—was only recently released following CRC’s closure in 2025, and as such, has never previously been offered on the market.
This helmet comes with a printed copy of a notarized letter confirming that the helmet and other material came from CRC, the Costume Rentals Corporation, who supplied a substantial amount of World War II-era wardrobe and uniform pieces for use in the film. The letter confirms that these materials were indeed used in the Production of SPR. The letter was signed by Harlan Glenn, who worked on the production of "Saving Private Ryan" as Costume Consultant and Purchaser.
Private First Class Richard Reiben was a supporting character in the film, Saving Private Ryan. He was an American soldier serving in the 2nd Rangers Battalion of the United States Army and held the rank of Private. He was from Brooklyn, New York City, as shown written proudly on the back of his jacket. While in service, he smoked cigars instead of the standard cigarettes usually given to infantrymen.
This example shows extremely heavy wear across. The liner is a Korean War CAPAC example which has been fitted with dark green suspension and fittings, but is missing much of the suspension. There was also an odd chinstrap installed with two rivets, but the majority is now gone, just leaving two small leather pieces around the rivets. The original tie string is retained. The sweatband is worn and the liner chinstrap is gone. There are some pieces of the liner torn off along the edges. The shell has an added thin Vietnam War period chinstrap. The chinstrap was likely added for filming. Like most helmets used in the production, a variety of shells and liners were used. Liners used were a wide variety, ranging from original WWII production, Vietnam era, 1980s, foreign clones, etc.
Aside from the name REIBEN, there are two other names in the liner, on the sweatband. The first is COMES, and the second is SEGAL. We couldn’t find any information on actors or characters with this name in the film. The REIBEN name is on the actual liner itself and is the most prominent.
A comparable 2nd Ranger Battalion helmet was offered at auction through The Prop Store with an estimate of $3,000–$6,000 USD. Although it did not sell, the highest bid reached $2,750. That can be viewed at this link (login to see the bid amounts) at this link.
Ready for display.
- This product is available for international shipping.
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