The great escape Steve McQueen

[stevie-p]

During the motorcycle scene he falls off his bike and grabs his chest,holding something in his hand,showing it to the german troops..anyone know what it is and why,its a long shot,but i have always wondered...thanks

[Mikeyd2]

I think he is showing his Wings or dog-tags to show he is in the military and therefore subject to the Geneva Covention . If caught in civillian garb they could be classed as spies etc .
Not that that helped the other 50 escapies who were executed on orders from Hitler.

[kick3m0n]

yep, I agree with Mikey..I remember asking my dad about this when I first saw the film, and he told me it was his dog tags.

[genypha]

... or maybe it was his baseball 'ball' ???