Men of the Sky (1942 film)

1942 American film

Men of the Sky

Film poster

Directed by| B. Reeves Eason
Written by| Owen Crump
Produced by| Gordon Hollingshead
Starring|

* Tod Andrews
* Eleanor Parker
* Don DeFore

Narrated by| Owen Crump
Cinematography| Arthur L. Todd
Edited by| Harold McLernon
Music by|

* Howard Jackson (uncredited)
* William Lava (uncredited)

Production
company

U.S. Army Signal Corps Photographic Section

Distributed by| Warner Bros.

Release date

* July 25, 1942 (1942-07-25)

Running time

| 20 minutes
Country| United States
Language| English

Men of the Sky is a 1942 American Technicolor short propaganda film, directed by B. Reeves Eason.[1] The documentary film reenacted the training of a group of United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) pilots.[2]

Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hollywood rushed to turn out films that would help to help win the war. The studios produced more than features, with countless cartoons and short subjects that were intended to inform the public, boost morale, encourage support of the Red Cross and other organizations that were helping at home and overseas or in recruitment. There were also films that were shown only to members of the armed forces. These films either trained them or entertained them.

Men of the Sky is one of the best examples of how Hollywood pitched in and worked to boost morale and also recruit men and women into military service. Along with Don DeFore and Tod Andrews, Eleanor Parker has a leading role. Each of the leads would go on to lengthy screen and television careers.[2]

## Plot

[edit]

In 1942, the stories of a new group of U.S. Army Air Forces pilots are intertwined. As they receive their wings from Lt. General H.H. Arnold, each of the trainees, Cadet Frank Bickley (Tod Andrews), Cadet Dick Mathews (Don DeFore) and Cadet Jim Morgan (Ray Montgomery) recall their prewar introduction to flight training. In their first assignments as pilots, they are flying aircraft and airlifting matériel to General MacArthur in Australia.

## Cast

[edit]

* Tod Andrews as Cadet Frank Bickley (credited as Michael Ames)
* Eleanor Parker as Mrs. Frank Bickley
* Don DeFore as Cadet Dick Mathews
* Ray Montgomery as Cadet Jim Morgan
* Ruth Ford as Cadet Gladdens' Sweetheart
* Dave Willock as Bob "Sir Galahad" Gladdens (credited as David Willock)
* Henry H. Arnold as himself ("Hap") Arnold (uncredited)

## Production

[edit]

Men of the Sky was the second film short released by Warner Brothers with cooperation from the United States Army Air Force and its nascent First Motion Picture Unit, the first military unit entirely composed of professionals from the film industry. The growing demand for training films became overwhelming for Warner Brothers and the First Motion Picture Unit took over as the USAAF’s primary film production unit, releasing over 400 films before the war’s end.[2] [Note 1]

## Reception

[edit]

Men of the Sky was typical of the propaganda films of the period produced under the auspices of the Office of War Information.[4] The film was distributed and exhibited by Warner Bros. under the auspices of the Motion Picture Committee Cooperating for National Defense. Men of the Sky was the second wartime film short produced by Warner Brothers Studios and proved popular with audiences.[2][Note 2]

## See also

[edit]

* List of American films of 1942
* Ronald Reagan filmography
* First Motion Picture Unit

## References

[edit]

### Notes

[edit]

1. ^ "America the Beautiful" is heard playing at the end of the film.[3]
2. ^ Warner Bros. had previously produced a short film, Winning Your Wings (1942) starring Jimmy Stewart.[2]

### Citations

[edit]

1. ^ "Motion Picture Films from the "Air Force Production" Program Series, 1942 - 1944; Item: 'Men of the Sky'. National Archives Catalog. Retrieved: April 26, 2017.
2. ^ a b c d e Makamson, Collin. "Men of the Sky released." The National WWII Museum. Retrieved: April 26, 2017.
3. ^ Collins 2003, p. 19.
4. ^ Koppes and Black 1987, p. 58.

### Bibliography

[edit]

* Collins, Ace. Songs Sung Red, White, and Blue: The Stories Behind America's Best-Loved Patriotic Songs. New York: Harper, 2003. ISBN 0-06-051304-7.
* Koppes, Clayton R. and Gregory D. Black. Hollywood Goes to War: How Politics, Profits and Propaganda Shaped World War II Movies. New York, The Free Press, 1987. ISBN 0-02-903550-3.

## External links

[edit]

* Men of the Sky at IMDb
* Men of the Sky at the TCM Movie Database

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by B. Reeves Eason

* The Adventures of Rex and Rinty
* After the Storm
* Alimony Madness
* Around the World in 18 Days
* The Assayer of Lone Gap
* The Barren Gain
* Behind Jury Doors
* The Big Adventure
* Black Arrow
* The Blot on the Shield
* Blue Montana Skies
* Blue Streak McCoy
* The Bluffers
* Call of the Yukon
* Clearing the Trail
* Colorado
* Competition
* Cornered
* The Crow
* Dance Hall Hostess
* Daredevil Drivers
* Darkest Africa
* The Day of Reckoning
* The Denver Dude
* The Desert Hawk
* Drawing the Line
* Empty Holsters
* The Exile of Bar-K Ranch
* A Fight to the Finish
* The Fighting Heart
* The Fighting Line
* The Fighting Marines
* Fighting the Flames
* Fighting Youth
* The Fire Eater
* Flashing Spurs
* The Flyin' Cowboy
* The Four-Bit Man
* Galloping Fury
* The Galloping Ghost
* Give Me Liberty
* A Good Business Deal
* Hair Trigger Stuff
* The Heart Punch
* Hearts in Shadow
* Held Up for the Makin's
* Her Resale Value
* His Last Race
* His Nose in the Book
* The Honor of the District Attorney
* The Honor of the Press
* Human Stuff
* In Trust
* The Jack of Hearts
* Johnny Get Your Hair Cut
* The Kid and the Cowboy
* The Kid Comes Back
* King of the Wild
* Land Beyond the Law
* The Lariat Kid
* The Last of the Mohicans
* The Law of the Wild
* The Little Lady Next Door
* Lone Hand Saunders
* The Lone Hand
* Matching Dreams
* Men of the Sky
* Midnight Morals
* The Miracle Rider
* The Moon Riders
* Mountain Mary
* Mountain Rhythm
* Murder in the Big House
* Murder on the Waterfront
* Mystery Mountain
* Neighbors' Wives
* 'Neath Canadian Skies
* The New Champion
* The Newer Way
* Nine-Tenths of the Law
* North of the Border
* Painted Ponies
* The Phantom
* The Phantom Empire
* Pink Tights
* The Poet of the Peaks
* The Prairie King
* Prairie Thunder
* Profit from Loss
* The Prospector's Vengeance
* A Question of Honor
* The Rattler's Hiss
* Red Courage
* Red River Valley
* Revenge at Monte Carlo
* Riding for Fame
* Rimfire
* Roaring Ranch
* Roughshod
* A Sanitarium Scramble
* Sergeant Murphy
* Service with the Colors
* The Shadow of the Eagle
* The Shadow on the Wall
* Shadows
* The Silver Lining
* The Smuggler's Cave
* The Solution to the Mystery
* The Spirit of Adventure
* Spurs
* Spy Ship
* The Substitute Minister
* The Sunset Trail
* The Tanks Are Coming
* The Tell Tale Wire
* The Test of Donald Norton
* The Texas Bearcat
* The Sign of the Claw
* Through Thick and Thin
* Tiger Thompson
* Time and Tide
* To Melody a Soul Responds
* To Rent Furnished
* A Trick of Hearts
* Trigger Fingers
* Trigger Tricks
* Truck Busters
* Two Kinds of Love
* Undersea Kingdom
* The Vanishing Legion
* Viviana
* The Wasp
* The Winged Horseman
* Women First

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