Away All Boats
Encyclopedia
Away All Boats is a 1956 American war film
produced by Universal Pictures
. It was directed by Joseph Pevney
and produced by Howard Christie from a screenplay
by Ted Sherdeman based on the 1953 novel by Kenneth M. Dodson.
Dodson (1907–1999) served on the USS Pierce
in World War II and used his experiences there as a guide for his novel. He was encouraged in his writing by Carl Sandburg
, who had read some of Dodson’s letters written from the Pacific.
The film stars Jeff Chandler
, George Nader
, Lex Barker
, Julie Adams
, Keith Andes
, Charles McGraw
, and Richard Boone
with early appearances by Clint Eastwood
and David Janssen
.
. It is most notable for its realistic and terrifying depictions of Japanese kamikaze
attacks on U.S. Navy ships during the last year of World War II in the Pacific Theatre.
Universal received the full cooperation of the U.S. Navy, including an opportunity to photograph maneuvers and mock attacks in March 1955 in the Caribbean and on Vieques. The Navy also granted a two week leave of absence for Ralph Scalzo, a landing boat coxswain, who was needed for added closeup shots.
The first choice for Chandler's role was Clark Gable
who turned the film down.
Away All Boats is one of the few films made in VistaVision
at a studio other than Paramount
. The film made use of the Perspecta
stereo process for its soundtrack.
Clint Eastwood's role is a brief speaking one (with one line of dialog spoken by another actor), as a Navy Medical Corpsman assisting the ship's captain after he is severely wounded while trying to save his ship.
A review in the New York Times by Bosley Crowther found the early scenes in the movie confusing, particularly the motivation of the characters played by Jeff Chandler (Captain Jebediah Hawks) and Lex Barker (Commander Quigley). He also found the movie an efficient service film in which “all the confusions are adjusted and everybody comes out a hero in the end”.
The script, script revisions, and status reports dealing with the Department of Defense
Film and Television liaison office is kept in the Georgetown University
Library Department of Defense Film Collection.
made a color documentary about the making of the movie.
A record
with some of Frank Skinner’s music from the movie was released by Decca Records
in May 1956. Participants included Al Hibbler
(who sang a theme from the film score) and an orchestra conducted by Jack Pleis. Decca released this on 78 rpm 29950 and 45 rpm 9-29950.
MCA Home Video released a VHS
version probably in full-screen and definitely in HiFi sound in 1986. Good Times Video also released a VHS version in full-screen on March 2, 1998.
Good Times Video released a DVD
on May 1, 2001. This was in full-screen rather than the VistaVision
widescreen and may have been a copy of the earlier Good Times VHS release.
War film
War films are a film genre concerned with warfare, usually about naval, air or land battles, sometimes focusing instead on prisoners of war, covert operations, military training or other related subjects. At times war films focus on daily military or civilian life in wartime without depicting battles...
produced by Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
. It was directed by Joseph Pevney
Joseph Pevney
Joseph Pevney was an American film and television director.-Biography:Pevney was born on September 15, 1911 in New York City, New York.He made his debut in vaudeville as a boy soprano in 1924...
and produced by Howard Christie from a screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
by Ted Sherdeman based on the 1953 novel by Kenneth M. Dodson.
Dodson (1907–1999) served on the USS Pierce
USS Pierce (APA-50)
USS Pierce was an that served with the US Navy during World War II.Pierce was laid down as Northern Light by Moore Dry Dock of Oakland, California 22 July 1942; launched 10 October 1942; and commissioned 30 June 1943, Comdr. A. R...
in World War II and used his experiences there as a guide for his novel. He was encouraged in his writing by Carl Sandburg
Carl Sandburg
Carl Sandburg was an American writer and editor, best known for his poetry. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and another for a biography of Abraham Lincoln. H. L. Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."-Biography:Sandburg was born in Galesburg,...
, who had read some of Dodson’s letters written from the Pacific.
The film stars Jeff Chandler
Jeff Chandler (actor)
Jeff Chandler was an American film actor and singer in the 1950s.-Early life:Chandler was born Ira Grossel to a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York, the only child of Anna and Phillip Grossel. He attended Erasmus Hall High School, the alma mater of many stage and film personalities...
, George Nader
George Nader
George Nader was an American film and television actor of Lebanese descent. He appeared in a variety of films from 1950 through 1974, including Phone Call from a Stranger , Congo Crossing , and The Female Animal...
, Lex Barker
Lex Barker
Lex Barker was an American actor best known for playing Tarzan of the Apes and leading characters from Karl May's novels.-Early life:...
, Julie Adams
Julie Adams
Julie Adams is an American film and television actress, sometimes credited as Julia Adams or Betty Adams.-Life and career:...
, Keith Andes
Keith Andes
Keith Andes was an American film, radio, musical theatre, stage and television actor.-Early life:John Charles Andes was born in Ocean City, New Jersey on July 12, 1920. By the age of 12, he was featured on the radio....
, Charles McGraw
Charles McGraw
Charles Butters , best known by his stage name Charles McGraw, was an American actor, who made his first film in 1942, albeit in a small, uncredited role. He was born in Des Moines, Iowa.-Career:...
, and Richard Boone
Richard Boone
Richard Allen Boone was an American actor who starred in over 50 films and was notable for his roles in Westerns and for starring in the TV series Have Gun – Will Travel.-Early life:...
with early appearances by Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
and David Janssen
David Janssen
David Janssen was an American film and television actor who is best known for his starring role as Dr. Richard Kimble in the television series The Fugitive , the starring role in the 1950s hit detective series Richard Diamond, Private Detective , and as Harry Orwell on Harry O.In 1996 TV Guide...
.
Production
The movie is about the crew of the APA-22 Belinda, a fictional amphibious attack transport. The movie was filmed aboard the USS RandallUSS Randall (APA-224)
USS Randall was a of the United States Navy. She was named after Randall County, Texas and was commissioned on 12 December 1944, under the command of Captain Harold Stevens.-Service history:...
. It is most notable for its realistic and terrifying depictions of Japanese kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
attacks on U.S. Navy ships during the last year of World War II in the Pacific Theatre.
Universal received the full cooperation of the U.S. Navy, including an opportunity to photograph maneuvers and mock attacks in March 1955 in the Caribbean and on Vieques. The Navy also granted a two week leave of absence for Ralph Scalzo, a landing boat coxswain, who was needed for added closeup shots.
The first choice for Chandler's role was Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
who turned the film down.
Away All Boats is one of the few films made in VistaVision
VistaVision
VistaVision is a higher resolution, widescreen variant of the 35mm motion picture film format which was created by engineers at Paramount Pictures in 1954....
at a studio other than Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
. The film made use of the Perspecta
Perspecta
Perspecta was a directional motion picture sound system, invented by the laboratories at Fine Sound Inc. in 1954. As opposed to magnetic stereophonic soundtracks available at the time, its benefits were that it did not require a new sound head for the projector and thus was a cheaper...
stereo process for its soundtrack.
Clint Eastwood's role is a brief speaking one (with one line of dialog spoken by another actor), as a Navy Medical Corpsman assisting the ship's captain after he is severely wounded while trying to save his ship.
A review in the New York Times by Bosley Crowther found the early scenes in the movie confusing, particularly the motivation of the characters played by Jeff Chandler (Captain Jebediah Hawks) and Lex Barker (Commander Quigley). He also found the movie an efficient service film in which “all the confusions are adjusted and everybody comes out a hero in the end”.
The script, script revisions, and status reports dealing with the Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
Film and Television liaison office is kept in the Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
Library Department of Defense Film Collection.
Media releases
NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
made a color documentary about the making of the movie.
A record
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
with some of Frank Skinner’s music from the movie was released by Decca Records
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
in May 1956. Participants included Al Hibbler
Al Hibbler
Albert George "Al" Hibbler was an American baritone vocalist, who sang with Duke Ellington's orchestra before having several pop hits as a solo artist. Some of his singing is classified as rhythm and blues, but he is best classified as a bridge between R&B and traditional pop music...
(who sang a theme from the film score) and an orchestra conducted by Jack Pleis. Decca released this on 78 rpm 29950 and 45 rpm 9-29950.
MCA Home Video released a VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
version probably in full-screen and definitely in HiFi sound in 1986. Good Times Video also released a VHS version in full-screen on March 2, 1998.
Good Times Video released a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
on May 1, 2001. This was in full-screen rather than the VistaVision
VistaVision
VistaVision is a higher resolution, widescreen variant of the 35mm motion picture film format which was created by engineers at Paramount Pictures in 1954....
widescreen and may have been a copy of the earlier Good Times VHS release.
External links
- Away All Boats review