Men with Wings

{{Infobox film

| name = Men with Wings

| image = Menwithwings1938.jpg

| caption = Photobook image derived from theatrical poster

| director = William A. Wellman

| producer = William A. Wellman
William LeBaron
(Executive Producer)

| writer = Robert Carson

| starring = Fred MacMurray
Ray Milland
Louise Campbell

| music = Gerard Carbonara
W. Franke Harling

| cinematography = W. Howard Greene

| editing = Thomas Scott

| distributor = Paramount Pictures

| released = {{Film date|1938|07|16|New York City|1938|10|28|United States}}

| runtime = 105 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English

| budget = $2 millionCharles Tranberg, Fred MacMurray: A Biography, Bear Manor Media, 2014{{cite news|title=NEWS OF THE SCREEN: Three Stunt Fliers Signed for Parts in Paramount's 'Men With Wings'--New Films Open Here Today|date=Oct 12, 1937|work=New York Times|page=31}}{{cite magazine|title=Top Films and Stars|url=https://archive.org/details/variety133-1939-01/page/n9/mode/1up?q=%E2%80%9CCosting%E2%80%9D|magazine=Variety|accessdate=18 March 2023|page=10|date=4 January 1939}}

| gross = $2 million (U.S. and Canada rentals){{cite magazine|date=October 15, 1990|title=All-Time Film Rental Champs|magazine=Variety|issn=0042-2738|page=M-172|first=Lawrence|last=Cohn}}

}}

Men with Wings is a 1938 American Technicolor war film, directed by William A. Wellman and starring Fred MacMurray, Ray Milland, and Louise Campbell. Donald O'Connor also has a small part as the younger version of MacMurray's character. The two would soon star in the film Sing You Sinners together along with Bing Crosby.

Plot

In 1903, the Wright brothers set the scene for aviation's advances and influence barnstormer, Pat Falconer and his friend, engineer Scott Barnes. Falconer marries childhood sweetheart Peggy Ransom although Barnes also loves her, but is unwilling to jeopardize his relationship with his friend.

During World War I, Falconer becomes a fighter pilot and after the war continues to fly by "the seat-of-his-pants" rather than do the methodical work of flight research like Barnes. As the 1930s come to a close, restless Falconer leaves his family and friend behind, taking off for China to fight Japanese invaders.

Cast

{{Cast listing|

Fred MacMurray as Pat Falconer
Ray Milland as Scott Barnes
Louise Campbell as Peggy Ranson
Andy Devine as Joe Gibbs
Lynne Overman as Hank Rinebow
Porter Hall as Hiram F. Jenkins
Walter Abel as Nick Ranson
Kitty Kelly as Martha Ranson
Virginia Weidler as Peggy Ranson at eight
Donald O'Connor as Pat Falconer at 13
Billy Cook as Scott Barnes at 10
James Burke as J.A. Nolan
Willard Robertson as Col. Hadley
Dennis Morgan as Galton
Frank Clarke as Burke
Evelyn Keyes as a nurse (uncredited)

}}

Production

For Men with Wings, Wellman was able to utilize a vast amount of talent and resources to stage the epic. Besides the impressive array of movie talent, the film was one of the first Hollywood productions to utilize the Technicolor three-strip camera process pioneered by the Technicolor Motion Picture Corporation.{{#tag:ref|The Technicolor three-strip process was advertised as "Glorious Technicolor".|group=N}} Bruce, Elyse. [http://idiomation.wordpress.com/tag/men-with-wings/ "In Glorious Technicolor."] Historically Speaking, November 25, 2010. Retrieved: March 15, 2012.

Wellman had a special affinity to both the story and aviation in general.Wellman 1918, p. 1. In World War I, earning himself the nickname "Wild Bill", Wellman was first an ambulance driver in the Norton-Harjes Ambulance Corps, then joined the French Foreign Legion.Curtiss, Thomas Quinn. [http://www.iht.com/articles/1994/02/09/cine.php "The Film Career of William Wellman." ]International Herald Tribune (iht.com), February 9, 1994. Retrieved: March 12, 2012. On December 3, 1917, assigned as the first American fighter pilot to join N.87 escadrille in the Lafayette Flying Corps, Wellman went on to score three recorded "kills", along with five probables and to receive the Croix de Guerre with two palms.Silke 1980, p. 57.

The use of mocked-up Nieuport 28 and Thomas-Morse Scout fighters along with other period aircraft such as one real Fokker D.VII and the ubiquitous Travelair "Wichita Fokkers" were featured in the aerial sequences.Parish 1990, p. 245. {{#tag:ref|Lafayette Escadrille used footage from Men with Wings with the color removed. The later 1958 feature was also directed by Wellman and is far inferior in every respect to Men with Wings.[https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/83315/men-with-wings#notes "Notes: Men with Wings (1938)."] Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved: March 14, 2012. |group=N}} Principal photography took place primarily at California airport locales. Hollywood stunt pilot Paul Mantz was involved in both flying and directing the aerial filming.Hardwick and Schnepf 1989, p. 59.

File:Men with Wings 02.jpg

=Aircraft used in the film=

Men with Wings chronicles the "Golden Era" of aviation (1903–1938), featuring a number of significant aircraft in the production, including:

Reception

Men with Wings received good reviews from critics and audience alike. Variety noted the film "is a giant bomber from the Paramount hangar, designed on a lavish scale by the skilled air picture mechanic, William A. Wellman, and polished off beautifully in Technicolor. The action scenes, including a dog fight in the air, are exceptionally impressive.[https://www.variety.com/review/VE1117793079?refcatid=31 "Men with Wings."] Variety, 1938. Retrieved: March 15, 2012. Men with Wings was considered an aviation classic, "one of the best pre-war flight films, true to life, and done without replicas ... A buff's dream." The juxtaposing of a love interest, however, was jarring, with critics commenting on that plotline being forced.Thompson 1983, p. 176.

Notes

Citations

References

Hardwick, Jack and Ed Schnepf. "A Viewer's Guide to Aviation Movies". The Making of the Great Aviation Films, General Aviation Series, Volume 2, 1989.
Parish, James Robert. The Great Combat Pictures: Twentieth-Century Warfare on the Screen. Metuchen, New Jersey: The Scarecrow Press, 1990. {{ISBN|978-0810823150}}.
Silke, James R. "Fists, Dames & Wings." Air Progress Aviation Review, Volume 4, No. 4, October 1980.
Thompson, Frank T. William A. Wellman (Filmmakers Series). Metuchen, New Jersey: Scarecrow Press, 1983. {{ISBN|0-8108-1594-X}}.
Wellman, William A. Go, Get 'em! The True Adventures of an American Aviator of the Lafayette Flying Corps. Boston: The Page Company, 1918.
Wellman, William A. A Short Time for Insanity: An Autobiography. New York: Hawthorn Books, 1974. {{ISBN|0-8015-6804-8}}.
Wellman, William Jr. The Man And His Wings: William A. Wellman and the Making of the First Best Picture. New York: Praeger Publishers, 2006. {{ISBN|0-275-98541-5}}.

External links

[http://archives.lib.byu.edu/repositories/14/resources/11204 "Men with Wings" signed script] at L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University
{{TCMDb title|83315|Men with Wings}}
{{IMDb title|0022139|Men with Wings}}
{{Cite archival metadata

|author = Finding aid author: John N. Gillespie

|title = "Men with Wings" signed script

|url = http://archives.lib.byu.edu/repositories/14/resources/11204

|repository = L. Tom Perry Special Collections

|location = Provo, Utah

|date = 2012

|accessdate = May 13, 2016

}}

Category:1938 films

Category:American aviation films

Category:Films directed by William A. Wellman

Category:Films scored by Gerard Carbonara