The West Point Story (1950)

Director:

Roy Del Ruth

Writers:

John Monks Jr. (screenplay) &
Charles Hoffman (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

25 November 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Music

Tagline:

It's another Dandy! A Song-Spangled, Colors-Flying Salute to Uncle Sam's Own Cadets! (dvd)

Plot:

A Broadway director helps the West Point cadets put on a show, aided by two lovely ladies and assorted complications.

Plot Keywords:

West Point | Cadet | Military | Girlfriend | Gambling

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

James Cagney	...	Elwin 'Bix' Bixby
Virginia Mayo	...	Eve Dillon
Doris Day	...	Jan Wilson
Gordon MacRae	...	Tom Fletcher
Gene Nelson	...	Hal Courtland
Alan Hale Jr.	...	Bull Gilbert
Roland Winters	...	Harry Eberhart
Raymond Roe	...	Bixby's 'Wife'
Wilton Graff	...	Lieutenant Colonel Martin
Jerome Cowan	...	Mr. Jocelyn
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
John Baer	...	Young Cadet (uncredited)
DeWit Bishop	...	Cadet (uncredited)
Wheaton Chambers	...	President's Secretary (uncredited)
Chuck Courtney	...	Plebe (uncredited)
Luther Crockett	...	Senator (uncredited)
Guy De Vestel	...	French Premier (uncredited)
Victor Desny	...	French Attaché (uncredited)
James Dobson	...	Cadet (uncredited)
Jerry Duane	...	Member of Vocal Quartet with Doris Day (uncredited)
Frank Ferguson	...	Commandant (uncredited)
Rudy Grofe	...	Conductor (uncredited)
Sheridan F. Hall Jr.	...	Cadet (uncredited)
Bob Hayden	...	Cadet (uncredited)
John Hedloe	...	Cadet (uncredited)
Stan Holbrook	...	Cadet (uncredited)
Howard Hudson	...	Member of Vocal Quartet with Doris Day (uncredited)
Jack Kelly	...	Officer-in-Charge (uncredited)
Tommy Kelly	...	Cadet (uncredited)
Joel Marston	...	Cadet (uncredited)
Joe McGuinn	...	Superintendent (uncredited)
Paul McGuire	...	Steve - Press Agent (uncredited)
Bill Neff	...	Underclassman (uncredited)
Tony Paris	...	Member of Vocal Quartet with Doris Day (uncredited)
Suzanne Ridgeway	...	Dance Extra (uncredited)
Walter Ruick	...	Piano Player (uncredited)
Russell Saunders	...	Acrobat (uncredited)
Don Shartel	...	Cadet (uncredited)
James Stark	...	Cadet (uncredited)
Glen Turnbull	...	Hoofer (uncredited)
James Young	...	Cadet Verifying Amnesty Custom (uncredited)

Directed by
Roy Del Ruth

Writing credits
John Monks Jr.		(screenplay) &
Charles Hoffman		(screenplay) &
Irving Wallace		(screenplay)
Irving Wallace		(from a story by)

Produced by
Louis F. Edelman	....	producer

Cinematography by
Sidney Hickox		(as Sid Hickox)

Film Editing by
Owen Marks

Art Direction by
Charles H. Clarke

Set Decoration by
Armor Marlowe		(as Armor E. Marlowe)

Costume Design by
Milo Anderson
Marjorie Best

Makeup Department
Otis Malcolm	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Gertrude Wheeler	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
Al Alleborn	....	production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Mel Dellar	....	assistant director (uncredited)
Russell Llewellyn	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Morris Goldman	....	assistant props (uncredited)
John More	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Francis J. Scheid	....	recording director

Special Effects by
Edwin B. DuPar	....	special effects (as Edwin DuPar)

Stunts
Paul Baxley	....	stunts (uncredited)
Lucky Kargo	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Paul Burnett	....	gaffer (uncredited)
Mike Joyce	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Mac Julian	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Dudie Maschmeyer	....	grip (uncredited)
Lou Molina	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Ed Rike	....	best boy (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Joan Joseff	....	costume jeweller (uncredited)
Ted Kring	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Elva Martien	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Music Department
Sammy Cahn	....	lyrics: original songs
Ray Heindorf	....	musical director
Hugh Martin	....	vocal arranger
Frank Perkins	....	orchestrator
Jule Styne	....	music: original songs
Ray Heindorf	....	composer: additional music (uncredited)
Howard Jackson	....	composer: music cues (uncredited)

Other crew
Johnny Boyle Jr.	....	choreographer: James Cagney's dances
Eddie Prinz	....	choreographer
LeRoy Prinz	....	choreographer
William G. Proctor	....	technical advisor
Al White Jr.	....	choreographer
Jean Baker	....	script supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros

Distributors

• Warner Bros (1950) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:G | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl

Company:

Warner Bros

Goofs:

Plot holes: Hal's knee is injured backstage during the last act of revue, forcing Bix to take his place in the big final number. Yet during the finale, Hal has recovered enough to perform the next-to-last reprise number, which is now climaxed by Bix's final number, which was originally to have been performed by Hal. Had Hal not been injured, how could he possibly have performed both numbers in the finale?

Quotes:

Eve Dillon:You heel! Can't even pay a hotel bill! In debt up to your ears, and it's horses! Horses every second you're awake! Horses, horses, horses!
Elwin 'Bix' Bixby:[unapologetically] I don't drink or smoke.

Soundtrack:

Alma Mater

Ultra Talented Cast, Weak Story, Production Values & Songs

Next to "Yankee Doodle Dandy", this has Cagney's best dancing. It also has some fine dancing and singing from Virginia Mayo, Doris Day, Gordon MacRae & Gene Nelson. They all do very well, along with an early funny performance by Alan Hale Jr.

Shot in Technicolor, with better songs and more plausible story, this could have been another "The Bandwagon".

Cagney's role is similar to his role in the earlier musical 'Footloght Parade'. As in "Footlight", at one point, one of the dancers is unable to go on and Cagney's character fills in for him. Virginia Mayo plays the same sort of wise-cracking sexy blonde that Joan Blondell played in "Footlight".

The main main plot is Cagney being pressured into joining West Point to help them put on a musical. Adding to that implausibility is a cadet (Gordon MacRae) with a magnificent voice preferring to make a career in the Army, even after falling in love with a famous singing star (Doris Day basically playing herself).

The romance between Cagney and Mayo isn't so far fetched when you look at the movies Fred Astaire made with Leslie Caron, Audrey Hepburn and others. Virginia Mayo displays a fine dancing talent and lovely singing voice, and Doris Day shows she could dance as well as sing. I wish they'd left out the long patriotic number with Gordon MacRae and let him sing a ballad or duet with Doris. Gene Nelson is totally wasted here; they really didn't let him have a big dance number like his Kansas City number in "Oklahoma!" The movie would have been improved had there been an estrangement between Mayo and Cagney with perhaps a dalliance between Mayo and Nelson sparking jealousy in Cagney.

Even though Cagney is noticeably heavier here than in "Yankee Doodle Dandy", he still dances very well and delivers a comic performance complete with facial mugging and explosive tantrums. Those tantrums with lots of hopping up and down like a Warner Bros. cartoon character couldn't have been good for Cagney's 50 year old knees! Alan Hale Jr. was quite funny especially when his huge bulk is next to the short statured Cagney. Warner's should have made some sort of police comedy buddy movie with Hale and Cagney.

I enjoyed seeing Cagney and Mayo once again playing totally different parts. They play off each other very well as do Cagney and Day. It's obvious that MacRae and Day look so cute together that they just had to make more movies together with better songs. Cagney was sufficiently impressed with Doris Day that he pushed for her to get the Ruth Etting part in "Love Me Or Leave Me".