You're in the Navy Now (1951)

Director:

Henry Hathaway

Writers:

John W. Hazard (magazine article) and
Richard Murphy (writer)

Release Date:

16 May 1951 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | War

Tagline:

Hilarious Comedy About A Snafu Ship !

Plot:

When a new commander is assigned to a submarine chaser with an experimental engine, he finds the entire crew has as little experience as he does.

Plot Keywords:

Steam Engine | 90 Day Wonder | Draftee | Admiral | Based On Article

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Gary Cooper	...	Lt. John W. Harkness
Jane Greer	...	Ellie C. Harkness
Millard Mitchell	...	George Larrabee
Eddie Albert	...	Lt. Bill Barron
John McIntire	...	Cmdr. W. R. Reynolds
Ray Collins	...	Rear Adm. L. C. Tennant
Harry von Zell	...	Capt. 'Danny' Eliot (as Harry Von Zell)
Jack Webb	...	Ens. Anthony 'Tony' Barbo
Richard Erdman	...	Ens. Chuck Dorrance
Harvey Lembeck	...	Norelli
Henry Slate	...	Chief Engineer Ryan
Ed Begley	...	Port Commander

Also Known As:

U.S.S. Teakettle (USA) (alternative title)

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:S | Sweden:Btl

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Debut of Lee Marvin.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene where they are rolling depth charges off the aft deck during a drill, Lee Marvin is first seen as a radio man on the bridge, then after a cut, he is on the aft deck with the depth charge crew.

Quotes:

Adm. Tennant: [Exiting engine room] I've never seen anything like it in my whole life!
Ryan: We keep it running, sir.
Adm. Tennant: Yeah, Yeah, you can also hang upside-down with your belt from a doorknob and kick the transom open with your feet, but I don't recommend it Chief.

Soundtrack:

Yours (Quiereme Mucho)

Earnest Comedy

Never intended to be side-splittingly hilarious, 'You're In The Navy Now' is an earnest effort at showing the lighter side of naval service, broadly in the manner of the 'Readers' Digest' feature "Humor In Uniform," and as such it works though modern audiences often think it dated and unamusing. Poor modern audiences, indeed.

Solid cast here, with Gary Cooper shipshape as the green but earnest new skipper of a submarine chaser in which an experimental propulsion plant has been installed for testing; Jack Webb, Eddie Albert, Harry Von Zell, Jane Greer, Harvey Lembeck, Jack Warden, Charles Buchinski - later to become Charles Bronson, and Lee Marvin all working, and sometimes conniving, together to make their oddly-engined ship a proud one.

The actual PC1168 used in the film can be seen here: http://www.navsource.org/archives/12/011168.htm 'You're In The Navy Now' is a pleasant way to voyage through an evening.