Never Wave at a WAC (1953)

A divorced socialite decides to join the Army because she hopes it will enable her to see more of her boyfriend, a Colonel. She soon encounters many difficulties with the Army lifestyle. ... See full summary »

Director:

Norman Z. McLeod

Writers:

Ken Englund (screenplay), Frederick Kohner (story),

Stars:

Rosalind Russell, Paul Douglas, Marie Wilson

Cast

Cast overview:
Rosalind Russell	...	Jo McBain
Paul Douglas	...	Andrew McBain
Marie Wilson	...	Clara Schneiderman / Danger O'Dowd
William Ching	...	Lt. Col. Schuyler 'Sky' Fairchild
Arleen Whelan	...	Sgt. Toni Wayne
Leif Erickson	...	Sgt. Norbert 'Noisy' Jackson
Hillary Brooke	...	First Lt. Phyllis Turnbull
Charles Dingle	...	Sen. Tom Reynolds
Lurene Tuttle	...	Capt. Murchinson, Company CO
Regis Toomey	...	Gen. Ned Prager
Frieda Inescort	...	Lily Mae Gorham
Louise Beavers	...	Artamesa, Jo's Maid
Omar N. Bradley	...	Gen. Omar Bradley
Vince Townsend Jr.	...	Henry, Jo's Servant

Storyline

A divorced socialite decides to join the Army because she hopes it will enable her to see more of her boyfriend, a Colonel. She soon encounters many difficulties with the Army lifestyle. Moreover, her ex-husband is working as a consultant with the Army, and he uses his position to disrupt her romantic plans by making her join a group of WACs who are testing new equipment.

---

Plot Keywords:

wac | training | basic training | equipment | virginia | 

---

Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Romance

---

Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 January 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

N'embrassez pas les WACs

Filming Locations:

Walt Disney Studios, 500 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Independent Artists Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in What's My Line?: Episode dated 15 February 1953 (1953)

User Reviews

Roz Joins The Army

Never Wave At A WAC is the apparently weird combination of Buck Privates and Woman of the Year. The odd thing about it is that it actually works and still will get a few laughs from today's audience.

This might have been a script offered to Katharine Hepburn, but Hepburn never really got as physical in her comedy films as Rosalind Russell does here. Still the part of socialite daughter of a United States Senator would normally have been something Hepburn might have done. Yet Russell makes the part all her own.

Russell's a bit of a snob and her father Charles Dingle well knows it. During a party where her ex-husband, Paul Douglas, crashes she meets another socialite friend who has just got a commission in the Woman's Army Corps. Russell's current boyfriend is another commissioned officer from public relations, William Ching, borrowed from an Ad agency. He's been assigned to NATO headquarters in Paris.

Of course dear old dad will pull some strings and make her an officer and a lady. Except Charles Dingle doesn't want to do it. He says let her in as a buck private and it takes a bit of getting used to before Russell realizes she's not a VIP on the base. And when Douglas who is a scientist doing work for the army arrives on her base the fun really starts.

Roz has some good physical scenes, check out the one where she and other WACS are part of a Douglas experiment in arctic conditions. They're not as physical as the ones in Private Benjamin, still Russell gets ample opportunity to display her comic timing.

There's also a nice subplot involving Marie Wilson, a stripper who joins the WACs and falls for Sergeant Leif Erickson.

Charles Dingle is always one of my favorite character actors and it was really nice to see him as a good guy for a change. He's either a nasty villain like in Edge of Darkness or he's a pompous horse's rear like in Welcome Stranger. He's neither in this film, just a nice down to earth man who happens to be a United States Senator and not pleased with the snobbish ways of his daughter.

Obviously because he believed in getting more women in the Armed Services, the then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Omar N. Bradley made a guest appearance as himself. He has a moment when calls about Russell's status reach his ears and he refers them to his good friend Senator Dingle who's on a fishing trip.

Never Wave At A WAC though eclipsed somewhat for the current past two generations by Private Benjamin still has a lot of laughs. And it's a great introduction to one of the best and most versatile stars from the age of studio Hollywood, Rosalind Russell.