IMDb > PT 109 (1963)
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Overview

User Rating:
6.3/10   622 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
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Writers:
Richard L. Breen (writer)
Robert J. Donovan (book)
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Contact:
View company contact information for PT 109 on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
19 June 1963 (USA) more
Genre:
Biography | Drama | War more
Tagline:
"The Story you wouldn't believe happened...but it did!" more
Plot:
Dramatization of President John F. Kennedy's war time experiences during which he captained a PT boat... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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User Comments:
Timely (in 1963) dramatization of President Kennedy's Naval service. more (12 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Cliff Robertson ... Lt. John F. Kennedy
Ty Hardin ... Ens. Leonard J. Thom
James Gregory ... Cmdr. C.R. Ritchie
Robert Culp ... Ens. George 'Barney' Ross
Grant Williams ... Lt., Alvin Cluster
Lew Gallo ... Yeoman Rogers
Errol John ... Benjamin Kevu
Michael Pate ... Lt. Reginald Evans

Robert Blake ... Charles 'Bucky' Harris
William Douglas ... Gerald Zinser
Biff Elliot ... Edgar E. Mauer
Norman Fell ... Edmund Drewitch
Sam Gilman ... Raymond Starkey
Clyde Howdy ... Leon Drawdy
Buzz Martin ... Maurice Kowal
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Additional Details

Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:
140 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound Recording)
Certification:
UK:U | Iceland:16 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:11
Filming Locations:
Little Palm Island, Florida, USA
Company:
Warner Bros. Pictures more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The boats were actually 85-foot long Air Sea Rescue boats. The cockpits were rebuilt to scale because the boats were some 5 feet longer in overall length than the Elco PTs. more
Goofs:
Factual errors: In the film, PT 109 is shown rescuing the remnants of a Marine patrol off Choiseul Island while under enemy fire. This rescue actually occurred on November 2, 1943 - 3 months AFTER PT 109 had been rammed and sunk - but by PT 59, a PT which had been converted into a gunboat and was JFK's second and last command in the South Pacific. more
Quotes:
Charles 'Bucky' Harris: Good afternoon, sir. Crew's compartment ready for inspection. Harris, Gunner's Mate Second, standing by.
Cmdr. C.R. Ritchie: Good afternoon.
[He looks around, and then opens one of the lockers. On the inside of the door is a picture of a luscious pin-up girl]
Cmdr. C.R. Ritchie: Somebody's kid sister?
Charles 'Bucky' Harris: Sorry, sir.
Lt. John F. Kennedy: He's very sorry, sir.
Cmdr. C.R. Ritchie: Oh, no, no. Don't apologize... the most seaworthy thing I've seen on this boat.
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Movie Connections:
Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Skydivers (#7.9)" (1994) more

FAQ

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User Comments

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16 out of 16 people found the following comment useful.
Timely (in 1963) dramatization of President Kennedy's Naval service., 11 February 2005
Author: TxMike from Houston, Tx, USA, Earth

Cliff Robertson was a good choice to play Lt. John F. Kennedy, new PT boat commander in 1944. He looked a bit like Kennedy and was able to recreate many of his mannerisms. This movie hit the theaters in the USA in June 1963, just after I graduated from high school, and only five months before President Kennedy died from a bullet in Dallas, Texas. I remember it well, it was perfect for the times, as it dramatized the events where the boat, PT 109, was rammed by a Japanese destroyer and sank, but Kennedy was able to lead the survivors to safety in the hostile South Pacific waters.

The movie opens in August 1942, the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, the US Navy was using PT boats because they were fast, had a shallow draft, and carried a good complement of torpedoes. We first see Lt. Kennedy receiving his assignment aboard a destroyer, in 1943 or 1944, then landing on the island base. With no active boats available, he was offered the PT 109, which had been neglected and was not ship-shape. He was given a makeshift crew, and one week to get it seaworthy. Which he and his men do, and pass the inspection with flying colors. Kennedy is shown as a leader by example, working side by side with his men, and taking the time to thank them for a job well done.

The movie goes on to show the deployment of the 109 into regular service, and the incident which resulted in the sinking of the boat and subsequent fight for survival. Even though he was eligible for an assignment stateside, Kennedy took another boat and continued the battle. It is well made for a 1963 movie.

Kennedy was born in 1917 and was 26 when he enlisted in the Navy after Harvard. When he was 38 he completed his book, "Profiles In Courage" which won a Pulitzer Prize. When he was only 43, in 1960, he defeated Richard Nixon and became President of the USA. In November 1963, he was dead. In spite of his flaws as a man, as a leader and as a President he was remarkable, and this is a good movie to remind us of that.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for PT 109 (1963)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Great true story of JFK in the Solomon Is, during WW 2. grafspee
It's Not IN the film, but... doug65oh
The helmsman of the destroyer. XLCH1000
Vote for PT 109 release on DVD on the TCM website rac701
DVD? gotsoccer
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