20,000 Men a Year 1939
Not really a war film, this 20th Century Fox production is more of a war preparedness film.
The film headlines Randolph Scott, Preston Foster, Margaret Lindsay and Maxie Rosenbloom.
Foster is an official with the U.S. Civil Aeronautics Authority. Foster is involved with an investigation into airline pilot, Randolph Scott. Foster suspends Scott for not following set Government guidelines. Scott is not amused with the suspension and quits the airline.
Scott takes his savings and buys a small air service and airfield. The purchase comes with Maxie Rosenbloom who is the mechanic for the air service aircraft. Scott soon discovers that being his own boss is not what it is cracked up to be. He is soon in hock up to his eyeballs to the bank.
The only thing that saves him is that the government has started a program to train 20,000 pilots a year. War clouds gathering in Europe suggest there might be a need for trained pilots. Scott's outfit is soon training young men from the local college to become some of these pilots. One of the young men, Robert Shaw, is the young brother of Preston Foster. Foster is of course the Government man who suspended Scott at the start.
Anyways, there are several crashes and some flying heroics needed to prove to the audience the need for lots of pilots.
The film features plenty of flying stunts and the like from crack stunt pilot, Paul Mantz. There is some real seat of the pants work here as Mantz flies up and down various mountainsides and the like. There is one particular bit where he lands a trainer on one wheel. Mantz started out as a stunt pilot on HELL'S ANGELS in 1930. His other film work includes, FLYING DEVILS, WEST POINT OF THE AIR, CELING ZERO, MEN WITH WINGS, ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS, 12 O'CLOCK HIGH, FLYING TIGERS, FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS, IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD and THE FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX. Mantz was killed during the production of the last film.
The story was by aviation writer, Frank Wead. Former pilot Wead was crippled in a crash while with the U.S. Navy. He took to writing and proved rather successful at it. Films based of his work include, SEA DEVILS, HELL DIVERS, AIR MAIL, WEST POINT OF THE AIR, CHINA CLIPPER, TEST PILOT, THEY WERE EXPENDABLE, DIVE BOMBER, INTERNATIONAL SQUADRON and BLAZE OF NOON. John Ford made a bio of Wead called, THE WINGS OF EAGLES with John Wayne playing Wead.
The film was directed by veteran helmsman, Alfred E. Green.
Fans of early aircraft will see several shots of the Douglas DC-4E. There was one of these aircraft ever built.
Not really a war film, this 20th Century Fox production is more of a war preparedness film.
The film headlines Randolph Scott, Preston Foster, Margaret Lindsay and Maxie Rosenbloom.
Foster is an official with the U.S. Civil Aeronautics Authority. Foster is involved with an investigation into airline pilot, Randolph Scott. Foster suspends Scott for not following set Government guidelines. Scott is not amused with the suspension and quits the airline.
Scott takes his savings and buys a small air service and airfield. The purchase comes with Maxie Rosenbloom who is the mechanic for the air service aircraft. Scott soon discovers that being his own boss is not what it is cracked up to be. He is soon in hock up to his eyeballs to the bank.
The only thing that saves him is that the government has started a program to train 20,000 pilots a year. War clouds gathering in Europe suggest there might be a need for trained pilots. Scott's outfit is soon training young men from the local college to become some of these pilots. One of the young men, Robert Shaw, is the young brother of Preston Foster. Foster is of course the Government man who suspended Scott at the start.
Anyways, there are several crashes and some flying heroics needed to prove to the audience the need for lots of pilots.
The film features plenty of flying stunts and the like from crack stunt pilot, Paul Mantz. There is some real seat of the pants work here as Mantz flies up and down various mountainsides and the like. There is one particular bit where he lands a trainer on one wheel. Mantz started out as a stunt pilot on HELL'S ANGELS in 1930. His other film work includes, FLYING DEVILS, WEST POINT OF THE AIR, CELING ZERO, MEN WITH WINGS, ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS, 12 O'CLOCK HIGH, FLYING TIGERS, FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS, IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD and THE FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX. Mantz was killed during the production of the last film.
The story was by aviation writer, Frank Wead. Former pilot Wead was crippled in a crash while with the U.S. Navy. He took to writing and proved rather successful at it. Films based of his work include, SEA DEVILS, HELL DIVERS, AIR MAIL, WEST POINT OF THE AIR, CHINA CLIPPER, TEST PILOT, THEY WERE EXPENDABLE, DIVE BOMBER, INTERNATIONAL SQUADRON and BLAZE OF NOON. John Ford made a bio of Wead called, THE WINGS OF EAGLES with John Wayne playing Wead.
The film was directed by veteran helmsman, Alfred E. Green.
Fans of early aircraft will see several shots of the Douglas DC-4E. There was one of these aircraft ever built.