A Guy Named Joe (1943)

A dead World War II bomber pilot named Pete Sandidge, becomes the guardian angel of another pilot, Ted Randall. He guides Ted through battle and helping him to romance his old girlfriend, despite her excessive devotion to Sandidge's memory.

Director:

Victor Fleming

Writers:

Chandler Sprague (story), David Boehm (story)

Stars:

Spencer Tracy, Irene Dunne, Van Johnson

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Spencer Tracy	...	Pete Sandidge
Irene Dunne	...	Dorinda Durston
Van Johnson	...	Ted Randall
Ward Bond	...	Al Yackey
James Gleason	...	'Nails' Kilpatrick
Lionel Barrymore	...	The General
Barry Nelson	...	Dick Rumney
Esther Williams	...	Ellen Bright
Henry O'Neill	...	Col. Sykes
Don DeFore	...	James J. Rourke (as Don De Fore)
Charles Smith	...	Sanderson
Addison Richards	...	Maj. Corbett

Storyline

Maj. Pete Sandidge is a very able pilot who seems to have a streak of luck as far as flying goes. World War II is raging and Pete has come out of it pretty so far. He even has a beautiful girlfriend Dorinda Durston, herself a qualified pilot who ferries aircraft to different bases. When Pete is killed however, he finds himself in heaven and learns that every pilot has a guardian angel. He returns to Earth where, unseen by anyone, he coaches a pilot-in-training Ted Randall. Ted is a pretty good kid and is coming along nicely but when he's shipped to New Guinea he runs into Dorinda who has remained faithful to her lost love. As Ted pursues her, Pete will have to decide what he wants to do about it.

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Plot Keywords:

pilot | heaven | world war two | training | teacher | 

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Taglines:

A GUY - A GAL - A PAL - It's Swell!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | War | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

March 1944 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Guy Named Joe

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,627,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$5,363,000, 31 December 1944

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 122 min (copyright length)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The P-38 Lightning, featured in this film, was considered one of the best planes of WW2 since it was faster than most Japanese planes, highly maneuverable and could accept heavy damage and still fly. It featured forward firing guns, including a 20mm cannon, rather than the angled wing guns on most planes. It had one bad feature. When bailing out a pilot had to roll the plane and fall out rather than crawling out and jumping since the horizontal stabilizer between the two tails frequently would hit the pilot as he jumped.

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Goofs

The Japanese bombers that the P-38s attack are actually Martin B-26 Marauders.

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Quotes

Ted Randall: You're the prettiest girl in all the world. You're even prettier than a P-38.

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Connections

Featured in Special Effects: Anything Can Happen (1996)

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Soundtracks

St. Louis Blues
(1914) (uncredited)
Written by W.C. Handy
Partially sung a cappella by Don DeFore

User Reviews

A Still Successful World War II Fantasy

The question that faces (or scares) Americans ever since the debacle of Vietnam is: is patriotism dead here. Because of that national nightmare we have questioned every government foreign policy ever since. Naturally we should question them, but it sometimes seems that our questioning causes a national paralysis of will. Time will tell (and shortly) if the Iraqi - Afghani incursions will add to this paralysis.

It was not the case in 1943, when A GUY NAMED JOE was made by MGM. The film is about a hot shot air force pilot (Spencer Tracy) who is in a squadron commanded by James Gleason. Although they have a friendship, Gleason is constantly having problems about Tracy's independence from rules. Frequently they pay off in damaging the enemy, but they break safety rules. Gleason also sympathizes with Tracy's girlfriend (Irene Dunne) who wants Tracy to take a quieter job (like training fliers in the states). Just when Tracy is about to take such a job, he goes on a mission, and his plane is hit. After the crew bails out, Tracy (instead of ditching) flies the plane kamikaze style into a German aircraft carrier and sinks it (but he dies).

In the afterlife, Tracy is taken under the wing of the "General" (Lionel Barrymore), and is assigned to act like a conscience or guide to budding air force pilots. He is assigned to Van Johnson, and helps him get more confidence. Johnson is assigned to a war theater where Gleason's command is, and where Dunne is. Dunne is mourning Tracy, but their closest mutual friend (Ward Bond) gets her to go out to enjoy herself. She meets Johnson, and an affair begins. Tracy gets jealous as a result.

The film follows as Tracy and Dunne finally accept the truth about the ending of their physical contact. It moves to the point of tragedy here when Tracy finally releases Dunne from the harshness of the emotional chains that bind them, and that lead Dunne to do something atypical and foolhardy for the intelligent person she supposedly is. In the end she and Johnson find a new happiness together, while Tracy goes to his next "angel" assignment.

Fantasy is usually tied to one set of ideas or theme, but what is good World War II American propaganda became a study in tragic resignation. Fortunately the acting level of A GUY NAMED JOE was so high, that the fantasy transcended the historical period film and left us with a film of emotional loss and rebuilding. As such it is a fine movie.

One final point, on a historical level. Who is Lionel Barrymore supposed to be? He is only referred to as "the General" and he died before the war. He is highly respected as a great air figure. Tracy quickly recognizes him, and tells Barry Nelson he wanted to take him up in one of the new aircraft that had been built. So who is Barrymore supposedly?

The key is the model airplane on Barrymore's desk. It is a model of a Martin Bomber. That was the plane used in 1921 to sink two battleships in Chesapeake Bay, and to prove the theories of an air power pioneer that the future of warfare was not with dreadnoughts but with air planes. The "General" is supposed to be Brigadier General Billy Mitchell.