Hail the Conquering Hero (1944)

Woodrow is discharged from the military for hay fever, but fabricates receiving a heroic honorable discharge before returning home.

Director:

Preston Sturges

Writer:

Preston Sturges

Stars:

Eddie Bracken, Ella Raines, Raymond Walburn

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Eddie Bracken	...	Woodrow Truesmith
Ella Raines	...	Libby
Raymond Walburn	...	Mayor Everett J. Noble
William Demarest	...	Sgt. Heffelfinger
Franklin Pangborn	...	Reception Committee Chairman
Elizabeth Patterson	...	Aunt Martha
Georgia Caine	...	Mrs. Truesmith
Al Bridge	...	Political Boss
Freddie Steele	...	Bugsy
Bill Edwards	...	Forrest Noble
Harry Hayden	...	Doc Bissell
Jimmy Conlin	...	Judge Dennis
Jimmie Dundee	...	Cpl. Candida

Storyline

Having been discharged from the Marines for a hayfever condition before ever seeing action, Woodrow Lafayette Pershing Truesmith (Eddie Bracken) delays the return to his hometown, feeling that he is a failure. While in a moment of melancholy, he meets up with a group of Marines who befriend him and encourage him to return home to his mother by fabricating a story that he was wounded in battle with honorable discharge. They make him wear a uniform complete with medals and is pushed by his new friends into accepting a Hero's welcome when he gets home where he is to be immortalized by a statue that he doesn't want, has songs written about his heroic battle stories, and ends up unwillingly running for mayor. Despite his best efforts to explain the truth, no one will listen.

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Plot Keywords:

national film registry | screwball comedy | liar revealed | mayor | mother | 

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Taglines:

"The Miracle of Morgan's Creek" Made people laugh till they were weak! The same guy Sturges made this honey-And take our word he made it funny!

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Genres:

Comedy | War

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since. Its initial television broadcasts took place in Seattle 2 February 1959 on KIRO (Channel 7), followed by Chicago Saturday 8 February 1959 on WBBM (Channel 2), by Toledo 1 March 1959 on WTOL (Channel 11), and by Omaha 5 March 1959 on KETV (Channel 7); its newfound popularity soon spread across the country as it first aired in Milwaukee 21 April 1959 on WITI (Channel 6), in New York City 30 May 1959 on WCBS (Channel 2, in Phoenix 25 August 1959 on KVAR (Channel 12), in Grand Rapids 11 September 1959 on WOOD (Channel 8), in Asheville 6 November 1959 on WLOS (Channel 13), in Johnstown 13 November 1959 on WJAC (Channel 6), in St. Louis 23 January 1960 on KMOX (Channel 4), in Minneapolis 9 March 1960 on WTCN (Channel 11), in Los Angeles 19 August 1960 on KNXT (Channel 2), in Philadelphia 15 July 1961 on WCAU (Channel 10), and in San Francisco 20 August 1961 on KPIX (Channel 5). It was released on DVD 21 November 2006 as one of seven titles in Universal's Preston Sturges: The Filmmaker Collection, and as a single 10 May 2011 as part of the Universal Cinema Classics series. Since that time, it's also enjoyed occasional presentations on Turner Classic Movies.

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Goofs

Early in the movie, in the nightclub, there's a shot of a man sitting at a table eating a sandwich. After a quick cutaway the man is smoking and the sandwich is on his plate...untouched.

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Quotes

Mayor Everett D. Noble: This problem is not local, it's national. In a few years, if the war goes on - heaven forbid - you won't be able to swing a cat without knocking down a couple of heroes. Now... are we going to be governed by young men - very young men - however well-meaning or patriotic they may be - whose principal talent consists of hopping in and out of wolfholes...
Political Boss: Foxholes.
Mayor Everett D. Noble: Huh?
Political Boss: They're called foxholes.
Mayor Everett D. Noble: ...talent consists of hopping in and out of foxholes and killing hundreds of enemies with one swoop of the ...

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Connections

Referenced in The Majestic (2001)

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Soundtracks

My Ideal
(1930)(uncredited)
Music by Richard A. Whiting and Newell Chase
Lyrics by Leo Robin

User Reviews

One of the funniest comedies ever made

Brilliant farce with more than a bitter-sweet tang about the attitudes of small town Americans towards the war and the people who served. The dialogue and pacing is first rate and Preston Sturges' stock cast are all excellent, not least Freddie Steele as the slightly dented Bugsy. His performance gives an odd edge to the film, being an awful actor and a poor comedian helps him stand out and appear as someone more real and genuine.

Sturges is Hollywood's most forgotten great director, writer and producer. Even though he shone brightly but briefly he made far superior comedies than Woody Allen's and those are pretty damn good themselves.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

September 1944 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hail the Conquering Hero

Filming Locations:

Paramount Ranch - 2813 Cornell Road, Agoura, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1