In the wake of Pearl Harbor, a young lieutenant leaves his expectant wife to volunteer for a secret bombing mission which will take the war to the Japanese homeland.
Richard Madden shares why this was the role for him, and what he swiped from the "Game of Thrones" set.
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Title: Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)
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Edit
Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Van Johnson | ... | Ted Lawson | |
| Robert Walker | ... | David Thatcher | |
 |
Tim Murdock | ... | Dean Davenport |
| Don DeFore | ... | Charles McClure | |
|
|
Herbert Gunn | ... | Bob Clever (as Gordon McDonald) |
| Phyllis Thaxter | ... | Ellen Lawson | |
| Stephen McNally | ... | 'Doc' White (as Horace McNally) | |
| Spencer Tracy | ... | Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle | |
|
|
John R. Reilly | ... | 'Shorty' Manch |
| Robert Mitchum | ... | Bob Gray | |
| Scott McKay | ... | Davey Jones | |
| Donald Curtis | ... | Lieut. Randall | |
| Louis Jean Heydt | ... | Lieut. Miller | |
|
|
William 'Bill' Phillips | ... | Don Smith (as Wm. 'Bill' Phillips) |
| Douglas Cowan | ... | 'Brick' Holstrom | |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Plot Synopsis
See All (37) »
Storyline
The amazingly detailed true story of "The Doolittle Raid" based on the personal account by Doolittle Raider Ted Lawson. Stunned by Pearl Harbor and a string of defeats, America needed a victory - badly. To that end, Colonel Jimmy Doolittle, a former air racer and stunt pilot, devises a plan for a daring raid on the heart of Japan itself. To do this, he must train army bomber pilots to do something no one ever dreamed possible - launch 16 fully loaded bombers from an aircraft carrier! Remarkable in its accuracy, this movie even uses film footage from the actual raid. Written by KC Hunt <khunt@eng.morgan.edu>
Plot Keywords:
aircraft carrier | japan | doolittle raid | air attack | army air corps |Taglines:
Heart-Warming Romance . . . Stark, Sensational Drama! Thrills! Action! Adventure! ...Ripped From The Heart! See more »Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents »
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Edit
See more on IMDbPro »
See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
USARelease Date:
November 1944 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Treinta segundos sobre Tokio See more »Filming Locations:
Stage 15, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios -10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA See more »Edit
Box Office
Budget:
$2,900,000 (estimated)Gross USA:
$4,297,000, 31 December 1944Cumulative Worldwide Gross:
$6,200,000, 31 December 1944Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)Color:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1
Edit
Young Dr. Chung: I have one sorrow, Lieutenant. that we did not have the medicine to ease your pain.
Ted Lawson: You saved my life, Doc.
Young Dr. Chung: I hope that someday you'll come back to us.
Ted Lawson: We'll be back. Maybe not us ourselves but a lotta guys like us, and I'd like to be with them. You're our kind of people.
Young Dr. Chung: Thank you, sir.
See more »
(1788) (uncredited)
Traditional Scottish ballad
Words by Robert Burns
Played and Sung at a dance
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
Phyllis Thaxter's first feature film. She had planned to do just the one film, and then go back to Broadway. Although she continued acting in films, she also had a solid career on the stage. See more »Goofs
There are many instances of military personnel of all ranks wearing hats indoors during WWII. A simple picture search would confirm this fact. See more »Quotes
Ted Lawson: Goodbye.Young Dr. Chung: I have one sorrow, Lieutenant. that we did not have the medicine to ease your pain.
Ted Lawson: You saved my life, Doc.
Young Dr. Chung: I hope that someday you'll come back to us.
Ted Lawson: We'll be back. Maybe not us ourselves but a lotta guys like us, and I'd like to be with them. You're our kind of people.
Young Dr. Chung: Thank you, sir.
See more »
Alternate Versions
There is an alternate colorized version. See more »Soundtracks
Auld Lang Syne(1788) (uncredited)
Traditional Scottish ballad
Words by Robert Burns
Played and Sung at a dance
See more »
Van Johnson, Spencer Tracy and a supporting cast make this movie one of the special few war films that show a naturalistic view of men in combat. Johnson is scared, confused at times, and when he's at the controls, exactly like so many pilots I know - professional. There are elements of jingoism in this film, although remarkably toned-down, certainly less than "..Colonel Blimp", a British war-time effort. Johnson is the classic middle-class guy caught up in a shooting match, same as he was in "Battleground". Some younger viewers may see the special effects as hokey, but I feel the model work was and is unsurpassed, and without any blue-screen trickery! The Hornet flight-deck scenes are amazing in the use of full size B-25's. One other note -"Japanese" are seen on screen only from a distance, curiously.