Strategic Air Command (1955)

An ex-pilot and current baseballer is recalled into the U.S. Air Force and assumes an increasingly important role in Cold War deterrence.

Director:

Anthony Mann

Writers:

Valentine Davies (screenplay), Beirne Lay Jr. (screenplay)

Stars:

James Stewart, June Allyson, Frank Lovejoy

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Stewart	...	Lt. Col. Robert 'Dutch' Holland
June Allyson	...	Sally Holland
Frank Lovejoy	...	Gen. Ennis C. Hawkes
Barry Sullivan	...	Lt. Col. Rocky Samford
Alex Nicol	...	Ike Knowland
Bruce Bennett	...	Gen. Espy
Jay C. Flippen	...	Tom Doyle
James Millican	...	Maj. Gen. 'Rusty' Castle
James Bell	...	Rev. Dr. Thorne
Rosemary DeCamp	...	Mrs. Thorne (as Rosemary De Camp)
Richard Shannon	...	Flight Instructor Pilot
John McKee	...	Capt. Symington (as John R. McKee)
Harry Morgan	...	Sgt. Bible - Flight Engineer (as Henry Morgan)

Storyline

An ex-pilot and current baseballer is recalled into the U.S. Air Force and assumes an increasingly important role in Cold War deterrence.

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Plot Keywords:

nuclear weapons | u.s. military | u.s. air force | b 47 stratojet | warplane | 

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Taglines:

Soar to New Heights of Adventure!

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Genres:

Action | Drama | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 March 1955 (USA)

Also Known As:

In geheimer Kommandosache

Filming Locations:

Al Lang Field - 180 2nd Avenue SE, St. Petersburg, Florida, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$6,500,000, 31 December 1955

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character of Gen. Ennis C. Hawkes was based on Gen. Curtis LeMay, the real-life commander of the U.S. Air Force's Strategic Air Command from 1949-57. General LeMay was also the General responsible for the firebombings over Japan during WWII and considered to be a quasi war criminal from the Axis point of view. In the early '60's. General LeMay ordered the first official batch of M16's for his base security forces to protect SAC without authorization. In the next decade, most of the other services would adopt the M16 as it's service rifle.

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Goofs

When Col. Holland can't move his arm when approaching Kadena, he has the co-pilot work the throttles for the landing. Earlier in the movie, he allowed Rocky to make a landing at MacDill from the back seat, so why didn't he let Leo make the landing at Kadena? Since they were on instruments anyway, it would not have been a problem for Leo to make the landing from the back seat.

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Quotes

Lt. Col. Robert 'Dutch' Holland: You got any kids?
Sgt. Bible: Yep, two. One on the ramp, one in the hangar!

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Connections

Referenced in Happy Days: A Sight for Sore Eyes (1976)

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Soundtracks

The Air Force Takes Command
Music by Victor Young
Lyrics by Ned Washington and Major Tommy Thomson Jr.

User Reviews

A real "reel" hero depicts real life!

Jimmy Stewart was, in real life, a Brigadier General in the United States Air Force and a distinguished combat (bomber) pilot of WWII. He played the part of "Dutch" Holland realistically because he had lived the Air Force life and knew all the intimate details. In the days when the Soviet Bear was a genuine menace and America's populace was Hell-bent on sticking it's collective head in the sand, men and women like these served in the now-long-gone Strategic Air Command, the Guardian of our severely depleted post-WWII air armada. Wonderfully photographed and skillfully recreated, Strategic Air Command portrays an honest,almost-documentary,image of the rebuilding of America's Air Force which prevented WW-III! It is still very popular in TV reruns due to the fact that America loves hero's and Peace! Remember, the SAC motto was "Peace is Our Profession!" For those of us who served in SAC, this movie stands as a memorial and testimonial to our work and our love of country! Thanks,Jimmy!