Once an Eagle 

The story of two Army officers, one a ruthless, career-obsessed schemer, the other his exact opposite, and their personal and professional lives from the end of World War I to the beginning of Vietnam.

Stars:

Cliff Potts, Darleen Carr, Amy Irving

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Cliff Potts	...	Courtenay Massengale 7 episodes, 1976-1977
Darleen Carr	...	Tommy Caldwell 7 episodes, 1976-1977
Amy Irving	...	Emily Pawlfrey Massengale 7 episodes, 1976-1977
Glenn Ford	...	George Caldwell 7 episodes, 1976-1977
Sam Elliott	...	Sam Damon 7 episodes, 1976-1977
Ralph Bellamy	...	Ed Caldwell 4 episodes, 1976
Dane Clark	...	Harry Sheppard 4 episodes, 1976
Andrew Duggan	...	Gen. McKelvey 4 episodes, 1976
Lynda Day George	...	Marge Krisler 4 episodes, 1976
Gary Grimes	...	Jack Devlin 4 episodes, 1976
Clu Gulager	...	Alvin Merrick 4 episodes, 1976
Robert Hogan	...	Ben Krisler 4 episodes, 1976
Kim Hunter	...	Kitty Damon 4 episodes, 1976
David Huddleston	...	Earl Preis 4 episodes, 1976
Juliet Mills	...	Joyce 4 episodes, 1976
Harriet Nelson	...	Harriet Nelson 4 episodes, 1976
Albert Salmi	...	Sen. Bert McConnadin 4 episodes, 1976
John Saxon	...	Capt. Townshend 4 episodes, 1976
James Shigeta	...	Lin Tso-Han 4 episodes, 1976
Barry Sullivan	...	Gen. Bannerman 4 episodes, 1976
Phyllis Thaxter	...	Alma Caldwell 4 episodes, 1976
Forrest Tucker	...	Col. Avery 4 episodes, 1976
David Wayne	...	Col. Terwilliger 4 episodes, 1976
William Windom	...	Gen. Duke kPulleyne 4 episodes, 1976
Anthony Zerbe	...	Dave Shifkin 4 episodes, 1976
John Anderson	...	George Varney 4 episodes, 1976
Andrew Robinson	...	Reb Rayburne 4 episodes, 1976
Jeff Cotler	...	Sam, as a boy 4 episodes, 1976
Tracie Savage	...	Peggy Damon 4 episodes, 1976
Lynne Marta	...	Celia Harrodson 4 episodes, 1976
Dennis Burkley	...	Krazewski 4 episodes, 1976
Will Seltzer	...	Brewster 4 episodes, 1976
Jane Elliot	...	Cheryl Logan 4 episodes, 1976
Patricia Stich	...	Nurse Pomeroy 4 episodes, 1976
Patti D'Arbanville	...	Michele 4 episodes, 1976
Hayden Rorke	...	Paul Sinclair 4 episodes, 1976
Ron Masak	...	Maynard Lambert 4 episodes, 1976
James Cromwell	...	J.L. Cleghorne 4 episodes, 1976
George Wyner	...	Dr. McCabe 4 episodes, 1976
Cathey Paine	...	Mae Lee Cleghorne 4 episodes, 1976
Kip Niven	...	Ryetower 4 episodes, 1976
Kario Salem	...	Joe Brand 4 episodes, 1976
Tom Reese	...	Sgt. Stoner 4 episodes, 1976
Lee de Broux	...	Bill Nickerson 4 episodes, 1976
Andrew Stevens	...	Donny Damon 4 episodes, 1976
Jim Antonio	...	Capt. Lasovitch 4 episodes, 1976
Melanie Griffith	...	Jinny Massengale 4 episodes, 1976
Ben Piazza	...	Capt. Jerome 4 episodes, 1976
Kent Smith	...	Gen. Jacklyn 4 episodes, 1976
Jordan Rhodes	...	Sgt. Ives 4 episodes, 1976
George Murdock	...	Sgt. Chepenek 4 episodes, 1976
Frank Michael Liu	...	Capt. Nagasay 4 episodes, 1976
Bert Kramer		4 episodes, 1976
Simon Scott		4 episodes, 1976
Jenifer Shaw		4 episodes, 1976
Rick Podell		4 episodes, 1976
George Loros		4 episodes, 1976
Chick Vennera		4 episodes, 1976
Lew Brown		4 episodes, 1976
Gary Springer		4 episodes, 1976
Rod Porter		4 episodes, 1976
Rori Gwynne		4 episodes, 1976
Richard Forbes		4 episodes, 1976
John Waldron		4 episodes, 1976
Sari Price		4 episodes, 1976
John Fujioka		4 episodes, 1976
Frank Farmer		4 episodes, 1976
Jan Burrell		4 episodes, 1976
William Bryant		4 episodes, 1976
William Bassett		4 episodes, 1976
Steve Eoff	...	German Sergeant 4 episodes, 1976
Steven Hood	...	Messenger 4 episodes, 1976
Jane Merrow	...	Hallie 4 episodes, 1976
Allen G. Norman	...	Gamekeeper 4 episodes, 1976
Jameson Parker		4 episodes, 1976
Bryan A. Seneviratne	...	Japanese Soldier 4 episodes, 1976

Storyline

The story of two Army officers, one a ruthless, career-obsessed schemer, the other his exact opposite, and their personal and professional lives from the end of World War I to the beginning of Vietnam.

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Plot Keywords:

army | officer | tv mini series | military | based on novel | 

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Taglines:

Duty. Honor. Country.

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 December 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bir Zamanlar Kartaldi

Filming Locations:

Napa Valley, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

540 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The novel on which this mini-series is based is used in leadership classes at West Point, the Army War College, and in the U.S. Marine Corps.

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Goofs

In the World War One scenes (set in 1918), the German soldiers are shown wearing the 1914-style uniforms with spiked helmets, which were phased out in 1916.

User Reviews

Old Movies are to Die For

I have for several years kicked me for not having a VCR in the late 1970's when I was stationed at the Military Academy and the Mini-series "Once An Eagle" first was on TV. The comments about the story and the actors who played the parts were pretty much true to life. The Massengales of the world said the book and now the TV series are not correct, that the director used his actors to show his political views. The Sam Damon's, said that the mini-series was true to life and True Soldiers really did take care of their men. I have recently been able to view the series again , and it reminds me of the men I served with and the true soldiers our country was very fortunate to have. The book is now being used as a text at the U S Army War College and at West Point. The U S Army College has a new version out with forwards from active and retired officers. Sam Damon as written in the book and to some extent in the TV series should be a guide to young and old officers a like. Take care of your soldiers and they will take care of you.

I agree with Airborne Mike, when he said " I used to be troubled by the movie and book having different endings, not anymore. They are best viewed as ALTERNATIVE ENDINGS, a positive or a negative one. The people who adapted the best-selling book to TV did an excellent job of understanding the book's true meaning---which is to fight evil when you see it immediately!---regardless of the cost".

To those of you that have been lucky enough to record the series and still have a copy, I salute you. You have a piece of history the movie world has not seen fit to rebroadcast or release on VHS/DVD for the rest of us. I rank it up there with Sam Elliott's best work. Maybe he or his agent (The William Morris Agency) will be able to get Universal to re-release it to the Sam Elliott and good film fans every where.

Smiling Jack (U S Army Retired)