The Tuskegee Airmen (1995)

The true story of how a group of African American pilots overcame racist opposition to become one of the finest US fighter groups in World War II

Director:

Robert Markowitz

Writers:

Paris Qualles (teleplay), Trey Ellis (teleplay)

Stars:

Laurence Fishburne, Allen Payne, Malcolm-Jamal Warner

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 6 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Laurence Fishburne	...	Hannibal Lee
Allen Payne	...	Walter Peoples
Malcolm-Jamal Warner	...	Leroy Cappy
Courtney B. Vance	...	Lt. Glenn (as Courtney Vance)
Andre Braugher	...	Benjamin O. Davis
Christopher McDonald	...	Major Joy (as Chris McDonald)
Daniel Hugh Kelly	...	Col. Rogers
John Lithgow	...	Senator Conyers
Cuba Gooding Jr.	...	Billy Roberts
Mekhi Phifer	...	Lewis Johns
Christopher Bevins	...	Young Hannibal
Eddie Braun	...	Tail Gunner
Max Daniels	...	Left Waist Gunner
Jack Dwyer	...	Operations Officer
James Field	...	Conductor

Storyline

During the Second World War, a special project is begun by the US Army Air Corps to integrate African American pilots into the Fighter Pilot Program. Known as the "Tuskegee Airman" for the name of the airbase at which they were trained, these men were forced to constantly endure harassement, prejudice, and much behind the scenes politics until at last they were able to prove themselves in combat.

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Plot Keywords:

aviator | black history | 20th century | plane | man | 

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Taglines:

The right spirit. The right attitude. The wrong color.

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Genres:

Drama | History | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements and brief strong war violence

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 August 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Tuskegee Airmen

Filming Locations:

Fort Smith, Arkansas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Films, Price Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Black and White Black and White (archive footage) Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character Lewis Johns (Mekhi Phifer) recites "Strange Fruit" to his fellow recruits to describe lynchings in the South in the first half of the 20th century. "Strange Fruit" is a song sung by Billie Holiday from 1939 which in turn was a poem written by Abel Meeropol, a Jewish teacher in The Bronx in 1936, under the pen name of Lewis Allen, after he witnessed the lynching of Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith in Marion, Indiana, in that year.

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Goofs

In the riding-the-train scene at the start of the movie, dated 1941-1942, one pilot is seen reading Stick & Rudder. According to the copyright notice in the book, Stick & Rudder was not published until 1944. Also, the dust jacket as shown in the film was not used until a much later edition of the book, late 1960's-early 70's.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Young Hannibal: [chasing after biplane] Hey! Hey! Hey! Wait for me!

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Connections

Referenced in The 18th Annual CableACE Awards (1996)

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Soundtracks

One O'Clock Jump
Written by Count Basie
Used by permission of EMI Feist Catalog Inc. (ASCAP)

User Reviews

HBO never ceases to impress me.

HBO is by far the best at making original movies and shows. Tuskeegee Airmen is no exception, in fact it's my favorite movie from HBO pictures to date. Stunning acting and a fantastic script. My praise goes out to all involved in this film and I definately hope HBO continues it's long trend of fantastic films and series.