The Wings of Eagles (1957)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Frank Fenton (screenplay) and
William Wister Haines (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

22 February 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | War

Tagline:

What A Guy Wayne !

Plot:

A biography of Navy flier-turned-screenwriter Frank W. "Spig" Wead. |

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | Paralysis | Animal In Title | Biplane | Based On True Story

Cast

John Wayne	...	Frank W. 'Spig' Wead
Dan Dailey	...	'Jughead' Carson
Maureen O'Hara	...	Min Wead
Ward Bond	...	John Dodge
Ken Curtis	...	John Dale Price
Edmund Lowe	...	Adm. Moffett
Kenneth Tobey	...	Capt. Herbert Allen Hazard
James Todd	...	Jack Travis
Barry Kelley	...	Capt. Jock Clark
Sig Ruman	...	Manager
Henry O'Neill	...	Capt. Spear
Willis Bouchey	...	Barton
Dorothy Jordan	...	Rose Brentmann
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tige Andrews	...	Arizona Pincus (uncredited)
Veda Ann Borg	...	(uncredited)
Danny Borzage	...	Pete (uncredited)
Olive Carey	...	Bridy O'Faolain (uncredited)
Franklyn Farnum	...	Man on sidewalk outside movie theater (uncredited)
James Flavin	...	MP at garden party (uncredited)
Mimi Gibson	...	Lila Wead (uncredited)
Fred Graham	...	Officer in brawl (uncredited)
Sam Harris	...	Patient (uncredited)
William Henry	...	Naval aide (uncredited)
Louis Jean Heydt	...	Dr. John Keye (uncredited)
Stuart Holmes	...	Producer (uncredited)
Christopher James	...	(uncredited)
Janet Lake	...	Nurse (uncredited)
William Paul Lowery	...	Wead's baby, 'Commodore' (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons	...	(uncredited)
Mae Marsh	...	Nurse Crumley (uncredited)
May McAvoy	...	Nurse (uncredited)
Alberto Morin	...	Second manager (uncredited)
Forbes Murray	...	Congressman (uncredited)
Peter Ortiz	...	Lt. Charles Dexter (uncredited)
Jack Pennick	...	Joe McGuffey (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	...	Officer (uncredited)
Evelyn Rudie	...	Doris Wead (uncredited)
Arthur Salzfass	...	Navy pilot (uncredited)
Harry Strang	...	Bartender (uncredited)
William Tracy	...	Air officer (uncredited)
Charles Trowbridge	...	Adm. Crown (uncredited)
Dale Van Sickel	...	Naval officer (uncredited)
Harlan Warde	...	Executive Officer (uncredited)
Blue Washington	...	Bartender at Officer's Club (uncredited)
Terry Wilson	...	Naval officer (uncredited)

Directed by
John Ford

Writing credits
Frank Fenton		(screenplay) and
William Wister Haines		(screenplay)
Frank Wead		(based on the life and writings of) (as Commander Frank W. 'Spig' Wead)

Produced by
James E. Newcom	....	associate producer
Charles Schnee	....	producer

Original Music by
Jeff Alexander

Cinematography by
Paul Vogel		(director of photography) (as Paul C. Vogel)

Film Editing by
Gene Ruggiero

Art Direction by
Malcolm Brown
William A. Horning

Set Decoration by
F. Keogh Gleason		(as Keogh Gleason)
Edwin B. Willis

Makeup Department
William Tuttle	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Wingate Smith	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Wesley C. Miller	....	recording supervisor (as Dr. Wesley C. Miller)

Special Effects by
A. Arnold Gillespie	....	special effects
Warren Newcombe	....	special effects

Stunts
Fred Graham	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Hayward	....	stunts (uncredited)
John Hudkins	....	stunts (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons	....	stunts (uncredited)
Paul Mantz	....	aerial stunts (uncredited)
Frank McGrath	....	stunts (uncredited)
Bob Morgan	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	....	stunt double: John Wayne (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	....	stunts (uncredited)
Ronnie Rondell Jr.	....	stunts (uncredited)
Paul Stader	....	stunts (uncredited)
Dale Van Sickel	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack Williams	....	stunts (uncredited)
Terry Wilson	....	stunts (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Walter Plunkett	....	wardrobe: Miss O'Hara

Editorial Department
Charles K. Hagedon	....	color consultant

Music Department
Arthur Morton	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Adm. John Dale Price	....	technical advisor (as Adm. John Dale Price USN [Ret])
Dr. John Keye	....	technical advisor (uncredited)

Thanks
Frank Wead	....	dedicatee (as Commander Frank 'Spig' Wead)

Production Companies

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1957) (USA) (theatrical)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1957) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1963) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1966) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Atalanta Filmes (1999) (Paraguay) (VHS) (re-release)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Department of Defense, The  grateful acknowledgement
• United States Navy, The  grateful acknowledgement

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) | Perspecta Stereo

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | West Germany:12 (nf) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-12 | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:13 | USA:Approved (PCA #18317) | Sweden:15

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

According to director John Ford, "Everything in the picture was true. The fight in the club - throwing the cake - actually happened. I can verify that as an eyewitness. I ducked it. And the plane landing in the swimming pool right in the middle of the Admiral's tea - that really happened."

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Commander Wead has his heart attack, he clutches at the right side of his chest with his left hand. The typical heart attack pain would be on the left side, and the left arm is usually weakened or paralyzed.

Quotes:

'Jughead' Carson: [the General has just given him some whiskey for Spig] Well, thank you sir!
'Jughead' Carson: [he chugs it and throws it behind the mirror] They can make better booze in a bathtub!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)

Soundtrack:

Song of the Islands

Wayne Goes Topless

In this absurd John Ford biography, John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara play the young Mr. & Mrs. Spig Wead. Watching their drinking and smoking habits, it's a wonder they didn't burn down the house, or fall down the stairs, earlier. Mr. Wayne is way too old for these shenanigans; all of the slapstick carousing could not have been good for his health. Favorite early film moment: check out the way Wayne attacks Ms. O'Hara's face in the "love scene" before the accident!

Intermission: John Wayne and Dan Daily sing, "I'm Gonna Move That Toe".

The movie becomes more dramatic. To show his advancing years, Wayne plays without his toupee; surprisingly, he looks more natural, and vulnerable, than he ever will again. Not so for O'Hara; who looks like Maureen O'Hara with an ugly streak of silver paint in her hair.

Check out the scene with Wayne saying, "…it's too late"; then, O'Hara kisses his balding head - a symbolic way of saying, "John Wayne, you are older than your years, take it easy, we love you." It's a very nicely photographed scene, and the highlight of the movie. That's what the film has to offer - nice moments.

Finally, the movie becomes a war story. There are a lot of bombs, and airplanes crash. The John Wayne/John Ford "formula" production shows signs of crashing with "The Wings of Eagles".

*** The Wings of Eagles (1957) John Ford ~ John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Ward Bond