Call Out the Marines | |
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![]() Original film poster | |
Directed by | Frank Ryan William Hamilton |
Screenplay by | Frank Ryan Andrew Bennison |
Story by | James Edward Grant |
Produced by | Howard Benedict |
Starring | Edmund Lowe Victor McLaglen Binnie Barnes |
Cinematography | J. Roy Hunt Nicholas Musuraca |
Edited by | Theron Warth |
Music by | Harry Revel |
Distributed by | RKO Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 67 min. |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $425,000 [2] |
Call Out the Marines is a 1942 military comedy released by RKO in February 1942. It stars Victor McLaglen and Edmund Lowe playing the same characters with different names that they played in What Price Glory? and several sequels; however the original film trailer mentions What Price Glory? and The Cock-Eyed World . [3] The film features extensive stock footage from RKO's Soldiers of the Sea that in some cases appear on process screens that the actors stand in front of.
Ex-Marines Jimmy McGinnis (Victor McLaglen) and Harry Curtis (Edmund Lowe), who haven't seen each other for fifteen years, meet at a racetrack. They both immediately drop their jobs as an attendant and cleaner to rekindle their friendship and brawl over which one will have Violet (Binnie Barnes) for their girl. When visiting a clip joint called the Shoreleave Cafe with Violet, they meet the owner, Jim Blake (Paul Kelly). Blake was their former captain; he left the Corps under a cloud when he was blamed for a security breach. Blake is involved in espionage, arranging to buy the plans for a new amphibious vehicle.
Jimmy and Harry are called back to active service as gunnery sergeants with the 6th Marines where they crash the spy ring. The fast-paced comedy uses the spy plot as merely an excuse for five musical numbers by Harry Revel and a variety of comedy sequences, such as barroom brawls over thrown garters, spies and policemen with speech impediments, and jeep, motorcycle and car chases.
With the introduction of conscription in the United States and World War II in the news, the majority of American minor and major film studios made comedies about military service. RKO's Call Out the Marines had a troubled production history with different stars and technicians announced in trade papers of the time for the film. The United States Marine Corps, which had initially cooperated with the producers, was outraged over the completed film in December 1941 and ordered the film shelved as "bad for morale". However it was released after America entered the war. [4]
Victor Andrew de Bier Everleigh McLaglen was a British-American actor and boxer. His film career spanned from the early 1920’s through the 1950’s, initially as a leading man, though he was better known for his character acting. He was a well-known member of John Ford’s Stock Company, appearing in 12 of the director’s films, seven of which co-starred John Wayne.
Gertrude Maud Barnes, known professionally as Binnie Barnes, was an English actress whose career in films spanned from 1923 to 1973.
What Price Glory? is a 1926 American sound comedy-drama war film produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation and directed by Raoul Walsh. The film was released with a synchronized musical score with sound effects using the Movietone sound system. The film is based on the 1924 play What Price Glory by Maxwell Anderson and Laurence Stallings and was remade in 1952 as What Price Glory starring James Cagney. Malcolm Stuart Boylan, founder of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, was title writer on the silent Fox attraction.
Edmund Sherbourne Lowe was an American actor. His formative experience began in vaudeville and silent film.
What Price Glory is a 1952 American Technicolor war film based on a 1924 play by Maxwell Anderson and Laurence Stallings, though it used virtually none of Anderson's dialogue. Originally intended as a musical, it was filmed as a straight comedy-drama, directed by John Ford and released by 20th Century Fox on August 22, 1952, in the U.S. The screenplay was written by Phoebe and Henry Ephron, and stars James Cagney and Dan Dailey as US Marines in World War I.
One Man's Journey is a 1933 American pre-Code drama film starring Lionel Barrymore as Dr. Eli Watt. The picture was based on the short story Failure written by Katharine Haviland-Taylor. It was remade by RKO as A Man to Remember (1938). The story tells of a small-town doctor working under difficult circumstances in a rural area somewhere in the United States.
Soldiers of the Sea is a 1939 RKO-Pathe News two-reeler short subject narrative featuring the U.S. Marine Corps.
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Battle of Broadway is a 1938 American comedy film directed by George Marshall and written by Lou Breslow and John Patrick. The film stars Victor McLaglen, Brian Donlevy, Gypsy Rose Lee, Raymond Walburn, Lynn Bari and Jane Darwell. The film was released on April 22, 1938, by 20th Century Fox.
Thanks for Everything is a 1938 American comedy film directed by William A. Seiter, written by Curtis Kenyon and Harry Tugend, and starring Adolphe Menjou, Jack Oakie, Jack Haley, Arleen Whelan, Tony Martin and Binnie Barnes. It was released on December 23, 1938 by 20th Century-Fox.
Under Pressure is a 1935 American drama film directed by Raoul Walsh, written by Borden Chase, Lester Cole and Noel Pierce, and starring Edmund Lowe, Victor McLaglen, Florence Rice, Marjorie Rambeau, Charles Bickford and Sig Ruman. It was released on February 1, 1935, by Fox Film Corporation.
Rough, Tough and Ready is a 1945 American war comedy drama film directed by Del Lord and starring Chester Morris, Victor McLaglen and Jean Rogers. It aimed to replicate the success of the series of buddy films that McLaglen had previously starred in with Edmund Lowe.