Tanks a Million

Last updated

Tanks a Million
Tampos.jpg
Original film poster
Directed by
Written by
Produced by Hal Roach
StarringSee below
CinematographyRobert Pittack
Edited by Richard C. Currier
Music by Edward Ward
Distributed by United Artists
Release date
12 September 1941
Running time
50 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$98,049 [1]
Box office$283,707 [1]

Tanks a Million is a 1941 American film directed by Fred Guiol. It was the first of Hal Roach's Streamliners, short films under an hour designed for the lower half of a double feature. The two leading characters, whiz-kid sergeant Doubleday (played by William Tracy) and his rival Sergeant Ames (Joe Sawyer), would go on to feature in seven more films, though the series has no overall title.

Contents

Despite the title and military setting, no tanks are seen in the film.

Plot summary

Dorian Doubleday, "Dodo" to his friends, works as a clerk at a railway station but he has the ability of photographic memory. When he is drafted in the Army, he memorizes all the manuals for Army procedure immediately before starting his service.

Because of his extensive knowledge of procedure, he is quickly known as a know-it-all at the basic training in Camp Carver. His drill sergeant, Sergeant Ames, disapproves of him from the start, but the officers above him are quite impressed with the new recruit due to his memorisation and word perfect recital of Army Regulations.

On his first day in the Army Dodo is sent to non-commissioned officer school but after a brief time he returns to inform the officers that as he proficiently demonstrated his knowledge of military regulations he was ordered to sew on First Sergeant chevrons and return to his unit. This infuriates the now outranked Ames as it has taken him twenty years to make buck sergeant. Sgt Ames sees his chance for revenge when he insists Dodo is put in charge of the worst and most chaotic company on the camp: Company F. The soldiers try to make things hard for Dodo, by following his orders to the letter. When Dodo orders his company to report for training in overcoats, rifles and full packs, the men fall out only wearing these items with no other clothing. As soon as Sergeant Ames hears this he reports it to Major Greer, hoping it will shorten Dodo's career as a non-commissioned officer.

When the officer threatens the men with 30 days imprisonment, Dodo explains that he is just trying out some new ideas, training with a minimal amount of equipment. He claims his men are of a tough Kentucky breed and can walk without shoes. However Greer buys this and has the company march around barefoot all day, but they are neither imprisoned nor fined.

Dodo's reputation as a drill-sergeant spreads, and he is swarmed by impressed camp hostesses at a dance that night. When Company F is ordered to perform guard duty, his soldiers relieve each other by riding on different kinds of vehicles, including a mule based on their interpretation of an army regulation for posting guards.

When the mule ruins the marching band parade, Captain Rossmead is upset and punishes the men with extra guard duty. Dodo accepts the punishment on behalf of his men, but the Captain decides to not carry out the punishment when his Major informs him that as the Captain as his duties of Officer of the Day didn't specify which specific method of transportation to use when posting the guards of his command, upsetting Ames in the process.

Dodo becomes very popular among his men because of taking the blame. They promise to do their best and be loyal to Dodo from now on. But Ames doesn't give up. He gets Rossmead to assign Dodo to be an orderly under infamous Colonel Barkley, known as "Spitfire".

Ames plan backfires, as Dodo accidentally makes a radio pep speech the Colonel was supposed to make, and it is a huge success. The Colonel has stage-fright and is afraid of microphones, and accepts Dodo's posing as him for a moment while making the speech.

While Dodo tries on the Colonel's uniform, his girlfriend arrives to camp and believes he has been promoted to colonel. Dodo lets her believe this while he makes the speech. When he is done, Ames and Rossmead arrest him for his insubordinance, but since the success of the speech has reached all the way to Washington, Dodo is not punished, but returned to duty with Sgt Ames becoming the Colonel's regular orderly. [2]

Cast

Soundtrack

Tracy and Sawyer series

Related Research Articles

A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 100–250 soldiers and usually commanded by a major or a captain. Most companies are formed of three to seven platoons, although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure.

<i>The Phil Silvers Show</i> American TV sitcom (1955–59)

The Phil Silvers Show, originally titled You'll Never Get Rich, is a sitcom which ran on the CBS Television Network from 1955 to 1959. A pilot titled "Audition Show" was made in 1955, but it was never broadcast. 143 other episodes were broadcast – all half-an-hour long except for a 1959 one-hour live special. The series starred Phil Silvers as Master Sergeant Ernest G. Bilko of the United States Army.

<i>Harts War</i> 2002 American war drama film

Hart's War is a 2002 American war drama film about a World War II prisoner of war (POW) camp based on the novel by John Katzenbach. It stars Bruce Willis as Col. William McNamara and Colin Farrell as Lt. Thomas Hart. The film co-stars Terrence Howard, Cole Hauser, and Marcel Iureş. Directed by Gregory Hoblit, the film was shot at Barrandov Studios in Prague, and released on February 15, 2002. The film earned mixed reviews and was a box-office bomb grossing just $33.1 million against its $70 million budget.

The Biscari massacre was a war crime committed by members of the United States Army during World War II. It refers to two incidents in which U.S. soldiers were involved in killing 71 unarmed Italian and 2 German prisoners-of-war at the Regia Aeronautica's 504 air base in Santo Pietro, a small village near Caltagirone, southern Sicily, Italy on 14 July 1943.

<i>A Walk in the Sun</i> (1945 film) 1945 film by Lewis Milestone

A Walk in the Sun is a 1945 American war film based on the novel by Harry Brown, who was a writer for Yank, the Army Weekly based in England. The book was serialized in Liberty Magazine in October 1944.

<i>The Hill</i> (1965 film) 1965 film by Sidney Lumet

The Hill is a 1965 British prison drama war film directed by Sidney Lumet, set in an army prison in North Africa during the Second World War. It stars Sean Connery, Harry Andrews, Ian Bannen, Ossie Davis, Ian Hendry, Alfred Lynch, Roy Kinnear and Michael Redgrave.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Tracy</span> American actor (1917–1967)

William Tracy was an American character actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernest Ivy Thomas Jr.</span>

Ernest Ivy "Boots" Thomas Jr. was a United States Marine Corps platoon sergeant who was killed in action during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II. He was awarded the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism while fighting for and at the base of Mount Suribachi. Two days later he was a member of the patrol that captured the top of Mount Suribachi where he helped raise the first U.S. flag on Iwo Jima on February 23, 1945. He was killed eight days after that.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Sawyer</span> Canadian actor (1906–1982)

Joe Sawyer was a Canadian film actor. He appeared in more than 200 films between 1927 and 1962, and was sometimes billed under his birth name.

<i>Attack</i> (1956 film) 1956 American war film directed by Robert Aldrich

Attack, also known as Attack!, is a 1956 American war film directed by Robert Aldrich and starring Jack Palance, Eddie Albert, Lee Marvin, William Smithers, Robert Strauss, Richard Jaeckel, Buddy Ebsen and Peter van Eyck. The cinematographer was Joseph Biroc.

<i>Ambush Bay</i> 1966 film by Ron Winston

Ambush Bay is a 1966 American war film directed by Ron Winston and starring Hugh O'Brian, Mickey Rooney and James Mitchum. It was filmed on location in the Philippines.

The Rookie is a 1959 American comedy film directed by George O'Hanlon in CinemaScope. It was the first film starring the comedy team of Tommy Noonan and Peter Marshall, they also appeared together in the 1962 film Swingin' Along.

<i>Legend of the Patriots</i> South Korean TV series or program

Legend of the Patriots is a remake of the 1975 South Korean drama Comrades. Its production was spawned to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Korean War. The story centers around the lives of eleven Korean soldiers fighting in the Korean War. Director Kim Sang-hwi remarked that the series is not about the ideologies of South and North Korea, but rather focuses on the struggles of ordinary people who lived through the war.

<i>Hay Foot</i> 1942 film by Fred Guiol

Hay Foot is a 1942 American military comedy, a sequel to Tanks a Million which brings back most of the characters from that film. The two leading characters, sergeant Doubleday and his rival Sergeant Ames, would go on to feature in six more films.

<i>No Time to Die</i> (1958 film) 1958 British film

No Time to Die is a 1958 British war film about an American sergeant in the British Army during the Second World War. In the US, the film was renamed Tank Force!.

About Face is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Kurt Neumann and written by Eugene Conrad and Edward E. Seabrook. The film is the third of the Hal Roach's Streamliners Army film series with stars William Tracy and Joe Sawyer. The film also features Jean Porter, Marjorie Lord, Margaret Dumont, Veda Ann Borg and Joe Cunningham. The film was released on April 16, 1942, by United Artists.

<i>Fall In</i> 1942 film by Kurt Neumann

Fall In is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Kurt Neumann and written by Eugene Conrad and Edward E. Seabrook. The film stars William Tracy, Joe Sawyer, Robert Barrat, Jean Porter and Arthur Hunnicutt. The film was released on November 20, 1942, by United Artists.

<i>Here Comes Trouble</i> (1948 film) 1948 film by Fred Guiol

Here Comes Trouble is a 1948 American comedy film in the Hal Roach's Streamliners series. It was produced and directed by Fred Guiol and written by George Carleton Brown and Edward E. Seabrook. The film stars William Tracy, Joe Sawyer, Emory Parnell, Betty Compson and Joan Woodbury. It was released on March 15, 1948 by United Artists.

<i>As You Were</i> (film) 1951 film by Bernard Girard

As You Were is a 1951 American service comedy film directed by Bernard Girard and Fred Guiol and starring William Tracy, Joe Sawyer and Russell Hicks. Released by the low-budget Lippert Pictures, it is considered a B movie. It was one of eight films featuring Tracy as Sergeant Dorian "Dodo" Doubleday, and features footage from the production team's previous 1941 film Tanks a Million.

<i>Mr. Walkie Talkie</i> 1952 American film

Mr. Walkie Talkie is a 1952 American comedy film directed by Fred Guiol and starring William Tracy, Joe Sawyer and Margia Dean. Released by Lippert Pictures, it is the final film of the Doubleday and Ames army comedy films originally produced by Hal Roach with the pair returning for service in the Korean War.

References

  1. 1 2 Ward, Richard Lewis (2005). A history of the Hal Roach Studios. Southern Illinois University Press. p. 213.
  2. Tanks a Million1941 at the TCM Movie Database