| War Correspondent | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Paul Sloane |
| Written by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Benjamin H. Kline |
| Edited by | Gene Havlick |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 76 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
War Correspondent is a 1932 American drama film directed by Paul Sloane. [1] The film stars Jack Holt, Ralph Graves and Lila Lee. [2] Although set in war-torn China, War Correspondent was entirely shot in California. [3]
Outside of Shanghai, famous war correspondent Franklyn Bennett (Ralph Graves), part of an unofficial branch of the U.S. military, broadcasts over the radio an eyewitness report of an air battle won by China's ace, "General Ching," flying for the nationalist forces of Wu Sun (Victor Wong).
"General Ching" is Jim Kenyon ( Jack Holt), a cynical American soldier of fortune. Wu Sun presents Jim with the Order of the Golden Dragon, China's highest medal for defeating the forces of General Fang (Tetsu Komai). The airman excuses himself to meet Julie March (Lila Lee), a former prostitute.
When Julie's rickshaw is smashed by an automobile, the passenger is a former client. Franklyn rescues her and escorts her back to the Cathay Hotel. A short time later, he places a notice in The North China Times announcing his engagement to Julie, exaggerating her "rescue" from a "mob of howling coolies."
Jim is jealous, and during a party at the hotel, Jim denounces the reporter as a liar and coward. Jim orders Franklyn imprisoned, and creates a false statement saying that the journalist attacked him. Jim forces Franklyn to leave China within 24 hours or face a firing squad. Frank tells Julie that he really is a coward, but she implores him to take her with him.
That night, bandit leader General Fang's thugs kidnap Julie and when Franklyn learns of her capture, he pleads with Jim to rescue her. Jim flies his aircraft to Fang's headquarters but Fang, bitter that Jim had switched allegiances for money, wants to make a bargain for Julie's life.
Jim offers Franklyn but relents and kills Fang. The two men prop Fang's limp bodies between their own and flee to the nearby airfield. Franklyn and Julie drive away, while Jim takes to the sky and attacks the forces pursuing their car but is wounded by enemy fire.
After his aircraft crashes, Jim is comforted by Julie. Along with her husband, she places the Order of the Golden Dragon on the chest of their dead friend.
Principal photography on War Correspondent began on May 31 with the production wrapped on June 25, 1932. [4] The locales used were the Wilson Airport transformed into a military base, while other location shooting took place at the Dry Lake, 20 miles east of Victorville, California in the Mojave Desert. Roy and Tave Wilson were the stunt pilots hired for the film, flying Speedwing Travelairs. [5] [N 1]
Mordaunt Hall in his review for The New York Times , described War Correspondent as, "An amateurish melodrama revelling in the title of 'War Correspondent' is the present film feature at the Paramount. If it possesses anything interesting, it is Chinese atmosphere, but it would take a great deal more than this to make up for the absurdities in the story." [7]
Charles John "Jack" Holt, Jr. was an American motion picture actor in both silent and sound movies, particularly Westerns.
Gongsun Sheng is a fictional character in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Dragon in the Clouds", he ranks fourth among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of Destiny.
Yan Qing is a fictional character in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Langzi", he ranks last among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of Destiny.
Keep 'Em Flying is a 1941 film starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello. The film was their third service comedy based on the peacetime draft of 1940. The comedy team had appeared in two previous service comedies in 1941, before the United States entered the war: Buck Privates, released in January, and In the Navy, released in May. Flying Cadets, along with Keep 'Em Flying were both produced by Universal Pictures in 1941.
Tetsu Komai, also known as Tetsuo Komai, was a Japanese-American actor, known for his minor roles in Hollywood films.
The Pacification of Manchukuo was a Japanese counterinsurgency campaign to suppress any armed resistance to the newly established puppet state of Manchukuo from various anti-Japanese volunteer armies in occupied Manchuria and later the Communist Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army. The operations were carried out by the Imperial Japanese Kwantung Army and the collaborationist forces of the Manchukuo government from March 1932 until 1942, and resulted in a Japanese victory.
The Last Flight is a 1931 American pre-Code ensemble cast film, starring Richard Barthelmess, David Manners, John Mack Brown and Helen Chandler. It was directed by German filmmaker William Dieterle in his debut as an English-language film director.
After the Japanese invasion of Manchuria, and until 1933, large volunteer armies waged war against Japanese and Manchukuo forces over much of Northeast China.
Victor Wong was a Chinese American actor. While Wong appeared in numerous films through the 1930s and 1940s, they were largely small uncredited parts. His biggest role was as Charlie the Cook in the movie King Kong (1933) and Son of Kong (1933). Wong's most memorable scene came in King Kong when he finds evidence that natives from Skull Island have been aboard the ship Venture, resulting in the kidnapping of heroine Ann Darrow. As Charlie the Cook, Wong yells, "All hands on deck! Everybody on deck!" This causes panic aboard ship which begins the quest for Ann's whereabouts and the discovery of King Kong. The Charlie character in the sequel Son of Kong was more prominent to the story and included significantly more screen time for Wong.
Central Airport is a 1933 American pre-Code aviation drama film directed by William A. Wellman, based on the John C. "Jack" Moffitt story, "Hawk's Mate". The film stars Richard Barthelmess and Sally Eilers. Central Airport was produced and released by Warner Bros., on April 15, 1933. John Wayne had an uncredited part in the film, playing a co-pilot, and this film features his first on-screen death.
West of Shanghai is a 1937 American adventure film directed by John Farrow and starring Boris Karloff as a Chinese warlord. It is based on the 1920 Porter Emerson Browne play The Bad Man. Three other films, all titled The Bad Man, are also based on the same play:
The Real Glory is a 1939 Samuel Goldwyn Productions adventure film starring Gary Cooper, David Niven, Andrea Leeds and Broderick Crawford released by United Artists in the weeks immediately following Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland. Based on a 1937 novel of the same name by Charles L. Clifford and directed by Henry Hathaway, the film is set against the backdrop of the Moro Rebellion during the American occupation of the Philippines at the beginning of the 20th century. According to The World news broadcast on Aug 18, 2017, the US War Department withdrew the film in 1942. The Moros were US allies in World War II, and the film had inflammatory scenes including threatening a Muslim prisoner with burial wrapped in a pig skin.
Flight is a 1929 adventure and aviation film directed by Frank Capra. The film stars Jack Holt, Lila Lee and Ralph Graves, who also came up with the story, for which Capra wrote the dialogue. Dedicated to the United States Marine Corps, the production was greatly aided by their full cooperation.
The Air Mail is a 1925 American silent drama film directed by Irvin Willat and starring Warner Baxter, Billie Dove, and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. It was produced by Famous Players-Lasky and distributed through Paramount Pictures. Filmed in Death Valley National Park and the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada, it was released in the United States on March 16, 1925.
Love Affair is a 1932 American pre-Code romance film based on Ursula Parrott's short story of the same name. The film is directed by Thornton Freeland and produced by Columbia Pictures. Love Affair follows an adventurous socialite, who is in love with an aviation designer.
The Lost Squadron is a 1932 American pre-Code drama, action, film starring Richard Dix, Mary Astor, and Robert Armstrong, with Erich von Stroheim and Joel McCrea in supporting roles, and released by RKO Radio Pictures. Based on the novel The Lost Squadron (1932) by Dick Grace, the film is about three World War I pilots who find jobs after the war as Hollywood stunt fliers. The much-later The Great Waldo Pepper (1975) employed a similar theme. The Lost Squadron was the first RKO production to carry the screen credit "Executive Producer, David O. Selznick".
Sky Devils, also known as Ground Hogs, is a 1932 American Pre-Code aviation comedy film, starring Spencer Tracy as a draft dodger who blunders into a war zone.
Sky Bride is a 78-minute 1932 drama film, produced by Paramount Pictures and directed by Stephen Roberts. The film stars Richard Arlen, Jack Oakie and Virginia Bruce. Sky Bride depicts the life of barnstorming pilots flying in the years following World War I. All over North America, skilled pilots, many of them veterans of the aerial combat of World War I, plied their trade on the barnstorming circuit of the 1920s in small towns where impromptu air shows were staged.
Storm Over the Andes is a 1935 American adventure film directed by Christy Cabanne and starring Jack Holt, Antonio Moreno and Mona Barrie. The low-budget programmer is set against the backdrop of the Chaco War between Paraguay and Bolivia. A separate Spanish-language version, titled Alas Sobre El Chaco, also directed by Cabanne, was made.
Legion of Lost Flyers is a 1939 American B movie drama film directed by Christy Cabanne. It stars Richard Arlen, Andy Devine, and Anne Nagel. Legion of Lost Flyers was released by Universal Pictures on November 3, 1939.