Major Dan Kirby arrives at VMF-247 (the "Wildcats") as the new commander when everybody in the unit was expecting Captain Carl "Grif" Griffin to take over. Kirby is strict and makes this understood from day one. Assigned to the Cactus Air Force during the Guadalcanal campaign, Kirby has few planes available and a lot to accomplish with a Guadalcanal airfield attacked daily by the Japanese. His pilots are young and immature, sometimes disobeying orders and foolishly risking equipment and lives. Kirby is pushing for maximum effort, whilst Griffin stays closer to his young pilots, one of whom is his own brother-in-law, Vern "Cowboy" Blithe.
Kirby hates the decisions he has to make, knowing he is sending pilots to their death, but the success of the missions is the most important thing. The hard conditions of war force Kirby to get even stricter with his exhausted pilots and tensions with Griffin increase.
Kirby is a fan of low-level ground attacks to support the Marine units, but HQ does not approve of his tactics until Marines are in imminent danger from the Japanese. Kirby adjusts tactics and losses increase, but there are successes and he leads the squadron in an attack on a huge Japanese convoy – a scene likely based on the Battle of Guadalcanal.
The Wildcats' line chief, MSgt Clancy, is an old Marine veteran and comrade-in-arms of Kirby and he uses unorthodox methods to obtain provisions for the unit. His improvising helps the poorly equipped Wildcats, although by the end of the film, Clancy is a PFC, having lost six stripes.
Kirby is promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and Griffin to Major. Mustered back to Hawaii and destined for Washington D.C., Kirby is given the chance to return to the Pacific front and organize low-level ground attack tactics. He returns to the same unit and aircrew, now equipped with F4U Corsair fighters. Kirby leads his men against Japanese troops and Kamikaze attacks during the Battle of Okinawa. During a crucial moment in the battle, to avoid splitting his formation, Griffin denies assistance to his brother-in-law Blithe, who is killed as a result. During the battle Kirby’s guns jam and he crashes his plane into a bomber. He is able to bail out but is injured and picked up by a Navy launch. Leaving the squadron, Kirby appoints Griffin as CO of VMF-247, as he understands that Griffin now can place the lives of his pilots second. They split with a friendly promise to meet again. Kirby admits that every moment in which he – and now Griffin – is required to make a decision is a nightmare, but that comes with the territory of being a leader under these circumstances.
Grumman F6F Hellcats drawn from U.S. reserves were used extensively in the film
Background
The film's screenplay was credited to James Edward Grant, based on a story by Kenneth Gamet, but some sources claim that Beirne Lay, Jr. was an uncredited contributor as well.[4]
Director Nicholas Ray chose Robert Ryan to play opposite John Wayne because Ryan had been a boxer in college and was the only actor Ray could think of who could "kick Wayne's ass".[citation needed] The role of the more "human" Captain Griffin is a fictional one and contrasts with the more austere Major Kirby. Tim Holt was originally announced as part of the cast.[5]
Production
As indicated in the opening scene of the film, Howard Hughes, himself a pilot with interests in aviation, bankrolled the production. Hughes made the decision to film in Technicolor, making use of color wartime combat footage.[6]
Principal photography began in November 1950 at Camp Pendelton and El Toro Marine Corps bases and then moved to RKO-Pathé Studios in February 1951 for sound stage sequences.[7][8] The fighter aircraft appearing in the first part of the film are not the historically accurate Grumman F4F Wildcats but Grumman F6F Hellcats, provided from the training units based at the nearby Marine Corps Air Station El Toro.[9] The Wildcats did not continue in U.S. service after the war, while an appreciable number of Hellcats were available in 1951, the year the film was produced. In close-up shots, it is easy to make out the overpainted markings that adorned post-wars Hellcats. T-6 Texan trainers painted white were used as Zero fighters. The Vought F4U Corsair was also featured prominently in the last half of the film.[9]
During filming, a near disaster occurred when "Air Boss" Paul Mantz and his photo crew, while filming a low-altitude attack, were caught in a premature dynamite detonation. The B-25 camera platform was badly damaged, but Mantz managed to successfully carry out an emergency landing.[10]
Historic references
The role of Major Kirby portrayed in this film was inspired by real World War II flying aceMaj. John L. Smith for his missions over Guadalcanal in 1942. His actions in the war were renowned by the time the film was made. John L. Smith was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1943 and later promoted to Lt. Colonel, as was Kirby in the film. A distinct similarity in appearance between Smith and actor John Wayne was noted.[8][N 1]
Reception
Flying Leathernecks was critically received as another example of wartime aerial heroics. Howard Thompson in The New York Times commented that "As long as it stays in the air, Flying Leathernecks is an exciting thing to watch."[10]Variety had a similar review, noting: "Actual color footage of battle action in the Pacific has been smartly blended with studio shots to strike a note of realism."[11]
Carlson, Mark. Flying on Film: A Century of Aviation in the Movies, 1912–2012. Duncan, Oklahoma: BearManor Media, 2012. ISBN978-1-59393-219-0.
Hardwick, Jack and Ed Schnepf. "A Viewer's Guide to Aviation Movies." The Making of the Great Aviation Films. General Aviation Series, Volume 2, 1989.
Orriss, Bruce. When Hollywood Ruled the Skies: The Aviation Film Classics of World War II. Hawthorne, California: Aero Associates Inc., 1984. ISBN0-9613088-0-X.
Parish, James Robert. The Great Combat Pictures: Twentieth-Century Warfare on the Screen. Metuchen, New Jersey: The Scarecrow Press, 1990. ISBN978-0-8108-2315-0.
Ricci, Mark and Boris and Steve Zmijewsky. The Films of John Wayne. New York: Citadel Press, 1970. ISBN0-8065-0222-3.
