About Face (1952 film)

This article is about the 1952 musical comedy. For the Hal Roach's Streamliners comedy, see About Face (1942 film).

About Face is a 1952 American musical comedy film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Gordon MacRae, Eddie Bracken and Virginia Gibson.^[2][3] It was future Oscar winner Joel Grey's film debut. It was produced and distributed by Warner Bros. It is an adaptation of the 1936 play Brother Rat by John Monks Jr. and Fred F. Finklehoffe and a remake of the 1938 film of the same title.^[4]

About Face
Directed by	Roy Del Ruth
Screenplay by	Peter Milne
Based on	Brother Rat 1936 play by John Monks Jr. Fred F. Finklehoffe
Produced by	William Jacobs
Starring	Gordon MacRae Eddie Bracken Virginia Gibson
Cinematography	Bert Glennon
Edited by	Thomas Reilly
Music by	Ray Heindorf
Production company	Warner Bros.
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	February 28, 1952 (1952-02-28)
Running time	94 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$1.6 million (US)[1]

Synopsis

Three friends enlist at a military academy in the American South. While two of them pursue romantic entanglements, the third tries to keep quiet the fact he is secretly married and his wife is expecting a child.

Cast

• Gordon MacRae as Tony Williams
• Eddie Bracken as Biff Roberts
• Dick Wesson as Dave Crouse
• Virginia Gibson as Betty Long
• Phyllis Kirk as Alice Wheatley
• Aileen Stanley Jr. as Lorna Carter
• Joel Grey as Bender
• Larry Keating as Colonel Long
• Cliff Ferre as Lieut. Jones
• John Baer as Hal Carlton
• Mabel Albertson as Mrs. Carter
• James Best as Joe
• Ferris Taylor as Doctor

Reception

The film was a box-office failure. Bracken later said that "the main reason why audiences rejected About Face, I think, is that most of us were too damn old for the roles."^[5]