Men with Wings

Men with Wings is a 1938 American Technicolor war film, directed by William A. Wellman and starring Fred MacMurray, Ray Milland, and Louise Campbell. Donald O'Connor also has a small part as the younger version of MacMurray's character. The two would soon star in the film Sing You Sinners together along with Bing Crosby.

Men with Wings
Photobook image derived from theatrical poster
Directed by	William A. Wellman
Written by	Robert Carson
Produced by	William A. Wellman William LeBaron (Executive Producer)
Starring	Fred MacMurray Ray Milland Louise Campbell
Cinematography	W. Howard Greene
Edited by	Thomas Scott
Music by	Gerard Carbonara W. Franke Harling
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release dates	July 16, 1938 (1938-07-16) (New York City) October 28, 1938 (1938-10-28) (United States)
Running time	105 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$2 million[1][2][3]
Box office	$2 million (U.S. and Canada rentals)[4]

Plot

In 1903, the Wright brothers set the scene for aviation's advances and influence barnstormer, Pat Falconer and his friend, engineer Scott Barnes. Falconer marries childhood sweetheart Peggy Ransom although Barnes also loves her, but is unwilling to jeopardize his relationship with his friend.

During World War I, Falconer becomes a fighter pilot and after the war continues to fly by "the seat-of-his-pants" rather than do the methodical work of flight research like Barnes. As the 1930s come to a close, restless Falconer leaves his family and friend behind, taking off for China to fight Japanese invaders.

Cast

• Fred MacMurray as Pat Falconer
• Ray Milland as Scott Barnes
• Louise Campbell as Peggy Ranson
• Andy Devine as Joe Gibbs
• Lynne Overman as Hank Rinebow
• Porter Hall as Hiram F. Jenkins
• Walter Abel as Nick Ranson
• Kitty Kelly as Martha Ranson
• Virginia Weidler as Peggy Ranson at eight
• Donald O'Connor as Pat Falconer at 13
• Billy Cook as Scott Barnes at 10
• James Burke as J.A. Nolan
• Willard Robertson as Col. Hadley
• Dennis Morgan as Galton
• Frank Clarke as Burke
• Evelyn Keyes as a nurse (uncredited)

Production

For Men with Wings, Wellman was able to utilize a vast amount of talent and resources to stage the epic.^[5] Besides the impressive array of movie talent, the film was one of the first Hollywood productions to utilize the Technicolor three-strip camera process pioneered by the Technicolor Motion Picture Corporation.^{[N 1] [6]}

Wellman had a special affinity to both the story and aviation in general.^[7] In World War I, earning himself the nickname "Wild Bill", Wellman was first an ambulance driver in the Norton-Harjes Ambulance Corps, then joined the French Foreign Legion.^[8] On December 3, 1917, assigned as the first American fighter pilot to join N.87 escadrille in the Lafayette Flying Corps, Wellman went on to score three recorded "kills", along with five probables and to receive the Croix de Guerre with two palms.^[9]

The use of mocked-up Nieuport 28 and Thomas-Morse Scout fighters along with other period aircraft such as one real Fokker D.VII and the ubiquitous Travelair "Wichita Fokkers" were featured in the aerial sequences.^{[10] [N 2]} Principal photography took place primarily at California airport locales. Hollywood stunt pilot Paul Mantz was involved in both flying and directing the aerial filming.^[11]

Buhl LA-1 Pup representing early monoplane design (screenshot, note the color)

Aircraft used in the film

Men with Wings chronicles the "Golden Era" of aviation (1903–1938), featuring a number of significant aircraft in the production, including:^[11]

• Airco DH.4
• Boeing 247
• Boeing P-12E
• Buhl LA-1 Pup
• Fokker D.VII
• Lockheed Vega
• Garland-Lincoln: LF-1
• Pfalz D.XII
• Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5
• SPAD S.VII
• Thomas-Morse Scout
• Travel Air Model B "Wichita Fokker"

Reception

Men with Wings received good reviews from critics and audience alike. Variety noted the film "is a giant bomber from the Paramount hangar, designed on a lavish scale by the skilled air picture mechanic, William A. Wellman, and polished off beautifully in Technicolor. The action scenes, including a dog fight in the air, are exceptionally impressive.^[12] Men with Wings was considered an aviation classic, "one of the best pre-war flight films, true to life, and done without replicas ... A buff's dream."^[11] The juxtaposing of a love interest, however, was jarring, with critics commenting on that plotline being forced.^[13]

Notes

1. The Technicolor three-strip process was advertised as "Glorious Technicolor".^[6]
2. Lafayette Escadrille used footage from Men with Wings with the color removed. The later 1958 feature was also directed by Wellman and is far inferior in every respect to Men with Wings.^[5]