The Fighting Lady

The Fighting Lady (1944)

Photographed in Zones of Combat by Men of U.S. Navy

Oscar winner William Wyler directed this 1944 "newsdrama," narrated by Lieut. Robert Taylor, USNR (Bataan), and photographed in zones of combat by the U.S. Navy. The film follows one of the many new aircraft carriers built since Pearl Harbor, known as THE FIGHTING LADY in honor of all American carriers, as it goes into action against the Japanese in the Pacific Ocean in 1943. See the ship and its pilots undergo their baptism of fire, attacking the Japanese base on Marcus Island. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with The Film Foundation.

Date of release
1944-12-21
TMDB
6.5 / 10 (15)
Runtime
1h 1m
Genres
War, Documentary
Director
Edward Steichen, William Wyler

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Awards: 2 · Nominations: 1. Including: Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film; National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

The Fighting Lady is a 1944 documentary film directed by Edward Steichen, produced by the U.S. Navy and narrated by Lt. Robert Taylor USNR. It is not to be confused with the 1954 war drama Men of the Fighting Lady, starring Van Johnson.

Production

The film uses Technicolor footage shot by "gun cameras" mounted directly on aircraft guns during combat. This gives a very realistic edge to the film, while the chronological following of the ship and crew mirror the experiences of the seamen who went from green recruits through the rigours of military life, battle, and, for some, death.

In his autobiography Baa Baa Black Sheep, U.S. Marine Corps ace pilot Gregory "Pappy" Boyington claims that the film briefly shows the small pit in which he and five other prisoners of war took cover during the Truk raid. Boyington had been captured by the Japanese and was being transported to a prison camp on the Truk islands when the raid began.

Due to her fighting heritage, and to honor all carrier sailors and airmen, the Yorktown is on permanent display at Patriots Point in Charleston, SC.

Alfred Newman's musical theme originally appeared in Vigil in the Night and was reused in Hell and High Water and in many 20th Century Fox film trailers.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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