Jet Pilot [Blu-ray]

Director: Josef von Sternberg Josef von Sternberg

Overview

If Jet Pilot seems hopelessly out of date today, imagine how filmgoers in 1957 reacted when this relic from 1949 was taken off the shelf. Many, many years in the making due to the maniacal tinkering by producer Howard Hughes (who reportedly lost $4 million on it - a massive sum back then), the film was deemed unreleasable upon completion; only when Universal-International took over distribution of a handful of RKO Radio productions did it finally see the light of day. John Wayne stars as an air force colonel stationed in an Alaskan outpost only 40 miles or so from the Soviet Union. Wayne is put in charge of Russian jet pilot Janet Leigh, who claims that she wants to defect. Actually, Leigh is a Communist spy, but thanks to Wayne's affectionate attentions she is won over to the side of Democracy. Thus it is that Leigh rescues the Duke when he is kidnapped and nearly brainwashed by her Commie comrades. Jet Pilot was eventually bought back from U-I by Hughes for his personal collection; not only did he buy into the propagandistic plotline, but he was also enthralled by the aerial scenes, some of which were staged by legendary test pilot Chuck Yeager. The 1949 production date for a number of sequences explains not only why so many of the actors look young for 1957, but the existence of several supporting cast members who had died in the interim (such as Jack Overman and Richard Rober).

Product Details

Release Date:	11/30/2021
UPC:	0738329256661
Original Release:	1957
Rating:	NR
Source:	Kl Studio Classics
Language:	English
Time:	1:53:00
Sales rank:	3,316

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Janet Leigh	Actor,FBI Man
John Wayne	Actor
Jay C. Flippen	Maj. Gen. Black
Paul Fix	Maj. Rexford
Richard Rober	George Rivers
Roland Winters	Col. Sokolov
Hans Conried	Col. Matoff
Ivan Triesault	Gen. Langrad
John Bishop	Maj. Lester Sinclair
Perdita Chandler	Georgia Rexford
Joyce Compton	Mrs. Simpson
Denver Pyle	Mr. Simpson
Elizabeth Flournoy	WAF Captain
Jack Overman	Sergeant
Vincent Gironda	Muscle Man
Armand Tanny	Muscle Man
Ruth Lee	Mother
Alan Dinehart III	Fresh Kid
Phil Arnold	Bellboy
Tom Daly	Hotel Clerk
Keith McConnell	Bartender
Herbert Lytton	FBI Man
Paul Frees	Lt. Tiompkin,Lt. Tiompkin
Al Murphy	Waiter
Vince Gironda	Muscle Man
Mike Lally	Waiter
Theodore Rand	Waiter
Joey Ray	Waiter
Smoki Whitfield	Henry
Jane Easton	Girl
Dorothy Abbott	Girl
Janice Hood	Girl
Allen Matthews	Headwaiter
Darrell Huntley	Officer
Billy Vernon	Drunk
Gene Roth	Sokolov's Batman
Jimmie Dime	Russian Security Man,Russian Security Man
Paul Bakanas	Russian Security Man
Michael Mark	Russian General
Gregg Barton	MP
Jack Shea	MP
Gene Evans	Airfield Sergeant
Bill Erwin	Sergeant-GAC
Richard Norris	Russian Interrogator
Dave Ormond	Russian Interrogator
Ruthelma Stevens	Actor
Mamie Van Doren	WAF
Barbara Freking	WAF
Kenneth Tobey	Actor
Wendell Niles	Major
Bill Yeager	Captain
John Morgan	Lieutenant
Joan Jordan	WAC Sergeant
Joan Whitney	WAC Sergeant
Sylvia Lewis	WAC Corporal
Don Haggerty	Actor
Carleton Young	Actor
Bruce Cameron	Batman
Mason Alan Dinehart	Fresh kid at Palm Springs dress shop
Art Dupuis	Russian
Lamont Johnson	Sergeant
Harry Lauter	Sergeant
Lois Austin	Saleswoman at Palm Springs Dress Shop
Hall Bartlett	Sergeant
Bronislau Kaper	Composer

Technical Credits

Jules Furthman	Producer
Howard Hughes	Producer
Josef von Sternberg	Director
Harold E. Wellman	Special Effects
Chuck Yeager	Stunts
Terry Kellum	Sound Effects
Winton Hoch	Special Effects