Mister Roberts (1955 film)

Mister Roberts
File:1955.mister.roberts.jpg Theatrical poster by Bill Gold
Directed by	John Ford Mervyn LeRoy
Written by	Frank S. Nugent Joshua Logan (Play) Thomas Heggen (Novel, Play)
Produced by	Leland Hayward
Starring	Henry Fonda James Cagney William Powell Jack Lemmon
Music by	Franz Waxman
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	July 30, 1955 (1955-07-30)
Running time	123 minutes
Country	Template:Film US
Language	English

Mister Roberts is a 1955 CinemaScope comedy-drama film directed by John Ford and Mervyn LeRoy, and starring Henry Fonda as Mister Roberts. Based on the 1946 novel and 1948 Broadway play, the film was nominated for Best Picture and Best Sound, Recording Oscars; Jack Lemmon received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Synopsis

The film takes place on an American Naval cargo ship during the waning days of World War II. The ship's perpetual mission is to supply the United States fleet in the South Pacific. The ship’s captain, Morton, has a spotless record of cargo delivery that he maintains through an oppressive command: he refuses to let the crew remove their shirts during hot days working in the cargo hold and has not granted his men ”liberty” for at least two years, despite frequent requests from his XO, Lt. JG Douglas Roberts, who serves as cargo chief. Roberts has an excellent working relationship with the crew, often bending the rules to allow them some leeway. Morton’s reputation for timely handling of cargo was rewarded with a palm tree from an impressed admiral, which he keeps in a dirt-filled bucket near the ship’s bridge; Morton is quite proud of his gift, however, the crew despises the tree and the Captain himself.

Roberts, however, despite his positive outlook, has already grown tired of his dull duties and has often requested transfer to a unit on the front lines of the Pacific theatre so he can see some combat before the war is over. Morton has refused every request knowing that Roberts is the only officer he has that can control the crew. Morton also reveals later on that he endured a tough childhood, constantly bullied by those in higher social stature than himself, especially people who were college-educated like Roberts.

Roberts supersedes the chain of command to put in a request for crew liberty with one of Morton’s superiors. Liberty is granted and the ship sails to an South Pacific island ideal for R&R, however, Morton denies the crew their small vacation. After a heated conversation with Roberts, Morton grants the crew their liberty on the condition that Roberts will not write any more requests for transfer and will act much more firmly when commanding the crew. Roberts acquiesces.

On the island the ship’s crew acts deplorably: they quickly get drunk, start various fights, violently crash a party at the local embassy and are often hauled back to the ship by the military police. One sailor steals a motorcycle and the ship’s secretary, Dolan, steals a goat belonging to a local high-ranking official. Eventually a larger unit of MPs arrives and surrounds the ship, preventing any of the crew from going ashore. The next morning Morton arrives back at the ship yelling about having been told to leave port immediately.

News of the Allied victory in Europe arrives and Roberts becomes further depressed, knowing the war will end soon without his participating in any of the combat. His mood breaks soon after, having been inspired by a radio speech. He marches straight to the Captain’s palm tree and throws it overboard. Morton discovers the violation and, unable to determine who would defy him, orders the crew to battle stations. After going through his muster list, he realizes that Roberts is the only person who would have the nerve to destroy the palm. After suffering a temporary illness while yelling at Roberts, the Captain recovers and orders Roberts to be transferred.

Several weeks later Ensign Pulver, a meek crew member who shared a cabin with Roberts and newly promoted to cargo chief, receives a couple of letters. One is from Roberts himself who speaks enthusiastically about his new assignment near Okinawa, at the front lines. The second letter is from a friend of Pulver’s who was on the same assignment as Roberts; the letter tells Pulver that Roberts was killed in combat. Pulver, now furious and his previously weak self-confidence now bolstered, throws the Captain’s second palm tree overboard and marches into Morton’s cabin, angrily demanding to know why Morton has canceled the showing of a film that night for the crew’s entertainment. Morton realizes things will be just as tough with Pulver in Roberts’s old position.

Background

Fonda was not the original choice to star in the film version -- Warner Bros. was considering William Holden or Marlon Brando for the lead role. Fonda was only hired because director John Ford insisted on it; the studio thought Fonda had been on stage and off the screen so long that he was no longer a movie box office draw.

Also featured were James Cagney as Captain Morton, William Powell (in his last feature film) as "Doc", Jack Lemmon as Ensign Pulver (for which he won his first Academy Award, Best Supporting Actor), Betsy Palmer, Ward Bond, Philip Carey, Nick Adams, Ken Curtis, Harry Carey, Jr. and Martin Milner. The screenplay was written by Joshua Logan and Frank S. Nugent.

The movie was directed by John Ford, Mervyn LeRoy and Joshua Logan (uncredited). While directing the film, Ford had personality conflicts with actors Henry Fonda and James Cagney. When Ford met Cagney at the airport, the director warned that they would "tangle asses," which caught Cagney by surprise. Cagney later said: "I would have kicked his brains out. He was so goddamned mean to everybody. He was truly a nasty old man." The next day, Cagney was slightly late on set, and Ford became incensed. Cagney cut short the imminent tirade, saying "When I started this picture, you said that we would tangle asses before this was over. I'm ready now – are you?" Ford walked away and he and Cagney had no further conflicts on the set.

Nevertheless, Ford was replaced by LeRoy after difficulties with Fonda and a gall bladder attack that necessitated emergency surgery. Since this news of LeRoy shooting some of the movie, it has been widely speculated which scenes in the picture were that of LeRoy. Jack Lemmon shined some light on this issue within his commentary of the DVD. "Mervyn LeRoy would watch all of the rushes that Ford had shot prior to his temporary departure and decided to shoot them the way John Ford would have shot 'em."

The DVD release of this film includes an audio commentary of Jack Lemmon years before he died. In the commentary he reveals some stories of his experience making the film and his views on acting. During the production of the film, Jack Lemmon started a long-time friendship with Cagney which lasted until Cagney's death in 1986. Their first introduction is as funny as the film itself. Prior to his appearance in his first film, years before Mister Roberts, he started in live television. In one particular performance, Jack Lemmon decided to play his character differently. In his brainstorming he decided to play the character left-handed, which is opposite to his own way of movement. With much practice, he pulled off the performance without anyone noticing the change. This change even fooled Lemmon's wife at the time. A few years went by and Jack met Cagney on their way to Midway Island to film Mister Roberts. They introduced each other and Cagney chimed in "Are you still fooling people into believing you're left handed?" They had a great laugh and a strong friendship endured ever since. As Lemmon noted, this was an example of James Cagney's ability to observe human behavior for his acting.

Henry Fonda wrote in his 1982 autobiography, My Life, that he believed that as good as the movie is, the play is even better. The film was William Powell's last movie, although he died decades later, in 1984. Powell was offered many chances to return to the screen but refused, apparently believing that 35 years of film acting were enough.

The Navy vessel which played the role of USS Reluctant ("the Bucket") in the movie's exterior shots was the USS Hewell (AKL-14) used for filming while she was at Midway Island in August 1954 and later off Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, Hawaii between 30 September and 7 October. All but one of the Navy's AKLs were built as U.S. Army FS type cargo vessels some of which were transferred to the Navy after WWII ended. As it was, an AKL carried a much smaller crew than the USS Virgo which Thomas Heggen served on during the war. In the movie, Mr. Roberts says to Doc that there are "65 men" aboard which would have been far too many for an AKL. The "palm tree" was located on a "deck" built for the movie by extending the small deckhouse of the AKL and building movie set ladders to the bridge and main deck. The crew, when going below to their berthing compartment, are shown in the movie to be descending into the cargo hold.

Television and Sequels

The film was the basis of a 1965 television series of the same name, and was remade for television in 1984 as a live telecast.

Mister Roberts was followed by a film sequel, Ensign Pulver (1964), with Robert Walker, Jr. taking over the Lemmon role. It also starred Burl Ives as Captain Morton, Walter Matthau, Larry Hagman, and Jack Nicholson. Many of the incidents in the film's screenplay came out of Heggan's original book.

Cast

Cast	Character
Henry Fonda	Lt. (j.g.) Douglas A. 'Doug' Roberts
James Cagney	Captain Morton
William Powell	Lieutenant 'Doc'
Jack Lemmon	Ensign Frank Thurlowe Pulver
Betsy Palmer	Lt. Ann Girard
Ward Bond	Chief Boatswain's Mate Dowdy
Philip Carey	Mannion (billed as Phil Carey)
Nick Adams	Seaman Reber
Perry Lopez	Seaman Rodrigues
Ken Curtis	Yeoman 3rd Class Dolan
Robert Roark	Insignia
Harry Carey, Jr.	Stefanowski
Patrick Wayne	Bookser
Frank Aletter	Gerhart
Tige Andrews	Wiley
Martin Milner	Shore Patrol Ensign

Bibliography

• Warren, Doug (1986). Cagney: The Authorized Biography (Mass Market ed.). New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-90207-7. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |origmonth= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |origdate= ignored (|orig-date= suggested) (help)

External links

• Mister Roberts (1955 film) at IMDb
• Gary P. Priolo (24 January 2008). "Light Cargo Ship (AKL): AG-145 / AKL-14 Hewell". NavSource Naval History. Retrieved 2008-06-15.
• Capt. Carl Friberg. "A Movie Seastory That Bugged Me (Detailed look at how an AKL was temporarily modified and turned into a movie set)". Views From the Upper Deck. Retrieved 2010-01-16.