manu/mldr-zoomed-100char-total-queries-documents

chunk_id stringlengths 3 9	chunk stringlengths 1 100
93_89	surviving an accidental bombing by the Army Air Forces at the start of Operation Cobra in Normandy.
93_90	Pyle approved of the casting of Meredith, and said that he believed the actor to be the best choice
93_91	after the death of British Actor Leslie Howard in a plane crash.
93_92	The movie studio initially wanted to place a leading-man type for the main role, but Wellman wanted
93_93	a physically smaller man to better portray middle-aged Pyle. As a compromise, Mitchum was chosen to
93_94	play Lieutenant (later Captain) Walker. The film was one of the first starring roles for Mitchum.
93_95	Nine actual war correspondents are listed as "For the War Correspondents" in technical advisor
93_96	credits: Don Whitehead (Associated Press), George Lait (International News Service), Chris
93_97	Cunningham (United Press), Hal Boyle (A.P.), Jack Foisie (Stars and Stripes), Bob Landry (Life
93_98	Magazine), Lucien Hubbard (Readers Digest), Clete Roberts (Blue Network), and Robert Reuben
93_99	(Reuters). Three appear as themselves in the scene in which Ernie learns he has won the Pulitzer
93_100	prize.
93_101	Wellman's wife, actress Dorothy Coonan Wellman, appeared in an uncredited speaking role as Lt.
93_102	Elizabeth "Red" Murphy, the combat zone bride of character "Wingless" Murphy.
93_103	The Army agreed to Wellman's request for 150 soldiers, then training in California for further
93_104	deployment to the Pacific and all veterans of the Italian campaign, to use as extras during the six
93_105	weeks of filming in late 1944. Their training continued when they were not filming to present the
93_106	best image possible for the Army, although the War Department allowed them to grow beards for their
93_107	roles. Wellman insisted that actual soldiers speak much of the "G.I." dialogue for authenticity. He
93_108	also insisted that the Hollywood actors ("as few as possible") cast in the film be required to live
93_109	and train with the assigned soldiers or they would not be hired.
93_110	Preservation The Academy Film Archive preserved G.I. Joe in 2000. Concept
93_111	Screenplay
93_112	The film's concept originated with Lester Cowan, an independent producer, in September 1943, when
93_113	he approached the War Department for cooperation in making a movie about the infantry with the same
93_114	high degree of prestige as Air Force. In October he came to terms with United Artists for financial
93_115	support and distribution of the proposed film, then developed a story outline based on Pyle's
93_116	columns reproduced in Here is Your War, which the Army approved on November 27.
93_117	Attempts to write a script that would accurately translate Pyle's style and sentiments to the
93_118	screen while being acceptable to all of Pyle's readers and fans delayed filming for a year. Cowan
93_119	came up with his final concept—Pyle's "love affair" with the ordinary infantryman—by June 1944, but
93_120	developing a storyline proved more difficult. After the D-Day Invasion of Normandy, believing that
93_121	the end of the war was in sight, the script moved in the direction of Pyle covering the infantry in
93_122	its final advance to victory.
93_123	However the final form of the screenplay developed through the input of several war correspondents
93_124	and associates of Pyle, chiefly Don Whitehead, Lee Miller, and Paige Cavanaugh, who assisted the
93_125	writers in selecting details from Pyle's columns for inclusion in the film, and from the desires of
93_126	director William Wellman, who worked directly with Pyle.
93_127	Finding a director
93_128	Cowan's first choice for director was John Huston, even though he had completed only two films
93_129	before going into the service. Cowan was impressed by two feature combat documentaries Huston had
93_130	made for the war effort, Report from the Aleutians and The Battle of San Pietro, but was unable to
93_131	gain Huston's services from the Army.
93_132	In August 1944, unable to complete the writing of the screenplay, Cowan sought the services of
93_133	William A. Wellman. One film history (Suid) has Cowan walking into Wellman's home uninvited, making
93_134	a strong pitch for Wellman's services, then engaging in a heated argument when Wellman refused.
93_135	Wellman told Cowan that he "hated the infantry" because of his own experiences as a fighter pilot
93_136	in World War I, and because the infantry commander assigned by the War Department to assist in the
93_137	making of Wellman's acclaimed Wings in 1927 so disliked the Air Corps that he had attempted to
93_138	renege on the cooperation and obstruct the filming.
93_139	Cowan made two other attempts to cajole Wellman into accepting the assignment, first by bringing a
93_140	personal letter from Pyle to Wellman (who was quoted as saying it was "like waving a red flag in
93_141	front of a bull" and resulted in Wellman slamming the door on Cowan), and by bribing Wellman with
93_142	gifts for his children. The latter resulted in Wellman threatening Cowan if he came back again.
93_143	Cowan persisted, however, and had Ernie Pyle (who had returned to Albuquerque for a rest from
93_144	combat) personally telephone Wellman. Pyle overcame Wellman's resistance by inviting him to his
93_145	home where two days of discussions resulted in a complete change of heart by Wellman. Suid goes on
93_146	to note that although Wellman was dictatorial in his management of the filming and crucial to the
93_147	style and final form of the script, that Wellman's greatest impact was as the "catalyst" for the
93_148	"collective process" (as opposed to the more modern philosophy of filmmaking as a "director's
93_149	medium") of bringing together "Pyle, his stories, the actors, and the Army to create a uniquely
93_150	realistic movie."
93_151	Historical basis
93_152	Pyle covered the 1st Infantry Division, including the 18th Infantry, in Tunisia from January to May
93_153	1943, and wrote a column on the American defeat at Kasserine Pass. He also landed with the 1st
93_154	Division during the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. However, after the Sicilian campaign, which is
93_155	mentioned but not portrayed in the film, the 18th Infantry moved to England to prepare for the
93_156	Allied invasion of France, while the film's "Company C" is said to have made a landing under fire
93_157	at Salerno.
93_158	While the screenwriters chose the 18th Infantry Regiment to be depicted in the film, Pyle made
93_159	clear that his favorite outfit, "my company", was in the 133rd Infantry Regiment (originally part
93_160	of the Iowa National Guard) of the 34th Infantry Division, a unit he had covered in 1942 while it
93_161	was still stationed in Northern Ireland, then again in Tunisia. Pyle devotes Chapter Thirteen, "The
93_162	Fabulous Infantry", of his book Brave Men to this unnamed company of the 133rd Infantry, which he
93_163	accompanied between December 1943 and February 1944, concentrating on eight G.I.s who were the last
93_164	survivors of the original 200 shipped to Europe. The chapter's vignettes are very similar to the
93_165	final form of the film, including portrayal of the well-liked and competent company commander, 1st
93_166	Lt. John J. "Jack" Sheehy. At least three characters were based on subjects in this outfit,
93_167	including Sgt. Warnicki (Sgt. Jack Pierson, who also had never seen his son "Junior") and the
93_168	company's mascot dog, in this instance a small black-and-white female named "Squirt".
93_169	The events in Italy portrayed in the film are based on Pyle's experiences with soldiers of the 36th
93_170	Infantry Division in the Battle of San Pietro, and the 133rd Infantry in the Battle of Monte
93_171	Cassino. Mitchum's character, Capt. Bill Walker, was modeled on two soldiers who deeply impressed
93_172	Pyle. Walker was a stand-in for Capt. Henry T. Waskow of the 36th Division's Company B 143rd
93_173	Infantry, and the vehicle for conveying the reflections expressed to Pyle by Sgt. Frank Eversole of
93_174	the 133rd Infantry. Walker's death—and the reaction of his men to it—is a faithful recreation of
93_175	the death of Waskow on Hill 1205 (Monte Sammucro) on December 14, 1943, which was the subject of
93_176	Pyle's most famous column, The Death of Captain Waskow. Sgt. "Buck" Eversole was a platoon leader
93_177	in Lt. Sheehy's company and the subject of several Pyle stories.
93_178	Riley Tidwell was involved in the movie made about G.I. Joe. After his discharge in 1945, he toured
93_179	with Robert Mitchum and the movie cast. The movie tells Captain Waskow's story in which Ernie Pyle
93_180	pictures Tidwell as G.I. Joe
93_181	Awards and nominations
93_182	Academy Award nominations Best Supporting Actor - Robert Mitchum
93_183	Best Original Song - Ann Ronell for "Linda" Best Score - Louis Applebaum and Ann Ronell
93_184	Best Screenplay - Leopold Atlas, Guy Endore, and Philip Stevenson
93_185	References
93_186	External links The Story of G.I. Joe essay by Amy Dunkleberger at National Film Registry
93_187	"The Death of Captain Waskow" reprinted at the Indiana University School of Journalism
93_188	Photos of Ernie Pyle from Story of G.I. Joe 1944 by Ned Scott

93_89

surviving an accidental bombing by the Army Air Forces at the start of Operation Cobra in Normandy.

93_90

Pyle approved of the casting of Meredith, and said that he believed the actor to be the best choice

93_91

after the death of British Actor Leslie Howard in a plane crash.

93_92

The movie studio initially wanted to place a leading-man type for the main role, but Wellman wanted

93_93

a physically smaller man to better portray middle-aged Pyle. As a compromise, Mitchum was chosen to

93_94

play Lieutenant (later Captain) Walker. The film was one of the first starring roles for Mitchum.

93_95

Nine actual war correspondents are listed as "For the War Correspondents" in technical advisor

93_96

credits: Don Whitehead (Associated Press), George Lait (International News Service), Chris

93_97

Cunningham (United Press), Hal Boyle (A.P.), Jack Foisie (Stars and Stripes), Bob Landry (Life

93_98

Magazine), Lucien Hubbard (Readers Digest), Clete Roberts (Blue Network), and Robert Reuben

93_99

(Reuters). Three appear as themselves in the scene in which Ernie learns he has won the Pulitzer

93_100

prize.

93_101

Wellman's wife, actress Dorothy Coonan Wellman, appeared in an uncredited speaking role as Lt.

93_102

Elizabeth "Red" Murphy, the combat zone bride of character "Wingless" Murphy.

93_103

The Army agreed to Wellman's request for 150 soldiers, then training in California for further

93_104

deployment to the Pacific and all veterans of the Italian campaign, to use as extras during the six

93_105

weeks of filming in late 1944. Their training continued when they were not filming to present the

93_106

best image possible for the Army, although the War Department allowed them to grow beards for their

93_107

roles. Wellman insisted that actual soldiers speak much of the "G.I." dialogue for authenticity. He

93_108

also insisted that the Hollywood actors ("as few as possible") cast in the film be required to live

93_109

and train with the assigned soldiers or they would not be hired.

93_110

Preservation The Academy Film Archive preserved G.I. Joe in 2000. Concept

93_111

Screenplay

93_112

The film's concept originated with Lester Cowan, an independent producer, in September 1943, when

93_113

he approached the War Department for cooperation in making a movie about the infantry with the same

93_114

high degree of prestige as Air Force. In October he came to terms with United Artists for financial

93_115

support and distribution of the proposed film, then developed a story outline based on Pyle's

93_116

columns reproduced in Here is Your War, which the Army approved on November 27.

93_117

Attempts to write a script that would accurately translate Pyle's style and sentiments to the

93_118

screen while being acceptable to all of Pyle's readers and fans delayed filming for a year. Cowan

93_119

came up with his final concept—Pyle's "love affair" with the ordinary infantryman—by June 1944, but

93_120

developing a storyline proved more difficult. After the D-Day Invasion of Normandy, believing that

93_121

the end of the war was in sight, the script moved in the direction of Pyle covering the infantry in

93_122

its final advance to victory.

93_123

However the final form of the screenplay developed through the input of several war correspondents

93_124

and associates of Pyle, chiefly Don Whitehead, Lee Miller, and Paige Cavanaugh, who assisted the

93_125

writers in selecting details from Pyle's columns for inclusion in the film, and from the desires of

93_126

director William Wellman, who worked directly with Pyle.

93_127

Finding a director

93_128

Cowan's first choice for director was John Huston, even though he had completed only two films

93_129

before going into the service. Cowan was impressed by two feature combat documentaries Huston had

93_130

made for the war effort, Report from the Aleutians and The Battle of San Pietro, but was unable to

93_131

gain Huston's services from the Army.

93_132

In August 1944, unable to complete the writing of the screenplay, Cowan sought the services of

93_133

William A. Wellman. One film history (Suid) has Cowan walking into Wellman's home uninvited, making

93_134

a strong pitch for Wellman's services, then engaging in a heated argument when Wellman refused.

93_135

Wellman told Cowan that he "hated the infantry" because of his own experiences as a fighter pilot

93_136

in World War I, and because the infantry commander assigned by the War Department to assist in the

93_137

making of Wellman's acclaimed Wings in 1927 so disliked the Air Corps that he had attempted to

93_138

renege on the cooperation and obstruct the filming.

93_139

Cowan made two other attempts to cajole Wellman into accepting the assignment, first by bringing a

93_140

personal letter from Pyle to Wellman (who was quoted as saying it was "like waving a red flag in

93_141

front of a bull" and resulted in Wellman slamming the door on Cowan), and by bribing Wellman with

93_142

gifts for his children. The latter resulted in Wellman threatening Cowan if he came back again.

93_143

Cowan persisted, however, and had Ernie Pyle (who had returned to Albuquerque for a rest from

93_144

combat) personally telephone Wellman. Pyle overcame Wellman's resistance by inviting him to his

93_145

home where two days of discussions resulted in a complete change of heart by Wellman. Suid goes on

93_146

to note that although Wellman was dictatorial in his management of the filming and crucial to the

93_147

style and final form of the script, that Wellman's greatest impact was as the "catalyst" for the

93_148

"collective process" (as opposed to the more modern philosophy of filmmaking as a "director's

93_149

medium") of bringing together "Pyle, his stories, the actors, and the Army to create a uniquely

93_150

realistic movie."

93_151

Historical basis

93_152

Pyle covered the 1st Infantry Division, including the 18th Infantry, in Tunisia from January to May

93_153

1943, and wrote a column on the American defeat at Kasserine Pass. He also landed with the 1st

93_154

Division during the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. However, after the Sicilian campaign, which is

93_155

mentioned but not portrayed in the film, the 18th Infantry moved to England to prepare for the

93_156

Allied invasion of France, while the film's "Company C" is said to have made a landing under fire

93_157

at Salerno.

93_158

While the screenwriters chose the 18th Infantry Regiment to be depicted in the film, Pyle made

93_159

clear that his favorite outfit, "my company", was in the 133rd Infantry Regiment (originally part

93_160

of the Iowa National Guard) of the 34th Infantry Division, a unit he had covered in 1942 while it

93_161

was still stationed in Northern Ireland, then again in Tunisia. Pyle devotes Chapter Thirteen, "The

93_162

Fabulous Infantry", of his book Brave Men to this unnamed company of the 133rd Infantry, which he

93_163

accompanied between December 1943 and February 1944, concentrating on eight G.I.s who were the last

93_164

survivors of the original 200 shipped to Europe. The chapter's vignettes are very similar to the

93_165

final form of the film, including portrayal of the well-liked and competent company commander, 1st

93_166

Lt. John J. "Jack" Sheehy. At least three characters were based on subjects in this outfit,

93_167

including Sgt. Warnicki (Sgt. Jack Pierson, who also had never seen his son "Junior") and the

93_168

company's mascot dog, in this instance a small black-and-white female named "Squirt".

93_169

The events in Italy portrayed in the film are based on Pyle's experiences with soldiers of the 36th

93_170

Infantry Division in the Battle of San Pietro, and the 133rd Infantry in the Battle of Monte

93_171

Cassino. Mitchum's character, Capt. Bill Walker, was modeled on two soldiers who deeply impressed

93_172

Pyle. Walker was a stand-in for Capt. Henry T. Waskow of the 36th Division's Company B 143rd

93_173

Infantry, and the vehicle for conveying the reflections expressed to Pyle by Sgt. Frank Eversole of

93_174

the 133rd Infantry. Walker's death—and the reaction of his men to it—is a faithful recreation of

93_175

the death of Waskow on Hill 1205 (Monte Sammucro) on December 14, 1943, which was the subject of

93_176

Pyle's most famous column, The Death of Captain Waskow. Sgt. "Buck" Eversole was a platoon leader

93_177

in Lt. Sheehy's company and the subject of several Pyle stories.

93_178

Riley Tidwell was involved in the movie made about G.I. Joe. After his discharge in 1945, he toured

93_179

with Robert Mitchum and the movie cast. The movie tells Captain Waskow's story in which Ernie Pyle

93_180

pictures Tidwell as G.I. Joe

93_181

Awards and nominations

93_182

Academy Award nominations Best Supporting Actor - Robert Mitchum

93_183

Best Original Song - Ann Ronell for "Linda" Best Score - Louis Applebaum and Ann Ronell

93_184

Best Screenplay - Leopold Atlas, Guy Endore, and Philip Stevenson

93_185

References

93_186

External links The Story of G.I. Joe essay by Amy Dunkleberger at National Film Registry

93_187

"The Death of Captain Waskow" reprinted at the Indiana University School of Journalism

93_188

Photos of Ernie Pyle from Story of G.I. Joe 1944 by Ned Scott