Battle Hymn (film)
Encyclopedia
Battle Hymn is a Universal Studios
feature film
starring Rock Hudson
as Colonel
Dean E. Hess
, a real-life United States Air Force
fighter pilot in the Korean War
. Hess's autobiography of the same name was published concurrently with the release of the film. He donated his profits from the film and the book to a network of orphanages he helped to establish. The film was directed by Douglas Sirk
and produced by Ross Hunter
.
during World War II
, killing 37 orphans. At the start of the Korean War, he volunteers to return to the cockpit and is assigned as the senior USAF advisor/Instructor Pilot to the Republic of Korea Air Force
, flying F-51D Mustangs
. As he and his cadre of USAF instructors train the South Korean pilots, several orphaned war refugees gather at the base, and he solicits the aid of two Korean adults (En Soon Yang, played by Anna Kashfi, and Lun Wa, played by Philip Ahn) and establishes a shelter for the orphans. When the Communists begin an offensive in the area, Hess evacuates the orphans on foot and then later, after much struggle with higher headquarters, obtains an airlift of USAF cargo planes to evacuate them to the island of Cheju
where a more permanent orphanage is established.
that provided at least a modicum of similar landscape. On Soon Whang, Director of the Orphans Home of Korea arrived in the U.S. along with 25 orphans who would reprise their own lives on film.
In order to replicate the ROK unit, the 12 F-51D Mustangs of 182nd Fighter Squadron, 149th Fighter Group of the Texas Air National Guard were enlisted by the USAF to provide the necessary authentic aircraft of the period. During filming, an additional surplus F-51 was acquired from USAF stocks to be used in an accident scene where it would be deliberately destroyed.
The gold flying helmet with the United Nations emblem that Rock Hudson wears in the movie was Dean Hess's actual helmet. It was a Navy-issue helmet that Hess scrounged from a Navy pilot who crash-landed at their airfield in Korea (since the Navy pilot was going to be issued a new helmet as a result of the crash-landing). The helmet is now on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force
at Wright-Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio.
, the President and First Lady of the Republic of Korea, and was introduced to Hess by them and she survived the war, meeting Hess in 1954. Hess had already been an ordained minister when he became a fighter pilot in World War II, was not nearly as emotionally affected by the accidental bombing of the German orphanage as depicted, and was recalled to active duty in July 1948, two years before the start of the Korean War.
In the film, there was an incident where a pilot named Lieutenant Maples (played by James Edwards
) accidentally strafes a truckload of civilian refugees that happened to be near a convoy of North Korean troop trucks. In the real-life incident, it was a fishing junk full of civilian refugees that happened to be near an amphibious assault by North Korean landing craft.
, "Where Is Everybody?
"
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
starring Rock Hudson
Rock Hudson
Roy Harold Scherer, Jr., later Roy Harold Fitzgerald , known professionally as Rock Hudson, was an American film and television actor, recognized as a romantic leading man during the 1950s and 1960s, most notably in several romantic comedies with Doris Day.Hudson was voted "Star of the Year",...
as Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Dean E. Hess
Dean Hess
Dean E. Hess was an American minister and United States Air Force colonel who was involved in the so-called "Kiddy Car Airlift," the documented rescue of 950 orphans and 80 orphanage staff from the path of the Chinese advance during the Korean War on December 20, 1950...
, a real-life United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
fighter pilot in the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
. Hess's autobiography of the same name was published concurrently with the release of the film. He donated his profits from the film and the book to a network of orphanages he helped to establish. The film was directed by Douglas Sirk
Douglas Sirk
Douglas Sirk was a Danish-German film director best known for his work in Hollywood melodramas in the 1950s.-Life and work:...
and produced by Ross Hunter
Ross Hunter
Ross Hunter was a Hollywood film producer.-Biography:Hunter was born in Cleveland, Ohio as Martin Fuss. After serving in Army intelligence during World War II, he signed a movie contract with Columbia Pictures and acted in a number of B-movie musicals...
.
Plot
Prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hess was a minister in Ohio. The attack prompts him to become a fighter pilot. Hess had accidentally dropped a bomb on an orphanage in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, killing 37 orphans. At the start of the Korean War, he volunteers to return to the cockpit and is assigned as the senior USAF advisor/Instructor Pilot to the Republic of Korea Air Force
Republic of Korea Air Force
The Republic of Korea Air Force is the air force of South Korea...
, flying F-51D Mustangs
P-51 Mustang
The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang was an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II, the Korean War and in several other conflicts...
. As he and his cadre of USAF instructors train the South Korean pilots, several orphaned war refugees gather at the base, and he solicits the aid of two Korean adults (En Soon Yang, played by Anna Kashfi, and Lun Wa, played by Philip Ahn) and establishes a shelter for the orphans. When the Communists begin an offensive in the area, Hess evacuates the orphans on foot and then later, after much struggle with higher headquarters, obtains an airlift of USAF cargo planes to evacuate them to the island of Cheju
Jeju-do
Jeju-do is the only special autonomous province of South Korea, situated on and coterminous with the country's largest island. Jeju-do lies in the Korea Strait, southwest of Jeollanam-do Province, of which it was a part before it became a separate province in 1946...
where a more permanent orphanage is established.
Cast
- Rock HudsonRock HudsonRoy Harold Scherer, Jr., later Roy Harold Fitzgerald , known professionally as Rock Hudson, was an American film and television actor, recognized as a romantic leading man during the 1950s and 1960s, most notably in several romantic comedies with Doris Day.Hudson was voted "Star of the Year",...
as Col. Dean HessDean HessDean E. Hess was an American minister and United States Air Force colonel who was involved in the so-called "Kiddy Car Airlift," the documented rescue of 950 orphans and 80 orphanage staff from the path of the Chinese advance during the Korean War on December 20, 1950... - Anna KashfiAnna KashfiAnna Kashfi is a former film actress, who had a brief Hollywood career in the 1950s and is best known for having been married to Marlon Brando.-Early life and origins:...
as En Soon Yang - Dan DuryeaDan DuryeaDan Duryea was an American actor, known for roles in film, stage and television.-Early life:Born and raised in White Plains, New York, Duryea graduated from White Plains Senior High School in 1924 and Cornell University in 1928. While at Cornell, Duryea was elected into the Sphinx Head Society...
as Sgt. Herman - Don DeForeDon DeForeDonald John DeFore was an American actor who played "the regular guy" and "the good, ol' boy next door" in many films in the 1940s and 1950s.-Life and career:...
as Capt. Dan Skidmore - Martha HyerMartha HyerMartha Hyer is an American actress.She attended Northwestern University and was a member of Pi Beta Phi fraternity. After completing her education, she next appeared in The Locket in 1946...
as Mary Hess - Jock MahoneyJock MahoneyJock Mahoney was an American actor and stuntman of Irish, French, and Cherokee ancestry. Born Jacques O'Mahoney, he was credited variously as Jock Mahoney, Jack O'Mahoney or Jock O'Mahoney. He starred in two television series, both westerns...
as Maj. Moore - Alan Hale Jr. as Mess sergeant
Production
Lt. Col. Hess was a technical advisor to Universal to ensure that the final production did not stray far from his original biography. Nonetheless, the inevitable "Hollywood" screenplay prevailed. Unable to film in Korea, locations shifted to Nogales, ArizonaNogales, Arizona
Nogales is a city in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. The population was 21,017 at the 2010 census. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 20,833. The city is the county seat of Santa Cruz County....
that provided at least a modicum of similar landscape. On Soon Whang, Director of the Orphans Home of Korea arrived in the U.S. along with 25 orphans who would reprise their own lives on film.
In order to replicate the ROK unit, the 12 F-51D Mustangs of 182nd Fighter Squadron, 149th Fighter Group of the Texas Air National Guard were enlisted by the USAF to provide the necessary authentic aircraft of the period. During filming, an additional surplus F-51 was acquired from USAF stocks to be used in an accident scene where it would be deliberately destroyed.
The gold flying helmet with the United Nations emblem that Rock Hudson wears in the movie was Dean Hess's actual helmet. It was a Navy-issue helmet that Hess scrounged from a Navy pilot who crash-landed at their airfield in Korea (since the Navy pilot was going to be issued a new helmet as a result of the crash-landing). The helmet is now on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force
National Museum of the United States Air Force
The National Museum of the United States Air Force is the official museum of the United States Air Force located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base northeast of Dayton, Ohio. The NMUSAF is the world's largest and oldest military aviation museum with more than 360 aircraft and missiles on display...
at Wright-Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio.
Differences between the film and actual events
There were significant differences between the film and real life as recorded in Hess's book. Most prominently, On Soon Whang, Director of the Orphans Home of Korea, incorrectly identified as En Soon Yang in the film, was approximately 50 years old at the time, and was Korean (instead of half-Indian to match Anna Kashfi's screen image). On Soon Whang was a personal friend of Mr. and Mrs. Syngman RheeSyngman Rhee
Syngman Rhee or Yi Seungman was the first president of South Korea. His presidency, from August 1948 to April 1960, remains controversial, affected by Cold War tensions on the Korean peninsula and elsewhere. Rhee was regarded as an anti-Communist and a strongman, and he led South Korea through the...
, the President and First Lady of the Republic of Korea, and was introduced to Hess by them and she survived the war, meeting Hess in 1954. Hess had already been an ordained minister when he became a fighter pilot in World War II, was not nearly as emotionally affected by the accidental bombing of the German orphanage as depicted, and was recalled to active duty in July 1948, two years before the start of the Korean War.
In the film, there was an incident where a pilot named Lieutenant Maples (played by James Edwards
James Edwards (actor)
James Edwards was an African American actor in films and television. His most famous role was as Private Peter Moss in the 1949 film Home of the Brave, in which he portrayed a soldier experiencing racial prejudice while serving in the South Pacific during World War II...
) accidentally strafes a truckload of civilian refugees that happened to be near a convoy of North Korean troop trucks. In the real-life incident, it was a fishing junk full of civilian refugees that happened to be near an amphibious assault by North Korean landing craft.
Reception
Bosley Crowther dismissed the film in the New York Times of February 16, 1957 writing, "Perhaps the most candid comment to be made about Universal's "Battle Hymn" is also the most propitious, so far as its box-office chances are concerned. That is to say, it is conventional. It follows religiously the line of mingled piety and pugnacity laid down for standard idealistic service films. What's more, it has Rock Hudson playing the big hero role. And it is in CinemaScope and color. Wrap them up and what have you got? The popular thing."Popular culture
A poster for Battle Hymn appears outside the movie theater in the pilot episode of The Twilight ZoneThe Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode is a mixture of self-contained drama, psychological thriller, fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist...
, "Where Is Everybody?
Where Is Everybody?
"Where Is Everybody?" is the first episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.-Plot summary:A man finds himself alone walking towards a diner. Inside he finds a jukebox playing loudly, and coffee hot on the stove, but no one else. He inquires for some breakfast, but no...
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