Ceiling Zero
Encyclopedia
Ceiling Zero is a 1936 adventure
/drama film
directed by Howard Hawks
. It stars James Cagney
as daredevil womanizing pilot "Dizzy" Davis and Pat O'Brien
as Jake Lee, his war veteran buddy and the operations manager of an airline company. Based on a stage play of the same name, the film blends drama
with some light comedy
. The title, as defined at the beginning of the picture, is an insider term referring to those moments when the sky is so thick with fog that navigating an airplane is nearly impossible.
) during World War I. Almost twenty years later, Jake is the manager of the Newark, New Jersey
branch of Federal Airlines, a New York
based airline company. Tex works as an airmail pilot and Dizzy, also still flying planes, is seeking employment with his friends. Prior to his hot-shot arrival (Dizzy does a few tricks in the air before landing), a New York associate warns Jake about Dizzy, calling him unreliable and troublesome. Insulted, Jake replies that Dizzy is one of the best pilots in the country, telling a few stories about his fearlessness and bravery.
Jake hires Dizzy as an airmail pilot. Dizzy is immediately attracted to 'Tommy' Thomas, a 19 year old girl also working there, who has just learned to fly solo. In order to go on a date with her, Dizzy, scheduled for a flight to Cincinnati in the evening, pretends he is suddenly sick and gets Tex to replace him. Tex makes it to Ohio
, but on the way back to New Jersey
, finds himself in a cold and heavy fog. Though there is zero visibility and he is having radio problems, he attempts to land in Newark. He crashes into one of the airport hangars and the plane catches on fire. Tex is taken to the hospital where he later dies.
Tex's wife Lou, who was never very fond of Dizzy, blames him for her husband's death. She calls him selfish and irresponsible and says that he hurts everything he touches. Dizzy, overwhelmed with guilt, returns to the airport. Meanwhile, the weather has gotten even worse and Jake has canceled all other flights. In addition, the aviation authorities have revoked Dizzy's pilot license, for extraneous reasons. Jake consoles Dizzy on account of both losses and then goes home for the night, leaving him temporarily in charge. Another pilot, unaware of the cancellation, comes into the operations building, ready for his normally scheduled flight. Chagrined and burdened with his culpability, Dizzy demands the man explain how the newly acquired and, as of yet, untested aircraft de-icers function, then knocks the man unconscious and irrationally takes his plane. Jake and the others are devastated when they find out. Dizzy radios information over to them about the de-icers. They work to a degree, but the system is flawed. He reports by radio on the problems of the system and his recommendations for modifications, knowing that he will watch progressive icing until he dies. He does not make it through the snow storm.
Jack Warner
and Hal Wallis produced this film through Warner Bros.
, First National
and Cosmopolitan Productions
. Navy aviator turned screenwriter Frank 'Spig' Wead
provided the script, based on the original three-act play he wrote for Broadway
, which ran for a few months in 1935 at the Music Box Theatre
. Cagney and O'Brien appeared together in Devil Dogs of the Air
, another aviation-themed film, also in 1935. The budget was limited, as Ceiling Zero was obviously shot entirely either in the studio or on the backlot.
Adventure film
Adventure films are a genre of film.Unlike pure, low-budget action films they often use their action scenes preferably to display and explore exotic locations in an energetic way....
/drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Howard Hawks
Howard Hawks
Howard Winchester Hawks was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era...
. It stars James Cagney
James Cagney
James Francis Cagney, Jr. was an American actor, first on stage, then in film, where he had his greatest impact. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys." In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth...
as daredevil womanizing pilot "Dizzy" Davis and Pat O'Brien
Pat O'Brien (actor)
Pat O’Brien was an American film actor with more than one hundred screen credits.-Early life:O’Brien was born William Joseph Patrick O’Brien to an Irish-American Catholic family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He served as an altar boy at Gesu Church while growing up near 13th and Clybourn streets...
as Jake Lee, his war veteran buddy and the operations manager of an airline company. Based on a stage play of the same name, the film blends drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
with some light comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
. The title, as defined at the beginning of the picture, is an insider term referring to those moments when the sky is so thick with fog that navigating an airplane is nearly impossible.
Plot
Old pals Jake Lee, Tex Clarke and Dizzy Davis flew together in the Army (see the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal CorpsAviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps
The Aviation Section, Signal Corps, was the military aviation service of the United States Army from 1914 to 1918, and a direct ancestor of the United States Air Force. It replaced and absorbed the Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps, and was succeeded briefly by the Division of Military...
) during World War I. Almost twenty years later, Jake is the manager of the Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
branch of Federal Airlines, a New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
based airline company. Tex works as an airmail pilot and Dizzy, also still flying planes, is seeking employment with his friends. Prior to his hot-shot arrival (Dizzy does a few tricks in the air before landing), a New York associate warns Jake about Dizzy, calling him unreliable and troublesome. Insulted, Jake replies that Dizzy is one of the best pilots in the country, telling a few stories about his fearlessness and bravery.
Jake hires Dizzy as an airmail pilot. Dizzy is immediately attracted to 'Tommy' Thomas, a 19 year old girl also working there, who has just learned to fly solo. In order to go on a date with her, Dizzy, scheduled for a flight to Cincinnati in the evening, pretends he is suddenly sick and gets Tex to replace him. Tex makes it to Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, but on the way back to New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, finds himself in a cold and heavy fog. Though there is zero visibility and he is having radio problems, he attempts to land in Newark. He crashes into one of the airport hangars and the plane catches on fire. Tex is taken to the hospital where he later dies.
Tex's wife Lou, who was never very fond of Dizzy, blames him for her husband's death. She calls him selfish and irresponsible and says that he hurts everything he touches. Dizzy, overwhelmed with guilt, returns to the airport. Meanwhile, the weather has gotten even worse and Jake has canceled all other flights. In addition, the aviation authorities have revoked Dizzy's pilot license, for extraneous reasons. Jake consoles Dizzy on account of both losses and then goes home for the night, leaving him temporarily in charge. Another pilot, unaware of the cancellation, comes into the operations building, ready for his normally scheduled flight. Chagrined and burdened with his culpability, Dizzy demands the man explain how the newly acquired and, as of yet, untested aircraft de-icers function, then knocks the man unconscious and irrationally takes his plane. Jake and the others are devastated when they find out. Dizzy radios information over to them about the de-icers. They work to a degree, but the system is flawed. He reports by radio on the problems of the system and his recommendations for modifications, knowing that he will watch progressive icing until he dies. He does not make it through the snow storm.
Cast
- James CagneyJames CagneyJames Francis Cagney, Jr. was an American actor, first on stage, then in film, where he had his greatest impact. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys." In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth...
as Dizzy Davis - Pat O'BrienPat O'Brien (actor)Pat O’Brien was an American film actor with more than one hundred screen credits.-Early life:O’Brien was born William Joseph Patrick O’Brien to an Irish-American Catholic family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He served as an altar boy at Gesu Church while growing up near 13th and Clybourn streets...
as Jake Lee - June TravisJune TravisJune Travis was a motion picture actress from Chicago, Illinois.-Background:Born as June Dorothea Grabiner, she was the daughter of Harry Grabiner, vice-president of the Chicago White Sox in the 1930s....
as Tommy Thomas - Stuart ErwinStuart ErwinStuart Erwin was an American actor. Erwin began acting in college in the 1920s, first appearing on the stage, then breaking into films in 1928 in Mother Knows Best...
as Texas Clarke
Production
Jack Warner
Jack Leonard "J. L." Warner , born Jacob Warner in London, Ontario, was a Canadian American film executive who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California...
and Hal Wallis produced this film through Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
, First National
First National
First National was an association of independent theater owners in the United States that expanded from exhibiting movies to distributing them, and eventually to producing them as a movie studio, called First National Pictures, Inc. It later merged with Warner Bros.-Early history:The First National...
and Cosmopolitan Productions
Cosmopolitan Productions
Cosmopolitan Productions, also often referred to as Cosmopolitan Pictures, was an American film company based in New York City from 1918 to 1923 and Hollywood until 1938.- History :...
. Navy aviator turned screenwriter Frank 'Spig' Wead
Frank Wead
Frank Wilbur "Spig" Wead was a U.S. Navy aviator turned screenwriter who helped promote United States Naval aviation from its inception through World War II.-Military service:A 1916 graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Wead began to promote Naval Aviation after World War...
provided the script, based on the original three-act play he wrote for Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, which ran for a few months in 1935 at the Music Box Theatre
Music Box Theatre
The Music Box Theater is a Broadway theatre located at 239 West 45th Street in midtown-Manhattan.The once most aptly named theater on Broadway, the intimate Music Box was designed by architect C. Howard Crane and constructed by composer Irving Berlin and producer Sam H. Harris specifically to...
. Cagney and O'Brien appeared together in Devil Dogs of the Air
Devil Dogs of the Air
Devil Dogs of the Air is a 1935 Warner Bros. propaganda film, directed by Lloyd Bacon and starring James Cagney and Pat O'Brien, reprising their earlier roles as buddies after making their debut as a "buddy team" in Here Comes the Navy. Devil Dogs of the Air was the second of nine features that...
, another aviation-themed film, also in 1935. The budget was limited, as Ceiling Zero was obviously shot entirely either in the studio or on the backlot.