List of Walt Disney's World War II productions for Armed Forces
Encyclopedia
Walt Disney's World War II Productions, for Armed Forces. This is a list of Training films produced for United States
Army
and the Navy
by Walt Disney Studio during World War II. Most of these films were not sole productions of Walt's company alone many of these films were co-produced with other entities such as FMPU and Frank Capra
's signal corps.
When it came to production for Army and the Navy Disney only produced the animation portion of the films but other entities such as FMPU and Frank Capra
's signal corps. Additionally many Disney artist worked over at FMPU and thus many FMPU films that included animation have been mistaken as Disney products, as it's important to keep in mind none of the Disney artist were not producing anything for him while they were working over at FMPU. This might have led animation, film and WWII historians into confusing Disney products with FMPU. IF not FMPU then with other studios form the golden age of animation.
IN many cases Disney's studio didn't receive any credits for its effort in helping creation of these films, which had made the task of identifying them harder. additionally many of these films were reissued and even retitled, re-numbered and even re-edited which means that some of these films doesn't anymore as it was originally made.
This list is the most complete though that can be found on the Internet as the information comes various source such as the long out of print book Donald Duck Joins Up by Richard Shale and other films indexes that deals with army and navy films and other army and Navy catalogs.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
and the Navy
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
by Walt Disney Studio during World War II. Most of these films were not sole productions of Walt's company alone many of these films were co-produced with other entities such as FMPU and Frank Capra
Frank Capra
Frank Russell Capra was a Sicilian-born American film director. He emigrated to the U.S. when he was six, and eventually became a creative force behind major award-winning films during the 1930s and 1940s...
's signal corps.
When it came to production for Army and the Navy Disney only produced the animation portion of the films but other entities such as FMPU and Frank Capra
Frank Capra
Frank Russell Capra was a Sicilian-born American film director. He emigrated to the U.S. when he was six, and eventually became a creative force behind major award-winning films during the 1930s and 1940s...
's signal corps. Additionally many Disney artist worked over at FMPU and thus many FMPU films that included animation have been mistaken as Disney products, as it's important to keep in mind none of the Disney artist were not producing anything for him while they were working over at FMPU. This might have led animation, film and WWII historians into confusing Disney products with FMPU. IF not FMPU then with other studios form the golden age of animation.
IN many cases Disney's studio didn't receive any credits for its effort in helping creation of these films, which had made the task of identifying them harder. additionally many of these films were reissued and even retitled, re-numbered and even re-edited which means that some of these films doesn't anymore as it was originally made.
This list is the most complete though that can be found on the Internet as the information comes various source such as the long out of print book Donald Duck Joins Up by Richard Shale and other films indexes that deals with army and navy films and other army and Navy catalogs.
Series
| Series Title | Film Title | runtime | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Why We Fight Why We Fight Why We Fight is a series of seven war information training films commissioned by the United States government during World War II whose purpose was to show American soldiers the reason for U.S. involvement in the war. Later on they were also shown to the general U.S... (for US Army) |
|
16 of 53 min 13 of 40 min ? of 56 min 8 of 51 min 8 of 71 min ? of 62 min 8 of 64 min |
(1942) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1944) (1945) |
Co-produced with Frank Capra The entry series can be found on Archive.org |
| Know your Enemies (for US Army) |
Know Your Enemy: Japan Know Your Enemy: Japan is an American propaganda film directed by Frank Capra, commissioned by the U.S. War Department. Completion was delayed by disputes between the Hollywood producers and Washington. The original intention of the film was to prepare U.S... Here Is Germany Here is Germany was a 1945 propaganda documentary film directed by Frank Capra. Like its companion film, Know Your Enemy: Japan, the film is a full-length exploration of why one of the two major Axis countries started World War II and what had to be done to keep them from "doing it again".The film... |
18 of 63 min 2 of 53 min |
(1943) (1945) |
Co-produced with Frank Capra The entry series can be found on Archive.org Here is Germany was originally planned in 1943 under another name but was cancelled but later revisited and completed in 1945 under its current title. Know Your Enemy Japan had three productions numbers at Disney Know Your Ally Britain is not part of this film series or at least not made by Disney but rival studio WB |
| Orientation Series (for US Navy) |
|
1 of ? min 12 of ? min |
(1943) (1944) |
Co-produced with Frank Capra |
| Aircraft Production Processes Series [Mooney Project] (for U.S. Navy) |
|
37 of ? min 24 of ? min 40 of ? min 23 of ? min 18 of ? min 12 of ? min 19 of ? min 30 of ? min ? of ? min |
(1942) (1942) (1942) (1942) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (194?) |
In Richard Shale's book This series is reported to be constant of nine films, when the actuall list in Shale's book is checked it only turns up 8 films of 9 reported. |
| Aerology Series (for U.S. Navy) |
|
49 of ? min 25 of ? min 19 of ? min 24 of ? min 30 of ? min 39 of ? min 20 of ? min 20 of ? min 25 of ? min ? of 14 min 39 of ? min |
(1942) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1944) |
The films Flying the Weather Map (Part 1 and 2) and The Howgozit Chart (Part 3 and 4) forms together an story arc, total of 2 films with two part each. |
| Fixed Gunnery and Fighter Tactics [Jacksonville Project] (for US. Navy) |
|
78 min | (1943) | The given runtime is of the series in whole rather than per individual film
The series is also known as Fighter Pilot ace Thach's series The tenth film in this series "Don't Kill Your friends" doesn't contain any animation and has thus nothing to do with Disney. Although the given running is for the series whole the running time of "Offensive Tactics against Enemy Fighters is known to be 21 minute. |
| US. Army Identification Series - WEFT (Wings, Engine, Flight Tails) (for U.S. Army) |
|
101 min | (1942) | The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. Small fragment of this series can be found on WDT: On Frontline |
| US Navy Identification - WEFT and Warships (for U.S. Navy) |
|
73 min | (1942) | The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. Small fragment of this series can be found on WDT: On Frontline |
| US Navy Identification 3-Point System Warships (for US Navy) |
|
135 min. | (1943) | The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. Small fragment of this series can be found on WDT: On Frontline |
| Beechcraft Maintenance and Repair (Beech Aircraft Corp., U.S. Army) |
1. Service, Inspection and Maintenance of the AT-11
2. Service, Inspection and Maintenance of the AT-10
3. Service, Inspection and Maintenance of the AT-7
4. Aircraft Wood Repair [Repairs of Wood Aircraft]
|
359 min. | (1943) | The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. Small fragment of this series can be found on WDT: On Frontline |
| Minneapolis Honeywell Project (U.S. Army) |
1. Theory of the C-1 Auto Pilot
2.Operation of the C-1 Auto Pilot
3. Maintenance and servicing of the C-1 Auto Pilo
4. Electronic Control system of the C-1 Auto Pilot
|
121 min. | (1943) | Co-Production with Minneapolis-Honeywell Regulator Company The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. Small fragment of this series can be found on WDT: On Frontline |
| Rules of the Nautical Road (for U.S. Navy) |
|
6 of 6 min 22 of 22 min. ? of 17 min. ? of 5 min. ? of 7 min. ? of 10 min. ? of 28 min. ? of 14 min. ? of 13 min. ? of 17 min. ? of 17 min. ? of 4 min. ? of 20 min. ? of 15 min ? of 5 min ? of 3 min ? of 15 min ? of 15 min ? of 5 min 5 of 5 min ? of 19 min. ? of 16 min. ? of 5 min ? of 14 min. ? of 5 min ? of 14 min. |
(1942) (1942) (1942) (1942) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) (1943) |
The list given in Shale's book is in correct. Small fragment of this series can be found on WDT: On Frontline |
| Glider Training (U.S. Army) |
|
17 of 23 min | (1943) | The runtime represent series as whole rather than per individual title. |
| The Mark 13-Modification I Aerial Torpedo (for US Navy) |
|
121 min. | (1943) | The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. |
| *High Level Precision Bombing [Colonel Garland Project] (for U.S. Army) |
|
61 min. | (1943) | The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. The names are incorrect in Shale's book |
| Basic Maintenance of Primary Training Airplanes [Aeronca Project] (U.S. Army, Aeronca Aircaraft Corp.) |
|
112 min. | (1943) | The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. |
| Carrier Rendezvous and Breakup (U.S. Navy) |
|
44 min. | (1943) | The runtime only represent what Disney contributed to this series as whole not per individual title. |
| Automotive Electricity for Military Vehicles (U.S. Army) (1944) |
|
? of 13 min ? of 13 min ? of 14 min ? of 11 min ? of 12 min ? of 14 min |
(1944) | The runtime 13 minutes that Disney contributed cannot be attributed to per individual title. One of them Starting Motor can be found at archive.org |
| Fundamentals of Artillery Weapons (for US Army) |
|
3? of 28 min 3? of 19 min |
(1944) | Shale's book only list the Disney material combined. But it most like that both films had bit of animation in them. |
| Theory of Simplex and Phantom Circuits (for US Army) |
|
? of 32 min | (1944) (1944) |
The runtime in Shale'S book seems to be of the both films combined. Complete series can be found archive.org |
| Tuning Transmitters (for US Army) |
|
? of 16 min ? of 20 min |
(1944) (1944) |
Shale in his book don't list this as series and thus the runtime of the Disney animation given of 20 min in total |
| Job (for US. Army) |
Your Job In Germany Your Job In Germany is a short film made for the United States War Department in 1945 just before Victory in Europe day. It was shown to U.S. soldiers about to go on occupation duty in Germany. The film was made by the military films unit commanded by Frank Capra, and was written by Theodor... |
2 of 11 min | (1944) | Has companion film Our Job in Japan Our Job in Japan Our Job in Japan was a United States military training film made in 1945, shortly after World War II. It is the companion to the more famous Your Job In Germany. The film was aimed at American troops about to go to Japan to participate in the 1945-1952 Allied Occupation, and presents the problem of... which had nothing to do with Disney but the series was co-created by Frank Capra. Disney's Our Job in Germany can be found online at Youtube |
| Burma Campaign (for US Army) |
The Stilwell Road (film) The Stilwell Road was a propaganda film produced by the American Office of War Information and the British and Indian film units in 1945 detailing the creation of the Ledo Road, also known as the Stilwell Road after the U.S. General Joseph Stilwell... |
8 of 50 min | (1945) | Burma Campaign was series of three films but the The Stilwell Road was the only film Disney contributed too and it can be found at Archive.org |
| Basic Map Reading (for U.S. Army) |
|
? of 19 min ? of 27 in. ? of 34 min ? of 22 min ? of 22 min. |
(1945) (1945) (1945) (1945) (1945) |
The Disney material in these films total of 16 minutes but there no info in Shale's book how that total distributes on the 5 films. This series was re-released in 1953. |
One-Shots
| Film Title | runtime | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Four Methods of Flush Riveting (for NFB) |
10 min | 1942 | The entire film's animated, and is very dry. The entry film can be found on WDT: On the front lines |
| Boys Anti-Tank Rifle (for NFB) |
21 min | 1942 | This film includes a comedy animation part which is also known as Stop that Tank! total of 3 minutes of film is entry runtime. The entry film can be found on WDT: On the front lines |
| Aircraft Carrier Landing Signals (for U.S. Navy) |
15 of ? min | 1942 | |
| Aircraft Carrier Mat Approaches and Landings (for U.S. Navy) |
14 of ? min | 1942 | |
| Protection against Chemical Warfare (for U.S. Navy) |
9 of ? min | 1942 | |
| Approaches and Landings (for U.S. Navy) |
17 of ? min | 1942 | |
| The Aleutian Islands [A.D.C. Project] (U.S. Army) |
2 of ? min | 1943 | This film might be also known as Report from the Aleutians Report from the Aleutians Report From the Aleutians is a 47-minute documentary propaganda film produced by the U.S. Army Signal Corps about the Aleutian Islands Campaign during World War II... which can be found online on Youtube |
| The Evasive Action (U.S. Army) |
2 of ? min | 1943 | This film is not in Shale's book but short clip of it can be found on WDT:On Front lines DVD it included both animation and live-action |
| Ice formation on Aircraft (for U.S. Army) |
48 min | 1943 | This film is not in Shale's book but edited reissue print can be found on archive.org |
| Air Transport Command (U.S. Army) |
10 of ? min. | 1943 | |
| Aircraft Carrier Landing Qualifications (U.S. Navy) |
10 of ? min. | 1943 | |
| British Torpedo Plane Tatics (for U.S. Navy) |
11 min. | 1943 | Film's total runtime is given rather than Disney material alone. This film was originally supposed to be 17 minutes but was cut down for some reason. |
| Fundamental Fixed Gunnery Approaches (for U.S. Navy) |
? min. | 1943 | Its possible that ideas form he unmade Gremlin film ended up in this film. |
| Fast Company (for U.S. Army) |
1 of x min. | 1943 | This film was not released, but was co-produced with rank |
| Substitution and Conversion (for U.S. Army) |
20 of ? min. | 1943 | Project 6021 |
| Carburetion, Basic Principles (for U.S. Army) |
12 of 27 min | 1944 | |
| Battle of Cape Gloucester (for U.S Army) |
3 of 58 min. | 1944 | Also known as Attack! Battle of New Britain which can be found online at Youtube |
| Howitzer, 105 mm M2A I and Carriage M2, Principles of Operation (U.S. Army) | 6 of min? | 1944 | |
| Operation and Maintenance of the Electronic Turbo Supercharger (U.S. Army) | 39 min | 1944 | Runtime of the film in whole rather than Disney material in the film. |
| Two Down and One to Go Two Down and One to Go Two Down and One to Go was a short propaganda film produced in 1945; as its title might suggest, its overall message was that the first two Axis powers, Italy and Germany, had been defeated, but that one, Japan, still had to be dealt with.... (U.S. Army) |
1 of 9 min. | 1944 | There's error in Shale is book it is stated to be 17 minutes. The film is shorter as is evident on youtube, |
| Attack in the Pacific Attack in the Pacific Attack in the Pacific is a 1944 American war documentary film.- Cast :*Henry H... (for O. W. I.) |
15 of 52 min | 1944 | Complete film can be found on Youtube |
| Air Breaks, Principles of operation (for US Army) |
9 of 25 min. | 1944 | Complete film can be found on Youtube but it's a reissue print from 1967, as the runtime of the 1967 is intact to the original 1944 version. |
| It's Your War, Too (for US. Army) |
1 of 9 min | 1944 | Complete film can be found on Youtube |
| The Case of the Tremendous Trifle (for US Army) |
2 of 20 min | 1944 | Complete film can be found on archive.org |
| Electric Brakes Principles of Operation (for US Army) |
2 of 13 min | 1944 | |
| Ward Care of Psychotic Patients (U.S. Army) | 29 of 41 min | 1944 | |
| Dental Health (for US Army) |
8 of 22 min | 1945 | Army number 8-2096 Complete film can be found on archive.org |
| On to Tokyo (for US Army) |
7 of 17 min | 1945 | |
| Another Change (UN Peace Charter) (for US Army) |
4 of ? min | 1945 | |
DVD releases
Some of those propaganda and training films have turned up uncensored on- Walt Disney TreasuresWalt Disney TreasuresThe Walt Disney Treasures is a two-disc DVD set of classic Disney works. They cover work from the studio's earliest days to their more recent work...
: On the Front Lines (DVD)
See also
- Walt Disney's World War II propaganda productions
- List of Disney animated shorts
- List of Disney live-action shorts