The Tanks Are Coming (1941)
Encyclopedia
The Tanks Are Coming is a 1941 Technicolor
short movie
. It is primarily a recruitment movie, but can also be regarded as a propaganda movie or a documentary with some light relief. Like Dive Bomber
(of the same year) it is a pre-Pearl Harbor
movie, made with the co-operation of the relevant branch of the US armed forces, showing off US military material to the US public, in lavish Technicolor. This material is shown in motion, both on the road and in the field; training equipment and methods are also featured.
It was nominated for an Oscar, in the category Best Short Subject.
) and his cab Betsy enlist in the "First Armored Force"
and get caught up in large-scale mechanized maneuvers. The tank featured in the short was the U.S Army's M2 Light Tank
.
as Malowski
William Travis (i.e. Richard Travis) as Pete
Byron Barr [later known as Gig Young
] as Jim Allen
Frank Wilcox
as Colonel
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
short movie
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
. It is primarily a recruitment movie, but can also be regarded as a propaganda movie or a documentary with some light relief. Like Dive Bomber
Dive Bomber (film)
Dive Bomber is a 1941 American propaganda film directed by Michael Curtiz. It is notable for both its Technicolor photography of pre-World War II United States Navy aircraft and as a historical document of the US in 1941, including the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, one of the best known World...
(of the same year) it is a pre-Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
movie, made with the co-operation of the relevant branch of the US armed forces, showing off US military material to the US public, in lavish Technicolor. This material is shown in motion, both on the road and in the field; training equipment and methods are also featured.
It was nominated for an Oscar, in the category Best Short Subject.
Plot
New York taxicab driver Malowski (George TobiasGeorge Tobias
George Tobias was an American character actor.-Early life and career:Born to a Jewish family in New York, he began his acting career at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California. He then spent several years in theater groups before moving on to Broadway and, eventually, Hollywood...
) and his cab Betsy enlist in the "First Armored Force"
1st Armored Division (United States)
The 1st Armored Division—nicknamed "Old Ironsides"—is a standing armored division of the United States Army with base of operations in Fort Bliss, Texas. It was the first armored division of the U.S...
and get caught up in large-scale mechanized maneuvers. The tank featured in the short was the U.S Army's M2 Light Tank
M2 Light Tank
The Light Tank M2 was an American pre-World War II light tank that saw combat with the US Marine Corps 1st Tank Battalion on Guadalcanal in 1942, during World War II. Its service with the 1st Tank Battalion during the Pacific War was its only U.S...
.
Credited cast
George TobiasGeorge Tobias
George Tobias was an American character actor.-Early life and career:Born to a Jewish family in New York, he began his acting career at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California. He then spent several years in theater groups before moving on to Broadway and, eventually, Hollywood...
as Malowski
William Travis (i.e. Richard Travis) as Pete
Byron Barr [later known as Gig Young
Gig Young
Gig Young was an American film, stage, and television actor. Known mainly for second leads and supporting roles, Young won an Academy Award for his performance as a dance-marathon emcee in the 1969 film, They Shoot Horses, Don't They?.-Early life and career:Born Byron Elsworth Barr in St...
] as Jim Allen
Frank Wilcox
Frank Wilcox
Frank Reppy Wilcox was an American character actor who made over 150 film appearances and almost 200 TV appearances...
as Colonel