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Best Writing Story and Screenplay | 1956
Box Office Collection 3,000,000 USD
The Mitchell family was very unhappy with the film, especially the casting of the tall, laconic Gary Cooper in the lead role. The real Billy Mitchell was short with an explosive temper. The family thought James Cagney would have been ideal.
Film debut of Elizabeth Montgomery.
The character played by Charles Bickford, Gen. Jimmy Guthrie, was a fabrication; such a person never existed. Instead, he was used by the filmmakers as a composite representative of two officers: Maj. Gen. Mason M. Patrick (Chief of the Air Service and Mitchell's direct superior at the time of the battleship Ostfriesland's sinking) and Maj. Gen. Robert Lee Howze, who presided over Mitchell's court-martial.
Although Gary Cooper had said long ago that he would make no more biopics, he signed for The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell (1955). It was a poor Otto Preminger film and even Billy Mitchell's widow expressed disappointment with Cooper's performance. Possibly the story had appealed to Cooper on political grounds and Mitchell may have been a hero of his - the general who accused the government of neglecting military needs. Cooper went on Ed Sullivan's TV show to promote the film and home viewers were quite disappointed - David Shipman referred to Cooper's "effeminate mannerisms in his TV interviews".
Maj. Gen. Charles P. Summerall was the original presiding judge until he was challenged by Mitchell's defense team and subsequently dismissed before testimony commenced. Summerall later gave evidence on the stand as a prosecution witness. Moreover, in interviews with the press, he described Mitchell as "one of that damned kind of soldier who's wonderful in war and terrible in peace."
"Admiral William S. Sims: The Navy hasn't got any policy on flying, they are ignoring the aeroplane in hopes that it will just go away."
"Admiral William S. Sims: Just because you read a lot of books about golf, doesn't make you a good golfer."
