The Hollywood History of the Second World War

August · 08-22-06, 09:29 AM

It would have been cool if you had cited the movies it came from. Good job though.

STEED · 08-22-06, 11:16 AM

What a load of rubbish.

Hellcat · 08-25-06, 01:59 PM

Funny as hell, I think the scary part is that there is people out there that take what they see on the silver screen at face value. I've seen much the same happen with websites which do not accurately detail history. I've talked to people who refuse to believe that the Battleship Bismarck was a technically "old school" design compared to other modern Battleships (US North Carolina, etc) based solely on her action with HMS Hood and HMS Prince of Whales and what they read on the net....

Hollywood really needs to get their crap together, sure entertainment is important but when you use a historic event as the backdrop try to get it somewhat close to what really happend.

Ishmael · 08-25-06, 07:36 PM

I lived in LA/Pasadena for 8 years. I've worked all over Hollywood & Beverly Hills. Hollywood never let the truth get in the way of a good story. That has been the Hollywood way since the invention of the cinema. You're only dealing with recent films about Hollywood. My favorite was Action in the North Atlantic, a 1943 film with Raymond Massey & Humphrey Bogart, purporting to tell the story of our fighting Merchant Seamen. This is the one my Merchant Seaman father saw in Nebraska when it came out & laughed his way through the entire movie. It wasn't shown for decades after the war because it showed the Russians in a positive light, so I only recently got a chance to watch it. The scenes showing a can't-get-out-of-it's-own-way, 12-knot max speed Liberty ship slewing around the ocean like a destroyer was quite humorous. My favorite of recent vintage was the remake of Memphis Belle, where the B-17 pilot makes the entire group go around the target area twice to avoid hitting a school. Yeah...Right. the one salient fact you must remember about LA/Hollywood is that in the Metro LA area there are two airports named after John Wayne, who never served a day in the military and none named after Jimmy Stewart, who flew 25 combat missions over Europe as a B-24 pilot, won the Distinguished Flying Cross & retired from the Air Force as a Brigadier General. When Stewart returned to Hollywood after the war, he forbade the studios from using his war record in any of their publicity. For this, he earned my undieing respect.

nikimcbee · 08-27-06, 10:09 PM

Has anybody seen the History Channel's "History or Hollywood" debate of U-571? It's pretty comical, to see these guys take this show seriously. I just happen to have it on tape...

Pax Melmacia · 08-29-06, 01:23 AM

And to think all these years I believed Grandpa Abe Simpson's version.

I have a thread around here somewheres on how some brave Yank always manages to find himself in battles where no American actually participated.

Here in the Philippines a favorite staple is how said Yank manages to defeat an entire Japanese garrison at a time when most Americans in the area were either in prison or just laying low. The favorite secret weapon, of course, is a submachinegun with 'smart' bullets where one magazine can wipe out an entire platoon. Oh. And the grenades that always land an inch from the enemy's foot.

08-22-06, 09:29 AM	#1
August Wayfaring Stranger Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 23,202 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	It would have been cool if you had cited the movies it came from. Good job though. __________________ Flanked by life and the funeral pyre. Putting on a show for you to see.

08-22-06, 11:16 AM	#2
STEED Lucky Jack Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Down Town UK Posts: 27,695 Downloads: 89 Uploads: 48	What a load of rubbish. __________________ Dr Who rest in peace 1963-2017. To borrow Davros saying...I NAME YOU CHIBNALL THE DESTROYER OF DR WHO YOU KILLED IT!

08-25-06, 01:59 PM	#3
Hellcat Ensign Join Date: May 2004 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 224 Downloads: 7 Uploads: 0	Funny as hell, I think the scary part is that there is people out there that take what they see on the silver screen at face value. I've seen much the same happen with websites which do not accurately detail history. I've talked to people who refuse to believe that the Battleship Bismarck was a technically "old school" design compared to other modern Battleships (US North Carolina, etc) based solely on her action with HMS Hood and HMS Prince of Whales and what they read on the net.... Hollywood really needs to get their crap together, sure entertainment is important but when you use a historic event as the backdrop try to get it somewhat close to what really happend. __________________ "readiness is only accomplished when the need for it is over"

08-27-06, 10:09 PM	#5
nikimcbee Fleet Admiral Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Patroling the Slot. Posts: 17,952 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	Has anybody seen the History Channel's "History or Hollywood" debate of U-571? It's pretty comical, to see these guys take this show seriously. I just happen to have it on tape... __________________

08-25-06, 07:36 PM	#4
Ishmael Seasoned Skipper Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Morro Bay, Ca. Posts: 659 Downloads: 79 Uploads: 0	I lived in LA/Pasadena for 8 years. I've worked all over Hollywood & Beverly Hills. Hollywood never let the truth get in the way of a good story. That has been the Hollywood way since the invention of the cinema. You're only dealing with recent films about Hollywood. My favorite was Action in the North Atlantic, a 1943 film with Raymond Massey & Humphrey Bogart, purporting to tell the story of our fighting Merchant Seamen. This is the one my Merchant Seaman father saw in Nebraska when it came out & laughed his way through the entire movie. It wasn't shown for decades after the war because it showed the Russians in a positive light, so I only recently got a chance to watch it. The scenes showing a can't-get-out-of-it's-own-way, 12-knot max speed Liberty ship slewing around the ocean like a destroyer was quite humorous. My favorite of recent vintage was the remake of Memphis Belle, where the B-17 pilot makes the entire group go around the target area twice to avoid hitting a school. Yeah...Right. the one salient fact you must remember about LA/Hollywood is that in the Metro LA area there are two airports named after John Wayne, who never served a day in the military and none named after Jimmy Stewart, who flew 25 combat missions over Europe as a B-24 pilot, won the Distinguished Flying Cross & retired from the Air Force as a Brigadier General. When Stewart returned to Hollywood after the war, he forbade the studios from using his war record in any of their publicity. For this, he earned my undieing respect.

08-29-06, 01:23 AM	#6
Pax Melmacia Watch Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Philippines Posts: 27 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	And to think all these years I believed Grandpa Abe Simpson's version. I have a thread around here somewheres on how some brave Yank always manages to find himself in battles where no American actually participated. Here in the Philippines a favorite staple is how said Yank manages to defeat an entire Japanese garrison at a time when most Americans in the area were either in prison or just laying low. The favorite secret weapon, of course, is a submachinegun with 'smart' bullets where one magazine can wipe out an entire platoon. Oh. And the grenades that always land an inch from the enemy's foot.