Operation Petticoat

United States

1959

124 Min

Color

1.85:1

English

Currently 3.1/5 Stars.
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SCR Stanley Shapiro, Maurice Richlin, Paul King, Joseph Stone

CAST Cary Grant, Tony Curtis, Joan O'Brien, Dina Merrill, Gene Evans, Dick Sargent, Virginia Gregg, Robert F. Simon, Robert Gist, Gavin MacLeod, George Dunn, Dick Crockett, Madlyn Rhue, Marion Ross, Clarence Lung, Frankie Darro, Tony Pastor Jr., Robert F. Hoy, Nicky Blair, John W. Morley, Arthur O'Connell

PROD DES Alexander Golitzen, Robert Emmet Smith

MUSIC David Rose, Henry Mancini

Synopsis

Admiral Matt Sherman (Cary Grant) was the first commander of the submarine the U.S.S. Sea Tiger, which saw action at the beginning of World War II. On the morning of its decommissioning because of age, Matt reminisces about how in 1941, some 18 years ago, he commanded that boat. Matt narrates by reading selected logs to us from the U.S.S. Sea Tiger captain’s journal.

On December 10, 1941, the new Sea Tiger is ready for battle in the Philippines when a surprise enemy attack badly damages it. Although Matt’s boss, Capt. J. P. Henderson (Robert F. Simon), orders the ship grounded, Matt gets permission to make enough crude repairs to transport her to the nearest port. Henderson assigns Matt a skeleton crew. The next day there’s the auspicious arrival of the brash wheeler-dealer Lt. Nick Holden (Tony Curtis), a socialite Naval officer in a spotless uniform who has never sailed before. Viewing himself more as an “idea man” than a sailor, Nick gets appointed to be the new supply officer and since the ship has no supplies, he recruits seaman Hunkle (Gavin MacLeod) and a morose sailor called “The Prophet” (George Dunn) to help him raid the local supply warehouse. The crew steal enough supplies from everywhere possible to get the Sea Tiger seaworthy again. The Sea Tiger then goes out to sea and when forced to dock at a Pacific island because of a leak, Nick brings back to the ship a quintet of stranded army nurses —Maj. Edna Heywood (Virginia Gregg), Lt. Barbara Duran (Dina Merrill), Lt. Claire Reid (Madlyn Rhue), Lt. Ruth Colfax (Marion Ross), and Lt. Dolores Crandall (Joan O’Brien). Matt has little choice but to take them to Manila. —Dennis Schwartz

Director

Blake Edwards

Blake Edwards’ stepfather’s father J. Gordon Edwards was a silent screen director, and his stepfather Jack McEdwards was a stage director and movie production manager. Blake acted in a number films, beginning with Ten Gentlemen from West Point (1942) and wrote a number of others, beginning with Panhandle (1948) and including six for director Richard Quine. He created the popular TV series “Peter Gunn” (1958), “Mr. Lucky” (1959) and “Dante” (1960). He directed a diverse body of films, from comedies to dramas to war films to westerns, including such pictures as Operation Petticoat (1959), Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961), Experiment in Terror (1962), Days of Wine and Roses (1962), The Pink Panther (1963) and A Shot in the Dark (1964). After The Great Race (1965) he began fighting with studios. In England he surfaced again with The Return of the Pink Panther (1975), then went back to Hollywood and a real hit, 10 (1979). Victor Victoria (1982) won him French and Italian awards for Best Foreign… read more