The Wackiest Ship in the Army (1960)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Richard Murphy

Writers:

Herbert Carlson (story)
Herbert H. Margolis (story)

Release Date:

29 December 1960 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | War

Tagline:

RiCKY NELSON Your No. 1 Singing Star hits the high C's in...The WACKiEST SHiP in the ARMY

Plot:

Lieutenant Rip Crandall is hoodwinked into taking command of the "Wackiest Ship in the Navy" - a real...

Plot Keywords:

Navy | Army

Cast

Jack Lemmon	...	Lt. Rip Crandall
Ricky Nelson	...	Ens. Tommy J. Hanson
John Lund	...	Lt. Cmdr. Wilbur F. Vandewater
Chips Rafferty	...	Patterson (coast watcher)
Tom Tully	...	Capt. McClung
Joby Baker	...	Josh Davidson
Warren Berlinger	...	Radioman 2nd Class A.J. 'Sparks' Sparks
Patricia Driscoll	...	Maggie
Mike Kellin	...	Chief Mate Jack MacCarthy
Richard Anderson	...	Lt. Dennis M. Foster
Alvy Moore	...	Seaman J. Johnson (cook)
Joseph Gallison	...	'Cameo' (USS Echo crewman)
Teru Shimada	...	Maj. Samada
George Shibata	...	Capt. Shigetsu
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dale Ishimoto	...	Japanese pilot

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Eastman Color)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Australia:G | USA:Approved (certificate #19722) | UK:U | Finland:K-8

Filming Locations:

Kaua`i, Hawaii, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

As Lemmon and Nelson are training the crew in how to unfurl the mainsail, you can see the stern of the USS Fletcher in the background. The Fletcher earned 15 battle stars in WWII and Korea. She was one of the most decorated destroyers to serve in the South Pacific. She was scrapped in 1972.

Goofs:

Factual errors: In the scene where the Japanese reconnaissance plane photographs the ship, he uses an American made Graflex K-20 aerial camera.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in My Fellow Americans (1996)

Lightweight and breezy...and quintessential Jack Lemmon!!!

This is one of those overlooked films Lemmon made in the early years of his legendary career. It kind of became lost in the midst of such higher profile films as "Some Like it Hot" and "The Apartment", and never truly found its way out. "The Wackiest Ship in the Army" represents a list of forgotten Lemmon titles that deserve recognition. Such films include, "It Happened to Jane", "Operation Mad Ball", "The Notorious Landlady", and "Alex & the Gypsy".

"Wackiest" is a one of those type of films that is perfect for a lazy afternoon. Often amusing and boasting a quintessential Lemmon performance, it's worth checking out just for pure nostalgia!

*** (out of 5)