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Mister Roberts Overview:

Mister Roberts (1955) was a Comedy - Drama Film directed by John Ford, Mervyn LeRoy and Joshua Logan (uncredited) and produced by Leland Hayward.

The film was based on the novel of the same name and also Stage Play written by Thomas Heggen published in 1946 (novel); Feb 18, 1948 - Jan 6, 1951 (play performed at Alvin Theatre, NY) .

SYNOPSIS

One of the great WWII comedies, this tale of day-to-day life on the cargo ship Reluctant satirizes the boredom, pettiness, cruelty, and illogic of the military. Fonda recreates his acclaimed Broadway role of the decent Lieutenant Roberts who, while enduring a crew of half-wits and a nasty captain with an inferiority complex (Cagney), fears the Pacific naval war will be over before he ever sees anything more explosive than a fire extinguisher of home-brewed "jungle juice." Director Ford includes a number of his stock company, such as Curtis and Bond. Followed by Ensign Pulver in 1964.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

Academy Awards 1955 --- Ceremony Number 28 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best Supporting ActorJack LemmonWon
Best PictureLeland Hayward, ProducerNominated
See More Oscar Winners

Mister Roberts BlogHub Articles:

Mister Roberts (1955)

By Beatrice on Feb 3, 2016 From Flickers in Time

Mister Roberts Directed by John Ford and Mervyn Leroy Written by Frank S. Nugent and Joshua Logan from the play by Logan and Thomas Heggen and the novel by Heggen 1955/USA Warner Bros./Orange Repeat viewing/Netflix This is pretty funny until it turns dark and features an all-star cast. Mr. Robe... Read full article

Mister Roberts (1955)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Aug 18, 2014 From 4 Star Films

Starring an all star cast including Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell, and Jack Lemmon, this comedy-drama chronicles the happenings on an unimportant boat during World War II. Mr. Roberts (Fonda) is one of the officers on The Reluctant and he is good to his men but constantly at odds with th... Read full article

Mister Roberts (1955)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Aug 18, 2014 From 4 Star Films

Starring an all star cast including Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell, and Jack Lemmon, this comedy-drama chronicles the happenings on an unimportant boat during World War II. Mr. Roberts (Fonda) is one of the officers on The Reluctant and he is good to his men but constantly at odds with th... Read full article

A Strange Mess: Mister Roberts

By Judy on Jul 10, 2014 From Cary Grant Won't Eat You

... Read full article

A Strange Mess: Mister Roberts

By Judy on Jul 10, 2014 From Cary Grant Won't Eat You

This is a contribution to the John Ford blogathon sponsored by Christianne Benedict at Krell Laboratories and Bemused and Nonplussed. Check out all the marvelous entries! Punching his leading man. Drinking on the set. Quitting the production after being hospitalized. The tales of John Ford’s behav... Read full article

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Mister Roberts Quotes:

Chief Petty Officer Dowdy: [Referring to the letter from Forney] Could I have that, I'd like to post it for the crew.
Lt. 'Doc': [Referring to the letter from Roberts] No, post this one. It's theirs.
Capt. Morton: [on the loudspeaker in reference to his "missing" palm tree... ] All right! Who did it? Who did it? You are going to stand sweating at those battle stations until someone confesses! It's an insult to the honor of this ship! The symbol of our cargo record has been destroyed and I'm going to find out who did it if it takes all night!
Reber: Say, Doc, when I woke up this morning, I had...
Lt. 'Doc': And remembered you were working cargo. Continue.
Reber: [holds his side] Honest, Doc, I couldn't even straighten up! I guess it's the old appendix again, huh, Doc?
Lt. 'Doc': That appendix of yours certainly gets around, Reber. Now it's on the wrong side. Two aspirin, marked for duty. Next.
Reber: Aspirin? For a floatin' appendix, Doc?
Lt. 'Doc': Yes, it's the latest thing. I'll have one with you.
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Mister Roberts Facts
Both Marlon Brando and William Holden turned down the role of Mr. Roberts.
When the stuntman hired to do the motorcycle going off the pier stunt refused to do the stunt, John Ford hired a bystander who couldn't ride a motorcycle but had the nerve to try the stunt. The "bystander" was a young Marine named Jack Lewis, who wasn't even an experienced rider. However, being young and foolish, Lewis said, "Sure, I'll do it." The Marine Corps wouldn't let Ford pay Lewis the $700 he offered, so Ford went into the nearby Hilton hotel and told the management that Lewis could drink in the bar on Ford's tab for the next year. Lewis went on to become an author ("Chosen Tales of Chosin;" "The Sandtrap Marines") and publisher of magazines ("Gun World") and trade paperbacks ("Gun Digest Book of Guns," etc.), but one who maintained friendships with many in the movie business, including numerous cowboy film stars.
The ship "Ghost" in the film was sister ship to the USS Pueblo that was captured by communist North Korea as an alleged spy ship in 1968.
Before shooting the scene where Pulver identifies himself and tells the Captain that he's been on the ship for "14months, sir", James Cagney realized that he would have to rehearse the moment with Jack Lemmon again and again so he wouldn't burst out laughing during the actual filming. Lemmon agreed, and when the scene was filmed Cagney claimed he was just barely able to hang on with a straight face, even after all the rehearsal time.
The ship used for filming is the fishing vessel "Ghost".
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