Produced by the United States Navy and released in January 1945 by 20th Century Fox, Technicolor 35mm print from 16mm negative, 1.33:1 screen ratio, mono sound, 61 mins., DVD released 2001.
Cinematography by Edward Steichen, Philippe De Lacy, Dwight Long, R.L. Middleton
Film Editing by Robert Fritch
Sound by Roger Heman Sr., George Leverett
Special Map Effects by Fred Sersen
Cast:
Lt. Robert Taylor as narrator
Capt. J. J. Clark as "Jocko"
Adm. Halsey as the Admiral
Scrappy as himself
Notes:
This documentary film describes the campaigns of the USS Yorktown from its commissioning in May 1943 as CV-10, the second carrier to bear the name "Yorktown" (CV-5 was sunk at the Battle of Midway), passing through the Panama Canal, to Pearl Harbor, joined sister ship USS Essex (CV-9) in TF15 for raid on Marcus Island Aug. 31, 1943, where its planes were the first to take off from the deck of an Essex-class carrier in combat, to Kwajalein and Truk in 1944 (TF50), to the "magnificent new naval base" in the Marshall Islands (Majuro Atoll) where it joined the new ships of the growing Pacific fleet. Under new captain "Dixie" the ship became part of TF58 led by Admiral Marc Mitscher, Hellcats downed a Japanese "Emily" seaplane, prepared for the attack on the Marianas (Guam, Saipan) using variety of weapons, including the new rockets, defended against Japanese air attack, joined in the "Marianas Turkey Shoot." The ship returned to the West Coast in August 1944, then went back to combat in October. The film was finished for preview Dec. 27, 1944, and for general release in January 1945.
Awards:
Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature of 1944
Special Award from 11th New York Film Critics Awards in 1945
