A Guy Named Joe
Short description
Major Pete Sandidge is a brash American bomber pilot flying missions out of England during the Second World War, and Dorinda Durston is the equally daring pilot he loves. When Pete is killed on a combat flight, he is brought before a heavenly General and given a new assignment: return to Earth in an immaterial form to watch over a young pilot, Captain Ted Randall. Unable to intervene directly in the lives of the living, Pete finds his task complicated when Ted falls for Dorinda, and he must decide whether to keep guarding the younger man or step aside.
Victor Fleming directed the film, which came late in a career that included Red Dust, Captains Courageous, Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of Oz and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Spencer Tracy and Irene Dunne lead the cast, with Van Johnson as Ted and Lionel Barrymore as the General. Dalton Trumbo wrote the screenplay, and Everett Riskin produced for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Made for about 3 million dollars, it returned roughly 5 million worldwide. On IMDb it holds a 6.9 rating from around 3,200 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 6.7 from a much smaller group of 55 voters.
What's left behind the scenes
- The scene where Spencer Tracy stands behind the flying Van Johnson, and then Irene Dunne, was filmed in reality, as compositing techniques had not yet been invented at the time. The same technique was used in the film 'The Ghost and Mrs. Muir' (1947).
- The film's script was initially not approved by the US War Department due to fears of psychological trauma among pilots and their parents. Only after revising the script did the army agree to assist with filming.
- This is the debut film of Edward Hardwicke, remembered for his role as Dr. Watson in numerous adaptations of the works of Arthur Conan Doyle.
- When Van Johnson was seriously injured in a car accident on March 31, 1943, Irene Dunne and Spencer Tracy insisted that the project be frozen until his recovery. During those three months of downtime, MGM studio persuaded Dunne to star in "White Cliffs of Dover" (1944), and in gratitude for the actress's behavior, Johnson appeared in an episode of that film.
- In 1989, Steven Spielberg filmed a remake titled "Forever". The ending of the film was changed, and Dorinda did not take her own life to reunite with Pete in heaven.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
