Tonight I watched one of the Humphrey Bogart movies I had on order from the Libe. It was called "Action In The North Atlantic" (1943), and as the title and year indicate it is a WW2 film, though not about the Navy but rather the Merchant Marine. The MM is not a branch of the armed forces but a civilian outfit comprised of seamen and ships that run supplies to battle theaters in times of war. The film begins with a tense 25 minute sequence that erupts into action as the merchant ship Bogart is sailing on as First Officer is targeted then torpedoed by a German U-Boat. This entire segment is one of the most realistic looking I have seen in all the many WW2 submarine movies I've watched over the years. The torpedoing of a ship is brutal, with all of the immediate calamities that ensue, the oil fires and inrushing sea water, the collapsing infrastructure of the ship, heavy pieces falling and trapping sailors, the ship beginning to list and tilt upward in the water, the remaining men scrambling to launch the lifeboats, then attempting to jump down into them amidst the flames on the ocean.
Sorry to be so graphic but I had to give you an accurate description of the film's opening. It is The Real McCoy, as they used to say. The Nazis are ruthless as usual, trying to machine gun the survivors, and when that doesn't work, they ram the tiny lifeboat with their 250 ton U-Boat.
Bogey and Captain Raymond Massey survive, along with a few other sailors like Alan Hale Sr. and great 40s charater actor Dane Cook. Each man vows to sail again. They take great pride in their work as civilians supplying the armed forces against Hitler. Back at port, their Admiral tells them they are doing one of the most important jobs in the war. After a half hour interlude with each main character recovering back in the States with wives and family, the men are back at sea in a new ship, modern and fully equipped with the latest gunnery and even depth charges. The ship is loaded to the gills with cargo. Tanks, artillery, shells, gasoline, etc. This time their destination is Vladivostok, to supply our Russian allies with much needed machinery.
Can you imagine that the Russians were once our allies, albeit for a short period of time? One thing is for sure, if it had not been for them, Hitler might well have won the war. The Russians lost 20 million people (civilian and military) in the effort to stop Naziism, a mind bending and staggering number, a number that was one third of all war dead.
"Action In The North Atlantic" is also what was called a Propaganda Film, made during the war years and full of dialogue about how important it was for a sailor (or any soldier) to keep his mouth shut, follow orders and do his duty.
Thank God we had FDR running the show then, and the Greatest Generation leading the charge. There was no such thing as fake news or phoney leaders. America was really great back then, before some clown vowed insincerely to make it great again.
A new congress will seat tomorrow morning, and though I have little faith in the Democrats (see their championing of ineffective Elizabeth Warren as a potential candidate), I hope that maybe some of those wimps will finally stand up to this monster who has degraded our great country to the point where it is unrecognizable from where it once stood.
Democrats are namby-pamby and generally do not have what it takes to face off with Republicans, who by their very nature are akin to Nazis. This is not to say that they are Nazis, just to say that they have that element and those desires within them, exemplified by the criminal Trump, who would be in prison in a just world.
Here's hoping, though not expecting, that the Democrats will stand up to this maniac and finally shut him down, starting tomorrow.
Prayers to God and fingers crossed. Two Thumbs Up for "Action Across The Atlantic".
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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