Stars in Blue: Movie Actors in America's Sea Services [Hardcover]

James E., Jr. Wise (Author), Anne Collier Rehill (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1997

Henry Fonda, Humphrey Bogart, Robert Montgomery, and Ernest Borgnine are among many stars who have portrayed naval personnel on film - but do their fans know that Fonda won a Bronze Star for his actions during Pacific naval encounters, that Bogart dropped a fleeing prisoner with his .45, that Montgomery was awarded a Bronze Star for his courageous performance of duty during the Normandy invasion, or that Borgnine hunted U-boats off America's East Coast? A virtual who's who, this entertaining and historically accurate work brings to life these and dozens of other stars' naval and coast guard service backgrounds and film careers. It is drawn from interviews with the actors, diaries, letters, and official military and film industry archives. Here you'll find out how John Howard won a Navy Cross, how Navy Hellcat ace Wayne Morris downed seven Japanese planes, how UDT frogman Aldo Ray reconned the Okinawa landing beaches, how Eddie Albert saved more than a dozen wounded marines on the bloody reefs of Tarawa, and how Hedy Lamarr patented World War II communications antijamming technology still in use today. Rarely have movie stars' real lives been portrayed in such detail, including interesting anecdotes from their Hollywood careers and never-before-published photographs from their military careers, including Paul Newman as a Navy radioman/gunner who flew in torpedo bombers during World War II.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

JAMES E. WISE Jr., a retired naval aviator and intelligence officer, is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including The Navy Cross, Shooting the War, and James Arness: An Autobiography.

ANNE COLLIER REHILL, who also coauthored Stars in the Corps with Wise, has published numerous articles and essays and taught English and French. She now works as a freelance writer and editor. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: US Naval Institute Press (September 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557509379
• ISBN-13: 978-1557509376
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,205,948 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating sidelights., November 3, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Stars in Blue: Movie Actors in America's Sea Services (Hardcover)

When World War II began it was natural that many movie stars, along with thousands of other Americans, would gravitate to the U.S. Navy. Some stars' contributions were confined to extensions of their show-business careers, but others rendered heroic combat service, and still others labored unglamorously in the mundane tasks without which no war can be won
Wayne Morris (fighter ace), Aldo Ray (frogman), Bill Cosby (Korean-era physical therapist), Rock Hudson (aircraft mechanic), Cesar Romero (Chief Boatswain's Mate USCG); their stories and many others are told in this fascinating record, with bibliography, good index, and many rare photos, some from the stars' own albums. Highly recommended.

(The "score" rating is an ineradicable feature of the page. This reviewer does not "score" books.)

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining anecdotal history, January 11, 1999

By 

A. Bowdoin Van Riper (Vineyard Haven, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Stars in Blue: Movie Actors in America's Sea Services (Hardcover)

This book is unlikely to revolutionize anyone's understanding of the history of the US Navy or the progress of World War II (when most of its subjects served), but it *is* great fun to read. The chapters are short, and the overall effect is a lot like sitting around listening to a bunch of old-timers spinning yarns about their time at sea. Some of the stories are exciting (Eddie Albert's), some are dull (Rock Hudson's), and at least one (Jack Lemmon's) is falling-down funny.

Though it may not have been the authors' purpose, the book also highlights an important truth about modern war: most of those who serve do so by doing dull, repetitive, vital jobs far from the front lines. "Mister Roberts" may be the most realistic war story of our era, after all.