Product Details

• Actors: Monte Markham
• Directors: Hugh Munro Neely, Lee Fulkerson, Ron Marryott, Stephen Purvis, Ted Braun
• Writers: Hugh Munro Neely, Lee Fulkerson, Ron Marryott, Ted Braun, William Dance
• Producers: Stephen Purvis, Ferde Grofé Jr., Keith Lawrence, Kristen Masterson, Michelle Faurol
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Sony Pictures
• VHS Release Date: June 2, 1998
• Run Time: 50 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• ASIN: 6302796814
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #500,641 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When practical submarines came into service in the early 1900s, no one was really sure how to use them effectively as a weapon. Their use as U-boats in World War I soon showed their potential as killing machines, so much so that they were effectively banned by an international naval treaty in 1930. This video focuses on how the submarine went from being an outlawed weapon to a dominant naval tool of the modern era, highlighting the contributions of three men whose ideas made the sub preeminent: the German admiral Karl Dönitz, whose wolf packs attacked the Allies during World War II, and the American admirals Hyman Rickover, who pioneered nuclear propulsion for subs, and William Raborn, who oversaw the development of the Polaris missile, which gave U.S. subs nuclear capability. Good use is made of archival footage, including film of American tests of nuclear power and missile technology, and keeping the focus on three major innovators of submarine strategy and science proves to be an effective framework for efficiently delivering the story of how the submarine assumed a vital role in today's navy. --Robert J. McNamara

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Submarines :Diesel to Nuclear, January 8, 2001

By 

Russell Schmitt (Mankato, MN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Us News: Submarines [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This video was excellent from the start. The earliest submarines to be filmed were shown in this video, as well as how interest in the submarine's capabilities increased their development. The video depicted the use of U-boats in WWI and WW2 and briefly mentioned the use of U.S. submarines in the Pacific. As a former navy nuclear technician stationed on a submarine, I was most fascinated by watching the beginning of the nuclear submarine. The world's first nuclear prototype, where I trained, was included in the video. As the Soviet Union made advances in space, fear of nuclear war intensified. This shock prompted the design and construction of the first fleet ballistic missle submarine, as so stated in the film. This video is, in my opinion, an excellent to my collection.