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Operation Petticoat

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Operation Petticoat
Theatrical releasehalf-sheet display poster
Directed byBlake Edwards
Screenplay byStanley Shapiro
Maurice Richlin
Based ona story suggested by
Paul King
Joseph B. Stone
Produced byRobert Arthur
Starring
Narrated byCary Grant
CinematographyRussell Harlan
Edited by
Music by
Production
company
Granart Company
Distributed byUniversal International
Release date
  • December 5, 1959(1959-12-05)
Running time
124 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$9,321,555 (US and Canada rentals)[1][Note 1]

Operation Petticoatis a 1959 AmericanWorld War IIsubmarinecomedy filminEastmancolorfromUniversal-International,produced byRobert Arthur,directed byBlake Edwards,and starringCary GrantandTony Curtis.

The film tells inflashbackthe misadventures of a fictionalU.S. Navysubmarine,USSSea Tiger,during theBattle of the Philippinesin the opening days of theUnited States involvement in World War II.Some elements of the screenplay were taken from actual incidents that happened with some of thePacific Fleet's submarines during the war. Members of the cast include several actors who went on to become television stars in the 1960s and 1970s:Gavin MacLeodofThe Love BoatandMcHale's Navy,Marion RossofHappy Days,andDick SargentofBewitched.

Paul King,Joseph Stone,Stanley Shapiro,andMaurice Richlinwere nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Writingfor their work onOperation Petticoat.The film was the basis for aTV series in 1977starringJohn Astinin Grant's role.

Plot[edit]

In 1959, U. S. NavyRear AdmiralMatt Sherman,ComSubPac,boards the obsolete diesel submarine USSSea Tiger,prior to her departure for thescrapyard.Sherman, her first commanding officer, begins reading his wartime personallogbook,and aflashbackbegins.

On December 10, 1941, a Japaneseair raidsinksSea Tigerwhile she is docked at theCavite Navy Yardin the Philippines.Lieutenant CommanderSherman and his crew begin repairs, hoping to sail forDarwin,Australia,before the Japanese overrun the port. Believing there is no chance of repairing the submarine, the squadron commodore transfers most of Sherman's crew to other boats, but promises Sherman that he will have first call on any available replacements.Lieutenant (junior grade)Nick Holden, an admiral's aide, is reassigned toSea Tigerdespite a total lack of submarine training or experience.

Holden demonstrates great skill as a scrounger after Sherman makes him the supply officer. He teams up withMarineSergeantRamon Gallardo, an escaped prisoner (caught misappropriating Navy property to run his own restaurant), to obtain materials desperately needed for repairs. What Holden and his men cannot acquire from base warehouses, they steal.

Restored to barely seaworthy condition,Sea Tigerputs to sea after a nativewitch doctorcasts a protection spell on her.Sea TigerreachesMarinduque,where Sherman reluctantly agrees to evacuate five strandedArmy nurses.Holden is attracted toSecond LieutenantBarbara Duran, while Sherman has a series of embarrassing encounters with the well-endowed and clumsy Second Lieutenant Dolores Crandall. Later, when Sherman prepares to attack an enemyoilermoored to a pier, Crandall accidentally fires a torpedo prematurely. It misses the tanker and instead "sinks" a truck ashore.

USSBalaostanding in forOperation Petticoat's fictional USSSea Tiger

Sherman tries to put the nurses ashore atCebu,but an Army officer tells him the Japanese are closing in. Unable to obtain needed supplies from official sources, Sherman allows Holden to set up a casino to acquire them from the troops. Chief Torpedoman Molumphry, the Chief of the Boat, has been asking for paint. Holden manages to get someredandwhite leadprimer paint,but does not have enough of either for the entire hull. Sherman reluctantly has the two mixed together, resulting in a pale pink primer that is applied. A Japanese air raid forces a hasty departure before the crew can apply a top coat of navy gray.

Tokyo Rosemocks the mysterious pink submarine, while the U.S. Navy believes it to be a Japanese deception and orders that it be sunk on sight. An American destroyer spotsSea Tigerand opens fire, then launchesdepth chargeswhen the submarinecrash dives.Sherman tries an oil slick and then launches blankets, pillows, and life jackets from his one working torpedo tube, but the deception fails. At Holden's suggestion, Sherman ejects the nurses' lingerie. Crandall's bra convinces the destroyer's captain that "the Japanese have nothing like this", and he ceases fire.Sea Tiger,still painted pink, arrives at Darwin, battered and listing, but under her own power.

Sherman's reminiscence ends with the arrival ofCommanderNick Holden, his wife (the former Lieutenant Duran), and their two sons. Sherman promises Holden command of a newnuclear-powered submarine,also namedSea Tiger.Sherman's wife (the former Lieutenant Crandall) arrives late with their four daughters andrear-endsher husband's staff car, causing it to lock bumpers with a Navy bus. When the bus drives away, dragging his car with it, Sherman reassures his wife that it will be stopped at the main gate. Commander Holden then takesSea Tigerout on her final voyage.

Cast[edit]

Production[edit]

Curtis took credit for the inception ofOperation Petticoat.He had joined the U.S. Navy during World War II intending to enter the submarine service in part because his hero, Cary Grant, had appeared inDestination Tokyo(1943). After he became a star, Curtis suggested making a film in which Grant would stare into a periscope as he did inDestination Tokyo.Curtis very much enjoyed working with Grant.[2]

Former Universal-International contract actorJeff Chandlerwas originally set to have played Matt Sherman, but pulled out to filmThe Jayhawkers(1959) instead.[3]Tina Louiseturned down the role of one of the nurses as she felt the film had too manysex jokes.[4]

Operation Petticoatwas produced with extensive support of theDepartment of Defenseand the US Navy. Most of the filming was done in and around Naval Station Key West, now theTruman AnnexofNaval Air Station Key West,Florida, which substituted for the Philippines and Australia. Filming for the period suggesting postwar 1959 was done atNaval Station San Diego,California.

USSSea Tigerwas portrayed by three different American World War IIBalao-class submarines:

  • USSQueenfish,in the opening and closing scenes (the "393" on the conning tower being visible)
  • USSArcherfish,for all the scenes where the boat was painted the standard gray and black
  • USSBalao,for all the scenes in whichSea Tigerwas painted pink

The attacking destroyer and, during the arrival at Darwin, the destroyer visible in the background is theFletcher-class destroyerUSSWren.

Historical accuracy[edit]

A plot error says thatSea Tigeris heading to Darwin to meet up with thesub tenderUSSBushnellin December 1941;Bushnellwas not commissioned until 1943.

As noted above, the fictionalSea Tigeris played by three differentBalao-class submarines. The action of the film begins on December 10, 1941, with theSea Tigerobviously already in-service; however, the firstBalao-class submarine would not be launched until late October 1942. (Based on her name, theSea Tigerprobably would have been a prewar,Sargo-class submarine.)

Some of the plot points ofOperation Petticoatwere based on real-life incidents, such as:

  • The evacuation of one Navy nurse and several Army nurses fromCorregidorto Australia by the submarineUSSSpearfish,commanded by future Navy Cross recipientJames C. Dempsey;[Note 2]
  • The evacuation of Filipino civilians to Australia may have been inspired by the USSNarwhal'sevacuation of 32 civilians from Mindanao, including 8 women, 2 children, and an infant during her seventh war patrol on November 15, 1943.[5]
  • The sinking of the submarineUSSSealionat the pier atCavite Navy Yardin the Philippines;[6]
  • The torpedoing of a bus by theUSSBowfin;[Note 3]
  • Captain Sherman's letter to the supply department at Cavite on the inexplicable lack of toilet paper (based on an actual letter to the supply department ofMare Island Naval Shipyardby Lieutenant CommanderJames Wiggins "Red" Coeof the submarineUSSSkipjack);[7][8]
  • The need to paint a submarine pink because of a lack of enough red or white lead undercoat: Heat from the burning USSSealionalso scorched off the black paint on the nearbyUSSSeadragon;for a time, the submarine fought with only her red lead undercoat visible. This ledTokyo Roseto disparage American "red pirate submarines".[9]
  • Another possible source for the "pink" submarine is the decoratedUSSHarder,commanded bySamuel David Dealey.Under the belief that a pinkish tint would help with camouflage, especially near dawn and dusk, Dealey added pink to the light grey that was standard for the Navy's Measure 32 paint scheme.[citation needed]

Reception[edit]

Operation Petticoatwas a hit with audiences and critics. Onreview aggregatorRotten Tomatoes,the film has an approval rating of 81% based on 21 reviews, with an average score of 6.60/10.[10]

The review inVarietywas typical: "Operation Petticoat has no more weight than a sackful of feathers, but it has a lot of laughs. Cary Grant and Tony Curtis are excellent, and the film is directed by Blake Edwards with a slam-bang pace".[11] A much more restrained commentary came fromBosley CrowtherofThe New York Times,who noted in his December 8, 1959 review that the plot device of women aboard a wartime submarine was strained. "And that is the obvious complication upon which are pointedly based at least 60 per cent of the witticisms and sight gags in the film. How to berth the nurses in the exceedingly limited space, how to explain to them the functioning of the bathroom facilities, how to compel the sailors to keep their well-diverted minds on their work — these are the endless petty problems that vex Commander Grant".[12]

Box office performance[edit]

Operation Petticoatwas a huge box office hit, earning over $9.3 million intheatrical rentalsin the United States and Canada,[1]which made itthe third highest-grossing film of 1959,the highest-domestic-grossing comedy of all-time up to that point,[13]as well as the most financially successful film of Cary Grant's career. Through his contract, Grant's residuals topped $3 million, makingOperation Petticoathis most profitable film to date.[14]

1977 television series[edit]

The television cast: back, from left: Dorrie Thomson,Jamie Lee Curtis,Melinda Naud, Bond Gideon. Front, from left:Richard Gilliland,John Astin.
Main article:Operation Petticoat (TV series)

Operation Petticoatwas adapted as anABC-TVseries which ran from September 17, 1977, to August 10, 1979.[15]Initially starringJohn Astinin Grant's role of Lieutenant Commander Sherman, the TV series cast Tony Curtis' daughter,Jamie Lee Curtis,as Lieutenant Duran. Most of the cast was replaced for the show's second season, a decision that led to low ratings and cancellation.[citation needed]Only 32 episodes of the series (22 in season 1, 10 in season 2) were produced in total.

References[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^Please note this figure is rentals accruing to film distributors, not total money earned at the box office.
  2. ^USSSpearfish(SS-190) evacuation took place on the night of May 3, 1942.
  3. ^The bus "sinking" took place during an attack atMinami Daitoon July 16, 1944 when one ofBowfin'storpedoes hit a dock and blew the bus into the harbor.

Citations[edit]

  1. ^abCohn, Lawrence (October 15, 1990). "All-Time Film Rental Champs".Variety.p. M176.
  2. ^"Private Screenings: Tony Curtis".Turner Classic Movies,January 19, 1999.
  3. ^"Notes: Operation Petticoat (1959)."Archived2017-02-14 at theWayback MachineTurner Classic Movies.Retrieved: October 30, 2014.
  4. ^"Tina Louise Interview."Archived2000-05-26 at theWayback MachineGilligan's Island Fan Club.Retrieved: October 30, 2014.
  5. ^Blair, 1975
  6. ^Blair 1975[page needed]
  7. ^Lockwood, Charles A.(1987).Sink 'Em All(New York: Bantam Books), page 13.
  8. ^"The Infamous Toilet Paper Letter".submarinesailor.Archivedfrom the original on October 15, 2018.RetrievedOctober 5,2018.
  9. ^Roscoe, Theodore; Voge, Richard G. (1949).United States Submarine Operations in World War II.United States Naval Institute. p. 71.ISBN9780870217319.
  10. ^Operation Petticoat,Rotten Tomatoes,archivedfrom the original on 2021-12-07,retrieved2022-03-19
  11. ^"Review: Operation Petticoat".Variety.December 31, 1958.Archivedfrom the original on April 3, 2018.RetrievedDecember 9,2017.
  12. ^Crowther, Bosley (December 6, 1959)."Operation Petticoat: Film Review".New York Times.Archivedfrom the original on November 14, 2018.RetrievedOctober 30,2014– via carygrant.net.
  13. ^"A Lovely 'Petticoat'".Variety.July 6, 1960. p. 5.RetrievedFebruary 6,2021– viaArchive.org.
  14. ^Reilly, Celia."Articles: Operation Petticoat (1959)".Turner Classic Movies.Archivedfrom the original on November 13, 2014.RetrievedOctober 30,2014.
  15. ^Brooks and Marsh 1995, p. 780.

Bibliography[edit]

  • Blair, Clay Jr.Silent Victory: The US Submarine War Against Japan..New York: J.B. Lippincott, 1975.ISBN978-1-5575-0217-9.
  • Brooks, Tim and Earle Marsh.The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows: 1946-Present(Sixth ed.). New York: Ballantine Books, a Division of Random House, Inc., 1995, first edition 1979.ISBN0-345-39736-3.
  • Grider, George and Lydel Sims.War Fish.New York: Little, Brown & Company, 1958.ISBN978-0-3450-3217-1.
  • Lockwood, Charles A.Sink 'Em All: Submarine Warfare in the Pacific.New York: Bantam Books, 1987.ISBN978-1-4960-2690-3.
  • Roscoe, Theodore.United States Submarine Operations in World War II.Annapolis, Maryland: US Naval Institute Press, 1949.ISBN978-0-87021-731-9.
  • Steinberg, Cobbett.Film Facts.New York: Facts on File, Inc., 1980.ISBN0-87196-313-2.

External links[edit]

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