Story of movie The Longest Day Film :
The Longest Day is a 1962 epic war film based on Cornelius Ryan's 1959 book The Longest Day (1959), about the D-Day landings at Normandy on June 6, 1944, during World War II. The film was produced by Darryl F. Zanuck, who paid author Ryan $175,000 for the film rights. The screenplay was by Ryan, with additional material written by Romain Gary, James Jones, David Pursall and Jack Seddon. It was directed by Ken Annakin (British and French exteriors), Andrew Marton (American exteriors), and Bernhard Wicki (German scenes).
| The Longest Day | |
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Original movie poster | |
| Directed by |
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| Produced by | Darryl F. Zanuck |
| Screenplay by |
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| Based on | The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan |
| Starring |
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| Music by | Maurice Jarre (score) Paul Anka (theme)(arr. Mitch Miller) |
| Cinematography |
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| Edited by | Samuel E. Beetley |
Production company | Darryl F. Zanuck Productions, Inc. |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
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Running time | 178 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language |
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| Budget | $7.75 million |
| Box office | $50.1 million |
The Longest Day, which was made in black and white, features a large ensemble cast including John Wayne, Kenneth More, Richard Todd, Robert Mitchum, Richard Burton, Steve Forrest, Sean Connery, Henry Fonda, Red Buttons, Peter Lawford, Eddie Albert, Jeffrey Hunter, Stuart Whitman, Tom Tryon, Rod Steiger, Leo Genn, Gert Fröbe, Irina Demick, Bourvil, Curt Jürgens, George Segal, Robert Wagner, Paul Anka and Arletty. Many of these actors played roles that were essentially cameo appearances. In addition, several cast members – including Fonda, Genn, More, Steiger and Todd – saw action as servicemen during the war; Todd was among the first British officers to land in Normandy in Operation Overlord, and he participated in the assault on Pegasus Bridge.
The film employed several Axis and Allied military consultants who had been actual participants on D-Day. Many had their roles reenacted in the film. These included Günther Blumentritt (a former German general), James M. Gavin (an American general), Frederick Morgan (Deputy Chief of Staff at SHAEF), John Howard (who led the airborne assault on the Pegasus Bridge), Lord Lovat (who commanded the 1st Special Service Brigade), Philippe Kieffer (who led his men in the assault on Ouistreham), Marie-Pierre Kœnig (who commanded the Free French Forces in the invasion), Max Pemsel (a German general), Werner Pluskat (the major who was the first German officer to see the invasion fleet), Josef "Pips" Priller (the hot-headed pilot), and Lucie Rommel (widow of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel).
The film won two Academy Awards and was nominated for three others. A colorized version of this film was released on VHS in 1994, the 50th anniversary of the invasion.
Screenplay
The film is shot in the style of a docudrama. Beginning in the days leading up to D-Day, it concentrates on events on both sides of the channel, such as the Allies waiting for the break in the poor weather and anticipating the reaction of the Axis forces defending northern France. The film pays particular attention to the decision by Gen. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of SHAEF, to go after reviewing the initial bad-weather reports as well as reports about the divisions within the German High Command as to where an invasion might happen or what the response to it should be.
Numerous scenes document the early hours of June 6 when Allied airborne troops were sent in to take key locations inland from the beaches. The French resistance is also shown reacting to the news that an invasion has started. The Longest Day chronicles most of the important events surrounding D-Day, from the British glider missions to secure Pegasus Bridge, the counterattacks launched by American paratroopers scattered around Sainte-Mère-Église, the infiltration and sabotage work conducted by the French resistance and SOE agents, to the response by the Wehrmacht to the invasion and the uncertainty of German commanders as to whether it was a feint in preparation for crossings at the Pas de Calais (see Operation Fortitude), where the senior German staff had always assumed it would be.
Set-piece scenes include the parachute drop into Sainte-Mère-Église, the advance inshore from the Normandy beaches, the U.S. Ranger Assault Group's assault on the Pointe du Hoc, the attack on Ouistreham by Free French Forces, and the strafing of the beaches by two lone Luftwaffe pilots.
The film concludes with a montage showing various Allied units consolidating their beachheads before they advance inland to reach Germany by crossing France.
American
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Eddie Albert | Colonel Thompson, 29th Infantry Division |
| Paul Anka | Private, 2nd Ranger Battalion |
| Richard Beymer | Private Arthur 'Dutch' Schultz, 82nd Airborne Division |
| Red Buttons | Private John Steele, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| Gary Collins | Officer on destroyer bridge (uncredited) |
| John Crawford | Colonel Eugene Caffey, Commander, 1st Engineer Special Brigade (uncredited) |
| Mark Damon | Private Harris (uncredited) |
| Ray Danton | Captain Frank, 29th Infantry Division |
| Fred Dur | Major, 2nd Ranger Battalion |
| Fabian | Private, 2nd Ranger Battalion |
| Mel Ferrer | Major General Robert Haines, Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) |
| Henry Fonda | Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., Assistant Commander, 4th Infantry Division |
| Steve Forrest | Captain Harding, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| Henry Grace (dubbed by Allen Swift) | General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander, Allied Expeditionary Forces (uncredited) |
| Peter Helm | Young private, 29th Infantry Division |
| Jeffrey Hunter | Sergeant John H. Fuller (later field promoted to lieutenant), combat engineer, 29th Infantry Division |
| Alexander Knox | Lieutenant General Walter Bedell Smith, Chief of Staff, SHAEF |
| Mickey Knox | Downed Airman, (uncredited) |
| Dewey Martin | Private Wilder, 4th Infantry Division (scenes deleted) |
| Roddy McDowall | Private Morris, 4th Infantry Division |
| John Meillon | Rear Admiral Alan G. Kirk, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces (uncredited) |
| Sal Mineo | Private Martini, 82nd Airborne Division |
| Robert Mitchum | Brigadier General Norman Cota, Assistant Commander, 29th Infantry Division |
| Tony Mordente | Cook, 82nd Airborne Division (uncredited) |
| Bill Nagy | Major, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| Edmond O'Brien | Major General Raymond O. Barton, Commander, 4th Infantry Division |
| Ron Randell | Joe Williams, war correspondent |
| Robert Ryan | Brigadier General James M. Gavin, Assistant Commander, 82nd Airborne Division |
| Tommy Sands | Private, 2nd Ranger Battalion |
| George Segal | Private, 2nd Ranger Battalion |
| Bob Steele | Paratrooper, 82nd Airborne Division (uncredited) |
| Rod Steiger | Destroyer commander, United States Navy |
| Nicholas Stuart | Lieutenant General Omar N. Bradley, Commander, First Army (uncredited) |
| Tom Tryon | Lieutenant Wilson, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| Robert Wagner | Private, 2nd Ranger Battalion |
| Joe Warfield | Army medic (uncredited) |
| John Wayne | Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin H. Vandervoort, CO, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| Stuart Whitman | Lieutenant Sheen, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
British
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Patrick Barr | Group Captain J. M. Stagg, meteorologist (uncredited) |
| Lyndon Brook | Lieutenant Walsh, "D" Company, 2nd Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (uncredited) |
| Richard Burton | Flying Officer David Campbell, Royal Air Force fighter pilot |
| Bryan Coleman | Ronald Callen, war correspondent (uncredited) |
| Sean Connery | Private Flanagan, 3rd Infantry Division |
| Richard Dawson | British soldier (uncredited) |
| Jack Hedley | 6th Airborne Division briefing officer (uncredited) |
| Leslie de Laspee | Piper Bill Millin, 1st Special Service Brigade (uncredited) |
| Frank Finlay | Private Coke (uncredited) |
| Harry Fowler | Soldier, 6th Airborne Division (uncredited) |
| Bernard Fox | Lance-Corporal Hutchinson, Royal Armoured Corps (uncredited) |
| Leo Genn | Major-general at SHAEF |
| Harold Goodwin | Soldier in glider (uncredited) |
| John Gregson | Padre, 6th Airborne Division |
| Walter Horsbrugh | Rear-Admiral George Creasy, Chief of Staff to Admiral Ramsay (uncredited) |
| Donald Houston | RAF fighter pilot in mess |
| Patrick Jordan | British officer (uncredited) |
| Simon Lack | Air Chief Marshal Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory, Commander-in-Chief, Allied Expeditionary Air Force (uncredited) |
| Harry Landis | British soldier (uncredited) |
| Peter Lawford | Brigadier Lord Lovat, Commander, 1st Special Service Brigade |
| Victor Maddern | Cook (uncredited) |
| Howard Marion-Crawford | Major Jacob Vaughan, Medical Officer, 2nd Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (uncredited) |
| Michael Medwin | Private Watney, Universal Carrier driver, 3rd Infantry Division |
| Kenneth More | Acting Captain Colin Maud, Royal Navy Beachmaster, Juno Beach |
| Louis Mounier | Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Tedder, Deputy Supreme Commander, Allied Expeditionary Forces (uncredited) |
| Leslie Phillips | RAF officer with French Resistance |
| Siân Phillips | Wren assistant to Stagg (uncredited) |
| Trevor Reid | General Sir Bernard Montgomery, Commander-in-Chief, Allied Armies (uncredited) |
| John Robinson | Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay, Allied Naval Commander-in-Chief (uncredited) |
| Norman Rossington | Lance-Corporal Clough, 3rd Infantry Division |
| Richard Todd | Major John Howard, OC, "D" Company, 2nd Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry |
| Richard Wattis | Major, 6th Airborne Division |
Canadian
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Neil McCallum | Canadian medical officer (uncredited) |
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