''Atlantic Flight'' is a 1937 American film made by Monogram Pictures chiefs

Trem Carr Tremlet C. Carr (November 6, 1891– August 18, 1946) was an American film producer, closely associated with the low-budget filmmaking of Poverty Row. In 1931 he co-founded Monogram Pictures, which developed into one of the leading specialist pro ...

and

W. Ray Johnston W. Ray Johnston (January 2, 1892 – October 14, 1966) was an American film producer. He was associated with low-budget filmmaking, in particular with the larger Poverty Row studios Rayart Pictures and Monogram Pictures.Pitts p.131 Before foundi ...

who had just reformed the studio after having had a troubled merger for two years with

Herbert J. Yates Herbert John Yates (August 24, 1880 – February 3, 1966) was the founder and president of Republic Pictures, who had western stars John Wayne, Gene Autry, and Roy Rogers under contract. Between the years 1935 and 1959, Republic, under Yates' l ...

and Republic Pictures. This film was conceived as a low-budget feature meant to capitalize on

Dick Merrill Henry Tyndall "Dick" Merrill (February 1, 1894 – October 31, 1982) was an early aviation pioneer. Among his feats he was the highest paid air mail pilot, flew the first round-trip transatlantic flight in 1936, was Dwight D. Eisenhower's pers ...

's and Jack Lambie's historic "Coronation Flight", which made them world-famous. Recreating the flight that made him famous, Dick Merrill, along with co-pilot Jack Lambie reprise their real-life roles as pilots.

Plot

When pilot Dick Bennett (Dick Merrill) undertakes a flight in stormy conditions to save a dying girl, he brings the aircraft in, despite warnings that it is too dangerous. Later, he meets socialite Gail Strong (Paula Stone), who is interested in aviation and persuades Bennett's aircraft engineer friend Bill Edwards (Weldon Heyburn) to try a parachute jump. Her fiancé, Baron Hayygard (Ivan Lebedeff) pledges that he will win the Stanley Trophy Race, to make her keep her promise to marry him, and resorts to desperate measures, knocking out Bennett. When Bennett is unable to fly his untested racer, Edwards takes it up instead, but crashes. Strong realizes she is in love with Edwards, but he is critically injured. A doctor in England has life-saving serum that Bennett and Jack Carter (Jack Lambie) are determined to bring back to save their friend, by making a record-breaking round-trip to London. Coming back through a raging storm over the Atlantic, their aircraft is struck by lightning, disabling their radio. When contact is lost, Coast Guard ships are deployed, but the intrepid flyers make it in.

Cast

As appearing in screen credits:"Full credits: 'Atlantic Flight' (1937)."
''IMDb''. Retrieved: May 5, 2017. * Dick Merrill as Dick Bennett * Jack Lambie as Jack Carter * Paula Stone as Gail Strong *

Weldon Heyburn Weldon Heyburn (born Weldon Heyburn Franks; September 19, 1903 – May 18, 1951) was an American character actor. Early years The son of Marie Pierce and United States Army Col. Wyatt G. Franks, Heyburn was most likely born in Washington, ...

as Bill Edwards * Milburn Stone as Henry Wadsworth "Pokey" Schultz *

Ivan Lebedeff Ivan Lebedeff (born Ivan Vasilyevich Lebedev ( rus, Иван Васильевич Лебедев), 18 June 1894 – 31 March 1953) was a Russian film actor, lecturer and writer. He appeared in 66 films between 1926 and 1953. In 1940, his no ...

as Baron Hayygard * Lyle Morraine as Navy Lt. Lyle

Production

In 1937 Merrill was hired by Hearst Publishing to repeat the "Ping-Pong Flight", co-piloted by 27-year-old Jack Lambie in a Lockheed Model 10E Electra dubbed "Daily Express". Hearst wanted to scoop other American newspapers by acquiring photos of the May 10, 1937 coronation of King George VI after the abdication of his brother, King Edward VIII. Merrill carried photos (not newsreels, as often claimed) of the Hindenburg disaster, which occurred shortly before the flight. Hearst papers on both sides of the Atlantic published the first pictures of each event, and Merrill earned the Harmon Trophy for 1937 for his achievement. Footage from this flight was used to make the ''Atlantic Flight''. Dramatic air race and crash scenes were also used. Milburn Stone who played aircraft mechanic Henry Wadsworth "Pokey" Schultz, was in his first major role; his cousin, Paula Stone appeared as Gail Strong. Both Dick Merrill and Jack Lambie, his real-life "Coronation Flight" co-pilot and co-star in the film, received $2,500 for their roles in this movie. Dick had not taken the filming seriously but gladly accepted the windfall. He was a teetotaler in an age when the "hard-drinking" "fun-loving" aerial adventurer was seen as the norm. Considered very easy-going yet serious, his one foible, however, was that he was an inveterate gambler throughout his life. Merrill blew his entire salary from the film at Santa Anita the weekend after shooting wrapped.Cooper. Ralph
"Henry Tyndal Merrill, 1894–1982: AKA Henry 'Dick' Merrill."
''earlyaviators.com,'' October 13, 2009. Retrieved: July 16, 2010. Merrill made two more transatlantic flights, the last of these, on May 14, 1937, set the new record at 24 hours, 25 seconds.
''time.com''. Retrieved: September 7, 2009.

Aircraft used in the film

* Lockheed Model 10E Electra *

Northrop Gamma The Northrop Gamma was a single-engine all-metal monoplane cargo aircraft used in the 1930s. Towards the end of its service life, it was developed into the A-17 light bomber. Design and development The Gamma was a further development of the su ...

Vultee V-1 The Vultee V-1 was a 1930s American single-engined airliner built by the Airplane Development Corporation, designed by Gerard Vultee and financed by automobile manufacturer Errett Cord. Design and development The prototype (designated the ...

Reception

Strictly a "B" feature, the ''Atlantic Flight'' is best considered a historical record, with a great deal of aviation footage of the period to commend it.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Backstreet, Jack
"Don Dwiggins, Mini Biography."
''IMDb.com''. Retrieved: January 3, 2008. * King, Jack. ''Wings of Man: The Legend of Dick Merrill''. Seattle: Aviation Book Co., 1981. .

External links

* * *
"Harry Richman," ''imdb.com''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Atlantic Flight 1937 films American aviation films American black-and-white films Monogram Pictures films American action drama films 1930s action drama films 1937 romantic drama films American romantic drama films Films directed by William Nigh 1930s English-language films 1930s American films