''Ensign Pulver'' is a 1964 American Technicolor film in Panavision and a sequel to the 1955 film '' Mister Roberts''. The film stars Robert Walker Jr., Burl Ives,

Walter Matthau Walter Matthau (; born Walter John Matthow; October 1, 1920 – July 1, 2000) was an American actor, comedian and film director. He is best known for his film roles in '' A Face in the Crowd'' (1957), ''King Creole'' (1958) and as a coach of a ...

and

Tommy Sands Thomas Adrian Sands (born August 27, 1937) is an American pop music singer and actor. Working in show business as a child, Sands became an overnight sensation and instant teen idol when he appeared on ''Kraft Television Theater'' in January 19 ...

and features Millie Perkins,

Larry Hagman Larry Martin Hagman (September 21, 1931 – November 23, 2012) was an American film and television actor, director, and producer, best known for playing ruthless oil baron J. R. Ewing in the 1978–1991 primetime television soap opera, ''Dal ...

, Kay Medford, Peter Marshall, Jack Nicholson, Richard Gautier, George Lindsey, James Farentino and James Coco. The film was directed and co-written by

Joshua Logan Joshua Lockwood Logan III (October 5, 1908 – July 12, 1988) was an American director, writer, and actor. He shared a Pulitzer Prize for co-writing the musical '' South Pacific'' and was involved in writing other musicals. Early years Logan ...

, who had directed and co-written the 1948 '' Mister Roberts'' stage play on Broadway,Steinberg, Jay S
"Ensign Pulver" (article)
on TCM.com and also shot scenes for the 1955 film after director John Ford fell ill. The story concerns the U.S.S. ''Reluctant'', a

cargo ship A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...

in the waning days of World War II, which is at anchor beside a tropical island. The ship's captain is as much of a "

Captain Bligh Vice-Admiral William Bligh (9 September 1754 – 7 December 1817) was an officer of the Royal Navy and a colonial administrator. The mutiny on the HMS ''Bounty'' occurred in 1789 when the ship was under his command; after being set adrift i ...

" as ever. Several of the film's events — such as attacking the Captain while he is watching a film, and one of the sailors trying to obtain compassionate leave to deal with a dying child — are taken from

Thomas Heggen Thomas Heggen (December 23, 1918 – May 19, 1949) was an American author best known for his 1946 novel '' Mister Roberts'' and its adaptations to stage and screen. Heggen became an Oklahoman in 1935, when in the depths of the Depression h ...

's original 1946 novel '' Mister Roberts''. The characters of Pulver, Doc and several crewmen return from the first film, but played by different actors.

Plot

U.S. Navy Ensign Frank Pulver ( Robert Walker Jr.) feels unappreciated, as usual. Even when he personally aims a sharp object into the hindquarters of the hated Captain Morton ( Burl Ives), the happy crew cannot imagine that the all-talk, no-action Pulver could be behind it. A poll to guess at the identity of the "ass-sassin" results in votes for almost everyone except Pulver, which he bitterly resents. Shipmates like Billings (

), Insigna ( James Farentino), Skouras ( James Coco) and Dolan ( Jack Nicholson) do not take Pulver seriously while despising the captain, who refuses to grant leave to a seaman named Bruno (

) to attend his daughter's funeral back home. Doc (

) is the only one aboard who believes in Pulver's potential at all. At sea for months at a time, Pulver is unable to indulge his greatest interest, women, until a company of nurses land on a nearby atoll. The head nurse ( Kay Medford) is pleased to meet him when Pulver introduces himself as a doctor serving on a destroyer, but young nurse Scotty ( Millie Perkins) suspects the truth and a smitten Pulver confesses it to her, that he's no doctor and nothing more than a junior officer on "the worst ship in the Navy." Bruno becomes so deranged, he attempts to kill the captain. Pulver reluctantly intervenes, but the captain falls overboard, and is about to drown until Pulver lowers a life raft and dives in to save him. Separated from their ship, with the crew unaware for hours that they are missing, Pulver and Morton bicker aboard the raft. The ensign takes notes while the delusional captain reveals dark secrets about his past. In need of emergency surgery, Morton ends up owing his life yet again to Pulver, who follows Doc's instructions over a radio and removes the captain's appendix. Back aboard ship, Morton's natural tendencies resurface and he tries to return to his martinet ways. Although Pulver has the goods on him now he shows genuine compassion for the captain and convinces him to leave the ship for his own well-being. Morton takes his advice and departs, turning over command to the popular LaSeur (

Gerald S. O'Loughlin Gerald Stuart O'Loughlin Jr. (December 23, 1921 – July 31, 2015) was an American television, stage, and film actor and director who was primarily known for playing tough-talking and rough-looking characters. He is best known for Ed Ryker on ''T ...

Cast

* Robert Walker Jr. as Ensign Frank Pulver * Burl Ives as Captain Morton *

as Doc *

as John X. Bruno * Millie Perkins as Nurse Scotty * Kay Medford as Head Nurse *

as Billings * Peter Marshall as Carney * Joseph Marr as Yeoman Dowdy *

as LaSueur * Diana Sands as Mila * Robert Matek as Captain Donald "Stretch" Zimmer * Jack Nicholson as Dolan * Al Freeman Jr. as Taru * Richard Gautier as Stefanowski * George Lindsey as Lindstrom * Sal Papa as Gabrowski * James Farentino as Insigna * James Coco as Skouras *

Don Dorrell Donald Dean Dorrell (October 6, 1928 – April 10, 1978) was an American film and television actor. He was best known for playing the role of Donovan in the American western television series ''Pony Express''. Dorrell was born in Missouri. In 1 ...

as Payne Cast notes * Gavin MacLeod has a bit part as a crewman

Production

''Ensign Pulver'' began production under the working title "Mr. Pulver and the Captain". Location scenes for the film were shot in Mexico City and

Acapulco Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , also , nah, Acapolco), is a city and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semicircular bay and has bee ...

, Mexico. Actor Jack Nicholson took it upon himself to assist director Josh Logan with casting, becoming an informal "assistant producer." Logan, who hoped that the film would repeat the success of ''Mister Roberts'', recognized that it had fallen short of that mark, writing in his autobiography:

We thought we had everyone in the picture that anyone could ask for ... But we had left out the most important thing: the catalytic agent, Mister Roberts. And without him, the story falls into shreds. No one really cares about the others enough to create suspense as to the outcome.

In the original film,

Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001) was an American actor. Considered equally proficient in both dramatic and comic roles, Lemmon was known for his anxious, middle-class everyman screen persona in dramedy pictures, leadin ...

had won an

Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor The Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given in honor of an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a supporting role while worki ...

for his portrayal of Ensign Pulver,

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor, dancer and film director. On stage and in film, Cagney was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He ...

had played the Captain, William Powell was Doc, and Henry Fonda portrayed Mister Roberts.

Paperback novelization

Concurrent with the release of the film,

Dell Publishing Dell Publishing Company, Inc. is an American publisher of books, magazines and comic books, that was founded in 1921 by George T. Delacorte Jr. with $10,000 (approx. $145,000 in 2021), two employees and one magazine title, ''I Confess'', and ...

issued a paperback novelization of the film by W. H. (William Henry) Manville, writing under the pseudonym he used for tie-in work, "Henry Williams."

Comic book adaption

Dell Dell is an American based technology company. It develops, sells, repairs, and supports computers and related products and services. Dell is owned by its parent company, Dell Technologies. Dell sells personal computers (PCs), servers, data ...

Movie Classic: ''Ensign Pulver'' (August–October 1964)

References

Notes

External links

* * * * * {{Mister Roberts 1964 films 1960s war comedy-drama films American sequel films American war comedy-drama films Films scored by George Duning Films adapted into comics Films based on American novels Films directed by Joshua Logan Military humor in film Pacific War films Films about the United States Navy in World War II Warner Bros. films American World War II films 1960s English-language films 1960s American films