''The Crowded Sky'' is a 1960

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

drama film distributed by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Di ...

, produced by Michael Garrison, directed by

Joseph Pevney Joseph Pevney (September 15, 1911 – May 18, 2008) was an American film and television director.

"Overview: 'The Crowded Sky' (1960)."
''

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

'', 2019. Retrieved: August 12, 2019. and starring Dana Andrews, Rhonda Fleming and

Efrem Zimbalist Jr. Efrem Zimbalist Jr. (November 30, 1918 – May 2, 2014) was an American actor known for his starring roles in the television series ''77 Sunset Strip'' and ''The F.B.I.'' He is also known as recurring character "Dandy Jim Buckley" in the se ...

The film is based on the 1960 novel of the same name by

Hank Searls Henry Hunt Searls (August 10, 1922 – February 17, 2017) was an American author and screenwriter. His novels included ''The Crowded Sky'' (1960), which was adapted as the 1960 movie of the same name; ''The Pilgrim Project'' (1964), which was ad ...

. The story follows the crew and passengers of a U.S. Navy jet and a commercial airliner carrying a full load of passengers during a bout of severe weather. Other issues, such as a malfunctioning radio, render communication with

air-traffic control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...

nearly impossible and the two aircraft are on a collision course.Nixon, Rob
"Articles: 'The Crowded Sky' (1960)."
''

'', 2019. Retrieved: August 12, 2019.

Plot

A U.S. Navy Lockheed TV-2 jet piloted by Commander Dale Heath, with an enlisted man as a rear passenger, runs into trouble soon after takeoff. Heath's radio and navigation system become disabled, leaving him unable to correctly determine the jet's altitude. At the same time, a Douglas DC-7 airliner piloted by veteran Dick Barnett is carrying a full passenger complement, each with his or her own worries and problems. Barnett and Heath have their own personal crises: Heath is stuck in an unhappy marriage to a tramp and Barnett had had a long-time conflict with Mike Rule, his copilot. Rule has his own personal demons, including his empty relationship with his catatonic father and an affair with head stewardess Kitty Foster. Although both pilots make various errors, Barnett willfully ignores

, placing the two aircraft on a direct collision course that air-traffic controllers are unable to prevent. When the crash inevitably occurs, Heath sacrifices himself and his passenger by diving his plane at the last minute to avoid fatally damaging the airliner, making amends for a past tragedy that he had caused by climbing at the last minute instead. The airliner is still badly damaged, and

flight engineer A flight engineer (FE), also sometimes called an air engineer, is the member of an aircraft's flight crew who monitors and operates its complex aircraft systems. In the early era of aviation, the position was sometimes referred to as the "air me ...

Louis Capelli is blown out of a hole, falling to his death. The passengers and crew fight for their lives. Even with one engine destroyed and a wing on fire, Barnett brings the airliner down safely. He later accepts responsibility for the collision during the accident investigation. In the aftermath of the crash, Mike and Kitty are not only survivors but are now planning a future life together.

Cast

* Dana Andrews as Dick Barnett * Rhonda Fleming as Cheryl Heath *

as Dale Heath * John Kerr as Mike Rule *

Anne Francis Anne Francis (also known as Anne Lloyd Francis; September 16, 1930 – January 2, 2011) was an American actress known for her ground-breaking roles in the science-fiction film ''Forbidden Planet'' (1956) and the television action-drama seri ...

as Kitty Foster *

Keenan Wynn Francis Xavier Aloysius James Jeremiah Keenan Wynn (July 27, 1916 – October 14, 1986) was an American character actor. His expressive face was his stock-in-trade; and though he rarely carried the lead role, he had prominent billing in mos ...

as Nick Hyland * Troy Donahue as McVey *

Joe Mantell Joseph Mantell (né Mantel; December 21, 1915 – September 29, 2010) was an American film and television actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as best friend Angie in the 1955 film '' Marty'', which h ...

as Louis Capelli *

Patsy Kelly Patsy Kelly (born Sarah Veronica Rose Kelly; January 12, 1910 – September 24, 1981) was an American actress. She is known for her role as the brash, wisecracking sidekick to Thelma Todd in a series of short comedy films produced by Hal Ro ...

as Gertrude Ross * Donald May as Norm Coster * Louis Quinn as Sidney Schreiber *

Ed Kemmer Ed Kemmer (October 29, 1921 – November 9, 2004) was an American motion picture and television actor. Life Kemmer was born in Reading, Pennsylvania as Edward William Kemmerer, and served as a fighter pilot in World War II. He was shot down ove ...

as Caesar (as Edward Kemmer) *

Tom Gilson Tom Gilson (New York City; January 6, 1934 – Van Nuys, California; October 6, 1962) was an American actor in TV and occasional films from the 1950s. Biography Born in New York City, the tall, powerfully built Gilson played roles in TV western ...

as Rob Fermi * Hollis Irving as Beatrice Wiley *

Paul Genge Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

as Samuel N. Poole * Nan Leslie as Bev *

Jean Willes Jean Willes (born Jean Donahue; April 15, 1923 – January 3, 1989) was an American film and television actress. She appeared in approximately 65 films in her 38-year career. Early years Willes was born Jean Donahue In Los Angeles. She spent pa ...

as Gloria Panawek

Production

Film rights to the novel ''The Crowded Sky'', written by a former U.S. Navy flyer, were sold before the book was published. The screenplay employs the frequent device of characters thinking aloud, as screenwriter Charles Schnee felt that audiences required more subtlety in characterization, which could be achieved with the additional dialogue. ''The Crowded Sky'' was the first film role in more than a year for Dana Andrews, who had been appearing on Broadway in the play ''Two for the Seesaw''. Andrews described the film "as a kind of '' Bridge of San Luis Rey'' of the air." In order to prepare for his role, Zimbalist trained for 20 hours in a jet flight simulator to familiarize himself with the controls that his character would use. Troy Donahue's role was a departure from the usual teenage films that he had made for

The main theme music from '' A Summer Place'', Donahue's preceding film, appears in the soundtrack. Principal photography began in mid-October and concluded in mid-November of 1959. Even though the Dick Barnett character mentions that he knows how to fly DC-7s, the actual plane used in the film appears to be a Douglas DC-6. The DC-7 has four-blade propellers but the DC-6's propellers have only three blades.

Reception

''The Crowded Sky'' was received with mixed reviews by audiences and critics alike. The ''Los Angeles Times'' called it "interesting but uneven."''Variety'' published a mixed review, criticizing Pevney's directing but praising the aerial scenes. In a more critical review in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', Eugene Archer called ''The Crowded Sky'' "reprehensible" because it exploited human tragedy. His review noted: "Possibly a meaningful film could be developed from this theme, but as directed with an emphasis on sensationalism by Joseph Pevney, the effect is as meretricious as it is harrowing." Modern reviews have been more favorable. Glenn Erickson of ''DVD Talk'' wrote a mostly positive review but commented that ''The Crowded Sky'' feels more like an "unintentional comedy" than a serious dramatic film. Reviewer Leonard Maltin called it a "slick film focusing on emotional problems aboard jet liner and Navy plane bound for fateful collision; superficial but diverting."Maltin 2009, p. 300.

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* Carlson, Mark. ''Flying on Film: A Century of Aviation in the Movies, 1912–2012''. Duncan, Oklahoma: BearManor Media, 2012. . * Maltin, Leonard. ''Leonard Maltin's Movie Encyclopedia''. New York: Dutton, 1994. . * Maltin, Leonard. ''Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide 2009''. New York: New American Library, 2009 (originally published as ''TV Movies'', then ''Leonard Maltin’s Movie & Video Guide''), First edition 1969, published annually since 1988. .

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Crowded Sky, The 1960 films 1960s disaster films 1960 drama films American aviation films American disaster films American drama films 1960s English-language films Films about aviation accidents or incidents Films based on American novels Films directed by Joseph Pevney Films scored by Leonard Rosenman Films set on airplanes Warner Bros. films 1960s American films