''Charter Pilot'' is a 1940

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super- ...

, directed by Eugene Forde and produced by

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...

. The film stars

Lynn Bari Lynn Bari (born Marjorie Schuyler Fisher, December 18, 1919 – November 20, 1989) was a film actress who specialized in playing sultry, statuesque man-killers in roughly 150 films for 20th Century Fox, from the early 1930s through the 1940s. ...

, Lloyd Nolan,

Arleen Whelan Arleen Whelan (September 1, 1916 – April 7, 1993) was an American film actress. Early years Whelan was a native of Salt Lake City, Utah. Before she became an actress, she worked in Southern California as a manicurist, contributing her ea ...

and George Montgomery. ''Charter Pilot'' depicts pilots flying cargo flights in the

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

.Pendo 1985, p. 20.

Plot

King Morgan (Lloyd Nolan), chief pilot for W. J. Brady Charter Pilots, Inc., and his mechanic, Charlie Crane (George Montgomery) proves he can handle any type of weather in hauling cargo. King is also a famous pilot because his girl friend, Marge Duncan (Lynn Bari) has made him the daring hero of the radio show, named after him. After a long flight from Galveston to Los Angeles delivering soft-shell crabs, King sees Marge to propose marriage. Flustered by her taking time to get ready, he drinks too much and passes out. When he revives, he heads for the Mirrado nightclub where he causes an uproar and is arrested. Marge bails him out next day but when King finally proposes, Marge makes him promise to give up flying. King surprises his boss (Andrew Tombes) by asking for a desk job, working for accountant Horace Sturgeon (

Hobart Cavanaugh Hobart Cavanaugh (September 22, 1886 – April 26, 1950 ) was an American character actor in films and on stage. Biography He was born in Virginia City, Nevada on September 22, 1886. Cavanaugh attended the University of California. He worked in ...

). Charlie ends up as King's replacement, taking over a charter contract flying ore from a Honduras

gold mine Gold Mine may refer to: * Gold Mine (board game) *Gold Mine (Long Beach), an arena *"Gold Mine", a song by Joyner Lucas from the 2020 album ''ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characteri ...

. A competitor named Faber (

Henry Victor Henry Victor (2 October 1892 – 15 March 1945) was an English-born character actor who had his highest profile in the film silent era, he appeared in numerous film roles in Britain, before emigrating to the US in 1939 where he continued h ...

) wants to get the lucrative gold mine charter contract and conspires to make Charlie look bad. The company looks likely to lose the contract from the gold mine and when Sturgeon is about to fire Charlie, King announces that he will go to Rico, Honduras and take over the charter flights. He convinces his fiancé that their honeymoon will be down south, but as soon as he can, flies to Rico alone. King discovers that their charter business is being sabotaged but has a plan to fly a more direct route over the high mountains using oxygen tanks. Marge decides to take the radio show to where King is working, even though he no longer wants to be in the broadcast, and is angry with her for following him. After seeing King make a successful test flight in his modified cargo aircraft, Faber finds out that using oxygen will give the Brady Company an advantage. When King is in jail, after becoming drunk in a local cantina, Charlie is given the job of flying the ore, but Faber has damaged the oxygen supply so Charlie will pass out at altitude. Marge wants to have the first flight over the mountains on her radio show and hires Faber to fly her, but King joins them, having discovered the sabotage. When Faber pulls a gun on King, Marge reacts by knocking him out with her microphone. With King now at the controls, he contacts Charlie and has him turn around. Faber revives and attacks King but Marge stabs Faber with a pin, giving King a chance to knock him out for good. Signing off from the radio show, King and Marge get back together.

Cast

as Marge Duncan * Lloyd Nolan as King Morgan *

as Raquel Andrews * George Montgomery as Charlie Crane *

as Horace Sturgeon *

as Faber *

Etta McDaniel Etta McDaniel (December 1, 1890January 13, 1946) was an American actress who appeared in over 60 films between 1933 and 1946. She was the sister of actor Sam McDaniel and actress and Academy Award winner Hattie McDaniel. Early life McDaniel ...

as Ophie *

Andrew Tombes Andrew Tombes (29 June 1885 – 17 March 1976) was an American comedian and character actor. Biography The son of a grocer, originally from Ashtabula, Ohio, Tombes was educated at Phillips Exeter Academy. Early in his career, he worked as a v ...

as . J.Brady * Charles Wilson as Owen *

Chick Chandler Fehmer Christy "Chick" Chandler (January 18, 1905 – September 30, 1988) was an American film character actor who appeared in more than 130 films from 1925 through the mid-1950s. Chandler was known for his starring role as Toubo Smith in ...

as Fred Adams * Robert Spindola as Boy * Sherry Hall as Steven

Production

Principal photography for ''Charter Pilot'' began in July 1940 at the Twentieth Century Fox studio and backlots,

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

, California. After appearing in three Twentieth Century Fox films as a freelance actor, ''Charter Pilot'' was the first film that Lloyd Nolan made with the company after signing a studio contract. Established star Lynn Bari has her name appear over Nolan's in the title cards. Only two flying scenes appeared in the film.

Paul Mantz Albert Paul Mantz (August 2, 1903 – July 8, 1965) was a noted air racing pilot, movie stunt pilot and consultant from the late 1930s until his death in the mid-1960s. He gained fame on two stages: Hollywood and in air races. Early years Ma ...

handled the flying duties, using his

Ford Trimotor The Ford Trimotor (also called the "Tri-Motor", and nicknamed the "Tin Goose") is an American three-engined transport aircraft. Production started in 1925 by the companies of Henry Ford and ended on June 7, 1933, after 199 had been made. It ...

(NC7121).Wynne 1987, p. 171. A barley field alongside the

Santa Anita race track Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races ...

served as the airfield in the fictional Rico, Honduras.

Reception

''Charter Pilot'', despite its length, was primarily a B film. Aviation Film Historian James H. Farmer characterized the film as "modest" with the only notable elements being the flying scenes. "The breathtaking aerobatic sequences were staged by Paul Mantz."Farmer 1984, p. 132.

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* Farmer, James H. ''Celluloid Wings: The Impact of Movies on Aviation.'' Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania: Tab Books Inc., 1984. . * Pendo, Stephen. ''Aviation in the Cinema''. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1985. . * Wynne, H. Hugh. ''The Motion Picture Stunt Pilots and Hollywood's Classic Aviation Movies.'' Missoula, Montana: Pictorial Histories Publishing Co., 1987. .

External links

* * {{IMDb title, id=0032328 1940 films 20th Century Fox films American aviation films Films set on airplanes Films directed by Eugene Forde American drama films 1940 drama films American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films