Guts and Glory

The Making of the American Military Image in Film

Lawrence H. Suid

• Publisher: The University Press of Kentucky
• Print ISBN:
  9780813190181
• Topic: History
• eBook ISBN:
  9780813158082
• Subtopic: Military & Maritime History
• Index: History

Guts and Glory: The Making of the American Military Image in Film is the definitive study of the symbiotic relationship between the film industry and the United States armed services. Since the first edition was published nearly two decades ago, the nation has experienced several wars, both on the battlefield and in movie theatres and living rooms at home. Now, author Lawrence Suid has extensively revised and expanded his classic history of the mutual exploitation of the film industry and the military, exploring how Hollywood has reflected and effected changes in America's image of its armed services. He offers in-depth looks at such classic films as Wings, Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo, The Longest Day, Patton, Top Gun, An Officer and a Gentleman, and Saving Private Ryan, as well as the controversial war movies The Green Berets, M*A*S*H, the Deer Hunter, Apocalypse Now, Platoon, Full Metal Jacket, and Born on the Fourth of July.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-title
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Preface
• Introduction
• 1. Hollywood and War
• 2. Beginnings
• 3. A Standard for the Future
• 4. The Golden Age of Military Movies
• 5. World War II: Fantasy
• 6. World War II: Pseudo-Reality
• 7. World War II: First Reflections
• 8. The Image of the Marines and John Wayne
• 9. A Different Image
• 10. The Most Ambitious Undertaking
• 11. A Marriage Ends
• 12. The Bomb as Friend and Enemy
• 13. John Wayne, The Green Berets, and Other Heroes
• 14. Illusion and Reality of War
• 15. Changing Images
• 16. The Home Front, Vietnam, and the Victims of War
• 17. Apocalypse When?
• 18. The Deer Hunter, Hair, and Finally Apocalypse Now
• 19. The Marines Search for a New Identity
• 20. The Search Continued: Two Non-Vietnam Case Studies
• 21. The Navy's Search for Normalcy
• 22. New Images Despite Themselves
• 23. The Air Force Seeks a Better Image
• 24. Vietnam: A More Moderate Approach
• 25. Rehabilitation Completed
• 26. Vietnam: Full Color with All the Warts
• 27. Vietnam: Balanced Portrayals
• 28. The Cold War Ends on the Motion Picture Screen
• 29. The Search for New Enemies
• 30. World War II: One More Time
• 31. Pearl Harbor: Bombed Again
• Epilogue
• Appendix A: Films Cited
• Appendix B: Interviews
• Note on Sources
• Notes
• Index