- Once an Eagle
Infobox Film
name = Once an Eagle
image_size =
caption = Promotional image
director = Richard Michaels
E.W. Swackhamer
producer = Peter S. Fischer
writer = Peter S. Fischer
Story:
Anton Myrer
narrator =
starring =Sam Elliott
music = Dana Kaproff
cinematography = J.J. Jones
editing = Howard Deane
John Elias
Chuck McClelland
distributor =NBC
released =December 2 1976
runtime = 540 minutes
country =United States
language = English
budget =
gross =
amg_id = 1:127935
imdb_id = 0074034"Once an Eagle" (1976) is a nine hour American
television mini-series directed by Richard Michaels and E.W. Swackhamer.The picture was written by Peter S. Fischer and based on theAnton Myrer novel of the same name, written in 1968. [imdb title|id=0074034|title=Once an Eagle.]The first and last installments of the seven-part series ran two hours each, while the interim episodes each ran for 60 minutes.
The mini-series tells of the thirty year careers of two military men, from the outbreak of
World War I to the aftermath ofWorld War II .Plot
Sam Damon (
Sam Elliott ) is a straight-arrow type who is an excellent family man and praiseworthy warrior.Courtney Massingale (
Cliff Potts ) is completely the opposite. He's a womanizing, self-aggrandizing conniver who knows how to play the angles all the way to the top.Background
"Once an Eagle" was the second of four story arcs seen on the
NBC anthology series "Best Sellers;" it was preceded by "Captains and the Kings", and followed by "Seventh Avenue" and "The Rhineman Exchange."The picture is based on the Anton Myrer's novel "Once an Eagle," one of the most important military novels written in the United States. The novel is noted for its stark and realistic descriptions of men in combat and in its penetrating analysis of human and technical challenges and leadership and the moral dilemmas faced by the command structure.
It is one of only two novels (the other being "
The Killer Angels " byMichael Shaara ) on the US Army's recommended reading list for Officer Professional Development; interestingly, the one common element in both novels is that Sam Elliott has a starring role, playing a US Army general officer, in the film adaptations of both.Filming locations
Some of the scenes of the film were shot in
Napa Valley, California .Cast
*
Sam Elliott as Sam Damon
*Cliff Potts as Courtenay Massengale
* Darleen Carr as Tommy Caldwell
*Amy Irving as Emily Pawlfrey Massengale
*Glenn Ford as George Caldwell
*Ralph Bellamy as Ed Caldwell
*Dane Clark as Harry Sheppard
*Andrew Duggan as Gen. McKelvey
*Lynda Day George as Marge Krisler
* Gary Grimes as Jack Devlin
*Clu Gulager as Alvin Merrick
*Robert Hogan as Ben Krisler
*Kim Hunter as Kitty Damon
*David Huddleston as Earl Preis
*Juliet Mills as JoyceAwards
Nominations
*Emmy Awards : Emmy; Outstanding Cinematography in Entertainment Programming for a Series, J.J. Jones; for part I; 1977.
*Golden Globes : Golden Globe; Best Supporting Actress - Television, Darleen Carr; 1977.ee also
*
List of films based on war books Notes
External links
*
*
* [http://www.geocities.com/equipmentshop/onceaneagle.htm "Once an Eagle"] synopsis of story
* [http://www.once-an-eagle.com "Once an Eagle"] on-line resource; website dedicated to novel and miniseries
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
