Clint Walker came to my restaurant one time. We got a phone call from his assistant saying "we have a major celebrity with our party and we do not want anyone to know that he's coming because sometimes fans will form huge crowds to see him. We will be visiting your restaurant today if you can accommodate a group of 20 in a private room." I explained that we could put them in a somewhat secluded area of the restaurant, but that it would not be private. They agreed to those terms but they wouldn't tell us who the celebrity was. So everyone in the restaurant was super excited expecting Denzel Washington or Tom Hanks, but instead an 80 something year old Clint Walker came in. He was very old, but he was still a very large man. The young lady that served them asked who he was and his assistant explained to her that his name was Clint Walker and that he had been a big movie star, then she listed off some of the more major movies he had been in. Of course none of the young millennials had ever heard of any of the movies or TV shows he had been in, but The Dirty Dozen has been one of my favorite movies since I was a child. Everyone was so disappointed that it wasn't a movie star they knew of, but I was very happy and proud to have served Mr Walker that day. RIP Cheyenne Bodie
Suicide Squad was a bunch of criminals who were captured strictly for the squad. The Dirty Dozen ( & sequels) was a bunch of soldiers who had all committed some serious crimes, were already sentenced and either imprisoned or awaiting sentences, and they were then 'convinced' to volunteer for the mission.
Never get tired of this movie 🍿. The first third of the movie is my favorite as you begin to see the bonds of friendship developing between the characters.
The Big Red One, The Dirty Dozen, The Longest Day, The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Guns of Navarone, Gallipoli, Midway, Sands of Iwo Jima, etc. . . . All hold a special place in my heart. My dad was always watching those, and old westerns, and thus, so was I.
Donald Sutherland is absolute GOLD as Pinkley. Im glad they decided to us him for the inspection scene, he had made ROLLING 🤣 The Dirty Dozen is my dad's favorite film, and my favorite film is Kelly's Heroes- another great Donald Sutherland performance! THE MAN IS A LEGEND.
This movie is one of my most favorite ones. My Dad took me & the family to the drive-in to see this & "Planet of the Apes". Back then you usually saw two to three movies at the drive-in. I own this as well on DVD. LOVE the "Big Red One" too. Anything with Lee Marvin in it is worth owning or going to see! Thanks again Jeff... Until next time!
That's exactly the way I feel anything with Lee Marvin in it especially before the 1970s including his TV roles and his two TV shows M Squad and Lawbreakers
Here are some other things about the movie: The scene where Donald Sutherland inspects the troops was filmed at Colindale, North London, on the site of the Royal Air Force Museum. The building in the background still stands and houses part of the collection. I used to live near it. Donald Sutherland and Al Mancini were cast in the film because it was shot in the UK and they hired American and Canadian actors who were living and working in Britain at the time. Sutherland was a supporting actor in many British TV shows in the mid-sixties and Kieffer was born in London shortly after The Dirty Dozen finished filming. And my mum was an extra in this movie. She was in the party scenes at the Chateau. Short blonde lady in a dark dress.
There were lots of crap films and perhaps even more recycling back then than there is now. E.g. "Cat-women of the moon" from 1953 had two-three almost identical films made in the following 10 years.
Most movies think they have to throw in CGI special effects to make a good movie even comedy like were all children it turns me off what ever happened to good scripts Dialogue interesting plots character development that would hold the public's attention instead of the crap action every second and phoney TV situational comedy Dialogue where every second there's a smart ass comment that's just not real life conversation
But Marvin sucked in his role as a Marine in the movie 'Hell in the Pacific', with Toshiro Mifune. I expected more from him playing something he had actually been, a Marine in WW2.
Many of the tough-guy actors of that generation were the real deal. Lee Marvin was a Marine infantryman who saw combat in the Pacific, wounded during the invasion of Saipan. His costar Charles Bronson was a teenaged tail-gunner in the USAAF in a B-29 Super Fortress heavy bomber over Japan. He, too, was entitled to wear the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in action. Another costar, Ernest Borgnine, served a decade in the U.S. Navy before being mustered out in 1945 as a gunner's mate 1st class. He was entitled to wear the WWII Victory Medal in his fruit salad, amongst other awards. Fellow cast member Clint Walker joined the Merchant Marine sea service during the latter years of WWII. Telly Savalis served from 1943-1946 in the U.S. Army, winning a Purple Heart. George Kennedy also served in the U.S. Army. Robert Ryan served in the Marine Corps during the Second World War, but did not see service outside of the U.S. Point being, many of these men knew about life in uniform and life during hard times, not only because of the war but because of the Great Depression. They were "real" tough guys.... and it showed in their performances.
@@jeffburnham6611 I believe Lee Marvin felt uncomfortable in the role. Lee had a lot of bad experiences fighting the Japanese and kind of went off the reservation. A lot of his friends were killed in close battle with the Japanese. It effected him so much he REALLY did wear a necklace of ears from Japanese Army dead he fought. I would not screw with Lee Marvin. He was the real deal.
This film was just a great classic......funny, great script, acting...timing...direction...music...everything...very rare...all the planets lined up :)
I was privileged as a 10 year old Cub Scout to be present at the Aldbury location for the filming of the scene when the armoured column was moving through a Devonshire village. I was sat behind the duckpond adjacent to the church and next to a real stationary Sherman tank. Highlights of the day were when the Sherman was moving out it ran over a stack of camera equipment which had been left under the tracks, presumably as it looked like a safe place to put it! The second highlight was meeting some of the main cast including Lee Marvin, we sat in a jeep with him.
I htink it may have also inspired "The Devil's Eight", a 1969 movie with Christopher George, "A federal agent rounds up eight convicts to help fight a vicious moonshine gang."
My favorite Lee Marvin movie is Cat Ballou, for which he won a much deserved Academy Award as Kid Shaleen. The horse was great too! However, his points went through the roof in my book when I found out that he really was a US Marine! In fact, he is buried at Arlington cemetery. RIP Lee Marvin!
Not his line, but Cat Ballou has one of the funniest lines. He’s drunk and trying to show he can still shoot. They put a target on the side of a barn and I think he ends up hitting the weathervane on top. One of the guys yells, “He did it! He missed the barn!”
Whenever I watch this, I always tell Franco not to jinx things by saying they survived until after they get out, but he always does; and he gets killed for it every time...
One possible error: Lopez, Jiminez, was not to blow up the Chateau. He was to climb the rope. When Riker shoots the bottom of the rope with a machine gun, he scurries up. Then Riker tells Franco he was next. Franco says, 'I thought only Jiminez had to climb up to that Chateau'. 'But what if Jiminez gets killed and can't climb up to that Chateau?' When he's reported dead, Riker reminds Franco why all had to do it.
Dirty Dozen also Inspired a British Science Fiction Series Called Blake's Seven. As the creator of the show Terry Nation puts it, "It was a Dirty Dozen Set in Outer Space"
@@jameshuseby6290 I didn't know he had been "on the Street" (what Marines call "being on the Trail" in Army terms: being a Drill). My father was a friend of Ryan's from the USMM. He said Ryan was a good guy and very quiet.
I read a few years ago in this site from the combat TV show the actor that portrayed Little John in the TV show Combat saying how the whole cast and crew had such a great time on the set of Combat especially when Lee Marvin guest starred on the show and how they were so impressed by him
The TV show Combat came on the air in 1963 though 1967 Lee Marvin guest stars in Combat if I remember right in 1963 or at the latest 1964 The Dirty Dozen came out in 1967
@Mark Richards Hell In The Pacific was the next year. Dir John Boorman met Marvin on the set of The Dirty Dozen and persuaded him to play the lead in Point Blank. Then he did Boorman's next film, which was HITP.
@Mark Richards No problem. Marvin made Boorman. He was a British TV director who'd mainly done documentaries and one film, a Hard Day's Night rip off featuring the band The Dave Clark Five. But Boorman approached Marvin as he luckily was in England to film DD.
A friend of mine was in this film Tom Busby, he's shot in the head near the end of the film. He said he made more money playing poker than his wages for making the film. He was a real nice guy too.
I don't like war or combat movies, but, The dirty dozen was all that! I think the standout performances are Lee Marvin, Jim Brown, and John Cassavetes I gotta be real all the acting was top-notch and outstanding!💯 Great movie facts! BTW, this was one of my father's favorite films!
There is a war film that was like a pre- dirty dozen in 1964 called the secret invasion. This very good war film also has a all star cast such as Mickey Rooney, Henry silvia, ed barnes, William Campbell and Stewart Granger among others, this film is well worth watching.
The 1st Special Service Force, a joint Canadian-American unit of elite alpine/mountain troops and commandos, were most-assuredly not recruited from inside the military prison system. The selection process itself was open only to outstanding soldiers with excellent service records, and the force cadre took the cream of the crop for inclusion in the unit. The 1st SSF ranks amongst the finest special-operations units of the entire war.
That's was the most important thing in his life was his experiences in the USMC after he made it in Hollywood he couldn't get out of there quick enough he felt it was a phony place to live in
... at the Cornell Theatre, Burbank, on a double bill one Saturday afternoon with 'Grand Prix.' Like six hours of movie because my Mom had a boatload of errands to accomplish and probably didn't want to wrangle my presence all afternoon. I was a happy camper.
John Casavetes and Lee Marvin are the soup that bring the DD 12 Off... the interplay and reactions as they make a point to get on each other's uncomfortable side are unforgettable... in particular the early scene where Lee Marvin Beats Victor Franco into the ground until he is unconcious. The scene which ends with Lee Marvin's boot in Franco's face... incredibly wild scene.
Bubba Holtzclaw I will never Never forget the fight scene between Lee Marvin and Clint walker!. Much the same as the fight scene a couple decades later in the first fast and the furious between the late Paul Walker and Vin Diesels best friend fight that Dominick Torreto had to break up.
@@michaelweizer7794 OH yes, another fav of mine also, he gets under his skin, because he has to know he will fight when the time calls for it... Great, thanks for bringing that one out too!
I thought you were going to say the fight scene in the movie Emperor of the North between A1 Lee Marvin and Shack Ernst Borgnine on the train that was a brutal fight scene
@@jameshuseby6290 So long as the subject is fight scenes on trains I still think it's pretty hard to top the James Bond classic from Russia with love!.And that was in 1963.
The primary technical advisor for the movie The Dirty Dozen, was named Duff Matson, if memory serves me correctly. If I remember correctly he was either a member of one of these groups in World War II always very closely associated with one of the groups. I do understand there may have been more than one. The story is roughly based on actual events of soldiers that they would release from prison because of their unique talents.
I felt that the dirty dozen was a good movie a very well written script amazing speical effects. Something that can never be recreated by cgi. New movies are easy to make old movies are so clever and good no bright lights just a well written story with good acting and the best casting choice for the roles of the dirty dozen.
I feel the same way they just can't get the gritty part down like in the older movies and they definitely don't have the same type of men to even get near filling the shoes of the men that were actors then
the film was made at little chalfont buckinghamshire and i visited the set and met clint walker, and charles bronson in the little thatched cottage. nice day out
If you want me to blow your mind with another fact that was left out!! The movie Small Soldiers, all the Commando Elite Characters are played by the actors in the Dirty Dozen. Lee Marvin was cast for the roll of Major Chip Hazard but died before the movie was finished, so they recast Tommy Lee Jones for the roll
OMFG I HAD NO IDEA!!! I loved Small Soldiers before I even knew of The Dirty Dozen! I just looked it up and George Kennedy, Clint Walker, Ernest Borgnine and Jim Brown were voices of the Elite!!! Thats SO AWESOME!!!
Lee Marvin's wife's Auto bio book mentioned in 1965 the Robert Aldrich, Robert Taylor, Earnest Borgnine and their wife's had dinner in Las Vegas discussing The Dirty Dozen movie. Two men came up to their table and wanted Lee Marvin’s Autograph. Lee said OK and signed their autograph, the two men said they were huge fans of his movies and mentioned The Wild One with Lee and Marlon Brando. Lee Marvin said thank you and then continued eating. The two men walked away. Ernest Bognine said to Lee Marvin do you know who those two men were. Lee said no just two kids. His wife said they were Paul McCartney and John Lennon a new sensation called the Beatles. Lee said yeah so what and continued eating. Earnest Borgnine shook his head and laughed. Side note in the movie The Wild One Lee Marvin's Motorcycle Gang was called the "Beetles"....
There was "The Secret Invasion" which dealt with five criminals and a widow who try to save an Italian general which came out three years before "The Dirty Dozen".
The members of the Merchant Marine were not entitled to combat pay, combat decorations or awards, and other honors and recognition due members of the line navy who served in combat or in war zones. Yet, they were arguably the bravest of all since they sailed into harm's way aboard vessels largely unarmed and extremely vulnerable to attack by German aircraft and submarines. The regs were finally changed, and the Merchant Mariners got their just due recognition. They were brave men. Going into the water in the far north Atlantic was almost a death sentence, a man in the water would last only a few minutes before freezing to death.
Some great info I didn't know about, great research, you obviously have a great love of movies, just subscribed and looking forward to watching the rest, thanks for posting.
My favorite stay in home during a storm/iced road day movie marathon is The Dirty Dozen, Patton, The Longest Day, and Kelly’s Heroes. That or just a Band of Brothers day.
Lee Marvin actually took part in 21 landings on Pacific shores. He was shot up at Saipan, where most of his company was killed, and he got a Purple Heart. The memories haunted him for the rest of his life. He hated this movie because, he said, it's nothing like war at all.
Marvin was right; it WASN'T a "war" movie It was a "caper" flick! In essence, it was like "Ocean's Eleven"; a group of men planning, and conducting, an operation against a target, whether casinos or a German occupied chateau, with the intent of either robbery or assassination! One other thing, Mr Marvin; if the movie wasn't made to MAKE MONEY, then what the HELL was it made FOR! I don't remember Hollywood being so altruistic that they would throw away a few million dollars without the expectation of getting at least SOME of it BACK!
Here's a suggestion for a movie "The Nanny" starring Betty Davis. British film from the sixties. It terrified me as a child. I have copy and it still creeps me out.
A classic guy movie which guys can watch again and again just like there are chick flicks which women can watch again again. I can watch the dirty dozen again again.
#1) The unit was always called "The Filthy 13" even when the mission had up to 18 men.They were led by Private First Class (E-2 then) Jake "McNasty" McNiece and were hid in the 506th Parachute Regiment. They made 4 jumps into hostile territory. Two of the men, in the wartime film, putting camoflage paint on each other's faces are Pvt.Clarence Ware and Pvt. Charles Plaudo. A still shot of them is between pages 208 & 209 of George Koskimaki's "D-Day With The Screaming Eagles". PFC. McNiece survived the war. Stephen C. DeVito wrote "Fighting With The Filthy Thirteen: The World War II Story of Jack Womer, Ranger and Paratrooper". The 13 took part in Operation Market and was in The Bulge.
The _Filthy Thirteen_ were a Pathfinder platoon. They were supposed to go behind enemy lines and designate landing zones for the rest of the division. They were the inspiration for the "Filthy Few" in the Hell's Angels. The Filthy Few would ride ahead and clear the campsite the rest of the group would use when they arrived. They were not allowed to bathe or wash their gang cuts (a denim vest with the gang's colors on the back).
A gun club in Pennsylvania, just outside of Philly has a 200 yard range named after Jack Agnew, one of the 13, or 18...numbers are unsure it seems. I was a member there and maintained the range along with others. We took pride in caring for his work and legacy. He built the original.
@@michaelmorrismorris6113 The Green Berets is about as accurate as any other propaganda movie, which is to say, not very... Now, Rambo is pure fantasy...
Apparently you've never seen The Undefeated with John Wayne Rock Hudson and two LA Rams Players that never acted in their lives and apparently never had a acting lesson quarterback Roman Gabriel who also had the worst makeup job on to supposedly make him look like a Indian it was so red it literally looked like they painted it on his face with a paint brush and LA Rams DT Merlin Olsen in his first acting gig and neither one them had ever had a acting lesson and it showed the script was terrible too I suppose they wanted to be sure and cover all the bases if it wasn't so boring of a movie I could have tried to watch the whole thing to see if there were any more laughs than looking at and listening to Roman Gabriel and Merlin Olsen try to portray American Indian characters or watch John Wayne and Rock Hudson's stiff and lame so called acting
Acting in The Dirty Dozen was a canny move on Lee Marvin's part. He wasn't enthusiastic but knew it'd be "a dummy moneymaker" and give him leverage for 'Point Blank' which he REALLY wanted to make (also for MGM.) And it worked--'The Dirty Dozen' made a fortune and for 'Point Blank' Marvin got cast approval, script approval, and final cut..all of which he deferred to director John Boorman. 'Point Blank' is one of the finest films Marvin ever did.
I was 11 years old when this movie was released and it became one of my favorite WWII films. Back then I didn't realize just how old some the actors actually were. In the real world they'd be collecting their military pensions and shaving with hot water.
You didn't mention that The Dirty Dozen was made entirely here in England. With a virtually all British crew and a few British actors like John Hollis who later appeared in The Empire Strikes Back, Flash Gordon and For Your Eyes Only
You should be able to dig deeper into this, it was commented upon in the late 60s that disorderly soldiers sometimes were sent on missions or special tasks just to pay back but also because some officers realized that on some missions they just couldn't send ordinary soldiers, with that it was implied that in some circumstances soldiers who couldn't conform to normal regulations actually were perfectly suited for special service, but as I said it was common knowledge in historical research in the 1960s but I haven't heard anything about it or further details since then.
Fifty+ years later, and it's still the gold standard for the men-on-a-death-misson movie. And I don't care if Tarantino fans will get mad (they will), but Inglorious Basterds is no match for the classic. I know it was only used as an inspiration, and I know it wasn't an action movie, but was I disappointed in how little stuff the so-called Basterds got to do. Their leading man kills only one unarmed guy in the whole movie while half of their teammates disappear from the script after they just appeared in the movie. The Dirty Dozen gives its character the due they deserve. Every character is integral to the movie's climax. And Major John Reisman goes full-on Wolfenstein mode on Nazis and doesn't just sit on his ass while his men die. This is a classic.
Having seen Jim Brown🏈on TV,, & in print smashing thru defense,& speed, rooting for his character in the Movie, it really touched a nerve as he gets shot during the finale' RIP Mr Brown🎬
Another movie that could have been aligned with the DD and that is The Professionals, of which Marvin and Ryan starred in. It’s about a railroad tycoon that brings together 4 professionals to bring back his supposedly kidnapped wife...great movie.
My contributions: When the movie came out there were large posters on subway platforms in NYC with a glaring error. In the movie the mission was codenamed "Operation Amnesty" but the posters said it was "Operation Overleaf". This is from the line in the movie where Marvin is being briefed and told the full plan is described on the next page, "overleaf" There was also a T.V. ripoff called Garrison's Gorillas (1967-1968) based on the same idea.
There is a Dirty Dozen film trailer that shows Lee Marvin on a rare filming day off spectating a British motocross. Marvin, who caught the motorcycle bug during the filming of the Wild One, in his younger years became an avid motorcycle racer.
Our Neighbour was Lee Marvins double.. I am going to inter him soon... I LOVE OUR NEIGHBOURS. STAY STRONG ❤️❤️❤️ I want to tell people about you P.. Xx
After watching this movie I realized it also inspired the plot for the game Mass Effect 2 where a team of various convicts, mercenaries and specialists head out on a suicide mission. The group of recruited characters also totals the same number.
The Blue Max starring George Peppard and Ursala Andress was the movie that forced the movie industry to start using the rating system. While there was absolutely no nudity in this movie, Ursala was so sexy and sultry the industry was forced to start ratings. By the way, I don't say much here, I really enjoy your channel, you present really well. It is a movie about a world war one fighter pilot, with a very different plot of any fighter jock movie I have ever seen.
WOW Jeff you really do your homework. I'm really impressed. You have a new subscriber. I love this channel. Because this was done three years ago I really hope this comment reaches you. I guess I'll never know... :( BTW I watched your vlog on It's A Wonderful Life and found it to be very informative plus it's my all time favorite Christmas movie. Thank you