Beyond the Line of Duty

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YOUR RATING

This short film in support of the war effort dramatizes the training and missions of Army Air Forces Captain Hewett T. Wheless, a former Texas ranch hand who was awarded the Distinguished Se... Read allThis short film in support of the war effort dramatizes the training and missions of Army Air Forces Captain Hewett T. Wheless, a former Texas ranch hand who was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in the early days of WWII.This short film in support of the war effort dramatizes the training and missions of Army Air Forces Captain Hewett T. Wheless, a former Texas ranch hand who was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in the early days of WWII.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.0/10

330

YOUR RATING

11User reviews

See production info at IMDbPro

Won 1 Oscar
- 1 win total

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Top cast9

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Hewitt T. Wheless

Hewett T. Wheless
(as Captain Hewett T. Wheless - U.S. Army Air Forces)

Ronald Reagan

Narrator
(voice)
(as Lieutenant Ronald Reagan)

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Self
(archive footage)
(voice)
(as Franklin Delano Roosevelt)

Hubert R. Harmon

Major General H.K. Harmon
(as Major General H.K. Harmon)

William Hopper

University of Texas Classmate
(uncredited)

Bill Kennedy

Wheless' Air Force Buddy
(uncredited)

Harry Lewis

Wheless' Neighbor
(uncredited)

Knox Manning

Radio Announcer
(uncredited)

Glenn Strange

Cal
(uncredited)

Director
- Lewis Seiler
Writer
- Edwin Gilbert
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
The Distinguished Service Cross awarded to Capt. Wheless is second only to the Medal of Honor. The mission he was awarded the medal for occurred on December 14, 1941, just one week after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Capt. Wheless survived the war and remained in the Air Force, retiring at a Lt. General in 1968.

Quotes
Narrator: That uniform works miracles for a new cadet's confidence. Oh, but just in case we forgot to mention it, it takes plenty of work to be worthy of those uniforms.

Crazy credits
Narrator Ronald Reagan identifies the credited actors listed below his name.

Connections
Featured in Warner at War (2008)

Soundtracks
The Army Air Corps Song
(uncredited)
Written by Robert Crawford
Performed by a chorus

User reviews11

Review

Featured review

Nice WWII Short

Beyond the Line of Duty (1942)

*** (out of 4)

Lewis Seiler Oscar-winning short about the career of Hewitt T. Wheless, a simple man working on a ranch who got the urge to join the Air Force and he soon found himself flying important missions during WW2. There's no doubt that this film was made to inspire other young men to join the forces and help fight WW2 so the preaching that happens throughout is understandable considering what the country was going through and what the goal of this short was. Wheless actually does a pretty good job at playing himself and he comes across as a very likable guy and someone whose story is interesting enough to make for a good film. Ronald Reagan narrates this short and an interesting twist is that he was President when Wheless would die in real life. In terms of technical achievement this film doesn't offer too much but it's still very entertaining and shows us a part of history. Look quickly for Glenn Strange playing a cowboy.