Parachute Battalion (1941)

Directed by Leslie Goodwins and produced by RKO Radio Pictures, Parachute Battalion is a spirited military drama released just months before the U.S. entered World War II. With a cast led by Robert Preston, Edmond O’Brien, and Buddy Ebsen, the film blends romance, comedy, and training-ground tension to promote the newly formed U.S. Army parachute infantry.

Plot Summary
Three very different men enlist in the Army’s parachute battalion at Fort Benning, Georgia:

• Bill Burke (Edmond O’Brien), a self-doubting recruit who signs up while drunk
• Don Morse (Robert Preston), a Harvard football star dodging romantic entanglements
• Jeff Hollis (Buddy Ebsen), a hillbilly coaxed into service by a local girl

On the train to camp, they meet Kit Richards (Nancy Kelly), whose father Bill “Old Thunderhead” Richards (Harry Carey) turns out to be their tough-as-nails instructor. As the men train, face fears, and compete for Kit’s affection, they grow into soldiers—and confront their personal demons in a dramatic airborne assault demonstration.

Cast Highlights

• Robert Preston as Don Morse
• Edmond O’Brien as Bill Burke
• Buddy Ebsen as Jeff Hollis
• Nancy Kelly as Kit Richards
• Harry Carey as Sgt. Bill Richards
• Paul Kelly, Richard Cromwell, and Edward Fielding in supporting roles

Behind-the-Scenes Trivia

• The film premiered in Atlanta, Georgia, with members of the 501st Parachute Battalion in attendance
• Lucille Ball was originally considered for the role of Kit, but Nancy Kelly—who married Edmond O’Brien during production—was cast instead
• The aircraft used in the climactic jump scene was a North American O-10 observation plane, not a standard troop transport
• Early production charts listed Patric Knowles and Charles Quigley, but they were cut from the final film