The character's name was Jesse Bishop. He was played by Robert Patten, and was based on a real-life B-17 pilot named John Cary Morgan who received the Medal of Honor for his actions in bringing his plane and crew home after his aircraft commander was mortally wounded with a head wound from a cannon fragment, which were almost word-for-word transcribed into the script.
During the debriefing at the beginning, Colonel Davenport submits the combat report from Jesse Bishop's crew as the citation for the Medal of Honor recommendation. This makes Jesse one of the most respected pilots in the group, and he becomes the spokesman for the other officers when they all request a transfer after Savage takes over.
Later in the movie, one of the other pilots mentions that Jesse's plane took a direct hit and he is presumed killed. In real life, Morgan bailed out and was taken prisoner, and apparently in the book version, so did Jesse. Morgan left the Air Force after he was released but was recalled to active duty during the Korean War.
It's unclear in the movie whether or not Jesse's medal was awarded before or after he was shot down.
reply
share
fanaticita
12 years ago
Thank you very much! This was an incredible film, and all of the actors were remarkable in portraying such difficult roles.
reply
share
TD2112
9 years ago
The person who committed suicide was the navigator who made the error that caused the group to arrive late on target in the beginning of the film. The young man that Col Davenport refused to replace which lead to him losing command of the group.
reply
share
nickm2
9 years ago
For the record, his name was Zimmermann or 'Zimmy'; his folks were involved with the 'German American Bund' (Nazi sympathetic front organization) and he was deeply ashamed by this, so he spent a lot of time trying to 'live that down'.
Why can't you wretched prey creatures understand that the Universe doesn't owe you anything!?
reply
share