'So long.....so long, you ancient pelican!' - The High and the Mighty (1954) Discussion

[–] spookyrat1 11 years ago

It's interesting you bring that up, because I think I'm right in suggesting the Duke was playing an older screen character than himself, who was actually around 45 or 46 at time of filming.

The Duke doesn't appear to wear any extra make-up, but Dan Roman is said to be an Air Force veteran from 2 world wars.

You'd have to say at the very least to be flying in 1917, as he told the passengers, he would be around 55.

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[–] shula1010430 11 years ago

Very good observation! John Wayne certainly made me feel like he was a seasoned aviator with plenty of experience. Amazing how well he played various roles during his career! (This movie got me so interested in aviation that I ended up working for a major U.S. carrier as a career!)

FAS1

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[–] spookyrat1 11 years ago

To be honest I knew very little about this film and hadn't seen it before. But I'm a big fan of the Duke and will watch just about any thing he made, just to see what he did in it.

I wasn't rapt in the film itself, but you can clearly see the influence it had on the later disaster films of the seventies (and of course I couldn't get Flying High/Airplane out of my head, especially with Robert Stack sitting in the captain's seat).

In this rather long film it's interesting how much of the content is not really focused on the character of Dan. He's always around the periphery, but the under cast get plenty of action under the beam of the spot light. Dan really only steps up in the last 20 to 25 minutes.

Fascinating to hear about the film's impact on your life.

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[–] N6346 10 years ago

Wayne being Wayne, "pelican" still strikes me as odd. Why not "eagle"?
"Pelican" seems insulting somehow.
Ralph Novak

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[–] spookyrat1 10 years ago

Well you've got a point I guess. I took it to mean that he flew a lot of sea routes (as in this movie) and pelicans of course have large wings.

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[–] CashHog 9 years ago

Those words "So long.....so long, you ancient pelican!" inspired great confidence and respect for a guy that had the "right stuff." It was an acknowledgement of Dan's long experience. Those words were an earned compliment and a huge thank you for being there in the cockpit at the right time.

Nothing can take the place of genuine experience and that experience had shown itself in the performance of Dan (John Wayne). His un-rattled and smooth confidence literally slapped the Captain (Robert Stack) back to reality and a realization that the airplane had much more to give. Dan felt that airplane, knew its performance and knew by long experience that they could stretch their fuel and make it to San Francisco. The damage done by the propeller wrenching itself from the number one engine had done all it was going to do. With that engine hanging down into the slipstream and imposing additional drag on the airframe it had degraded the aircraft's performance but Dan seemingly understood what needed to be done in order to arrest any further complications and meet any other challenges as they came up. The Captain was too ready to give up and put the airplane into the ocean instead of flying the airplane.

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[–] Butteoid 9 years ago

I always thought the airline honcho's words to both Robert Stack and John Wayne to the effect "We'll talk later" meant they both were in for a chewing out for even attempting to land when they had so little fuel -- 30 gallons -- left.
In the real world the airline would have preferred ditching than the liability of a large plane coming down in the middle of San Francisco, even though the crew gambled and won.
Hence, the "ancient pelican" remark was a nod to Wayne's courage, while the honcho's job would require him to still chew him out later.

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[–] gsfsu 9 years ago

The approach to SFO does not, and has never, gone over the city of San Francisco. And in the movie you will notice the navigator reads off the altimeter that they crossed the mountains. Those mountains are the Coastal Range and are actually south of S.F. proper.

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[–] tabari 8 years ago

I have been reading the book by Ernest Gann.
That line is verbatim from the book. It is delivered with affection by the airline exec as Dan Roman goes whistling off into the dark and the rain. And interesting that he was asked to whistle, because at the beginning his habit "gets on the last nerve" of Sullivan. Dan Roman in the book has done it all. He shares memories of the airports of all the major cities from when they were just grass verges or gravel strips. He has seen aviation grow and develop and has 20,000 air miles as a pilot. And ancient pelican, indeed! He is 55 to the navigator's 51 in the book.

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