Island in the Sky Overview:

Island in the Sky (1953) was a Adventure - Drama Film directed by William A. Wellman and produced by John Wayne and Robert Fellows.

BlogHub Articles:

THE JOHN WAYNE BLOGATHON: Island in the Sky (1953)

on Dec 10, 2016 From Caftan Woman

Oh, happy day! The Midnite Drive-In and Hamlette's Soliloquy are hosting The John Wayne Blogathon running from December 9th to the 11th. Click HERE or HERE for all the great contributions. 1953s Island in the Sky directed by William A. Wellman is based on Ernest K. Gann's 1944 novel based on an a... Read full article


THE JOHN WAYNE BLOGATHON: Island in the Sky (1953)

By Caftan Woman on Dec 10, 2016 From Caftan Woman

Oh, happy day! The Midnite Drive-In and Hamlette's Soliloquy are hosting The John Wayne Blogathon running from December 9th to the 11th. Click HERE or HERE for all the great contributions. 1953s Island in the Sky directed by William A. Wellman is based on Ernest K. Gann's 1944 novel based on an a... Read full article


Island in the Sky (1953)

By Beatrice on Oct 28, 2015 From Flickers in Time

Island in the Sky Directed by William A. Wellman Written by Ernest K. Gann from his novel 1953/USA Warner Bros./Wayne-Fellows Productions First viewing/Netflix rental What this disaster flick lacks in realism, it makes up for in suspense. Capt. Dooley pilots a C-47 transport plane called the Co... Read full article


ISLAND IN THE SKY ( 1953 )

By Crystal Kalyana on Sep 12, 2015 From In The Good Old Days Of Classic Hollywood

This post is part of the William Wellman Blogathon, hosted by Now Voyaging. Click here to view the other articles being exhibited during this event. In the entertainment industry that was filled with many notable names, who were prolific at their craft, William Wellman shone for his creative direct... Read full article


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Quotes from

Capt. Dooley: I know you're down in the middle of a big nowhere. They're all dependant. I ate today and it's still strong. But tomorrow. So find food, that's number one. Find out where nowhere is, that's number two. And you can help the others find nowhere. They'll come, they won't leave you alone waiting on a pin point of nowhere.


Capt. Dooley: Tell them we're in a jam. Loosen up and lose some altitude. We're turning North West until we run out of gas.
Pilot: But if we go North West Captain, we'll fly right off the map. It says "unchartered" up that way.


Capt. Dooley: They're coming, boys. Boys, they're coming. Boys, they're coming!
[planes fly apast]
Capt. Dooley: I guess we're awful hard to see down here. Harder than we thought.


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Facts about

The little yellow radio shown in the movie was a actual radio. Its design is based on a WWII German emergency transmitter. It is a BC-778/SCR-578/AN-CRT3 emergency transmitter (it could not receive) affectionately called 'Gibson Girl', a name taken from the narrow-waisted female drawings of 1890s fashion artist Charles Gibson. Its shape allowed the operator to hold it between the legs while cranking it the necessary 80 RPM to produce enough electricity to operate. It could be set to automatically send an SOS signal or switched to send Morse Code signals. Early models transmitted only on 500kHz, later models also could transmit on 8280kHz (later modified to 8364kHz). It was notorious for being tough to crank.
The general plot is based on a true story that the author, Ernest Gann related in his 1961 autobiographical book about his flying career, "Fate is the Hunter". He and other pilots searched successfully for a lost fellow pilot in the wilds of northern Canada during World War II.
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Also directed by William A. Wellman




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Also produced by John Wayne




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