LaFayette Escadrille (1958)

Jimmy: [repeated line to the American flyers] Good morning, American bum!
Duke Sinclaire: I'm not sure I like being called a "bum"! I've always thought of myself as more of a "tramp".

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[the American flyers are driving the French drillmaster crazy]
Duke Sinclaire: We've got him out-witted! Our feet are *killing* him!

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Director William A. Wellman wanted Paul Newman for the lead with Clint Eastwood as his best friend, Duke Sinclair. When Newman opted to do "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" instead, the studio insisted on the lead part going to contract player Tab Hunter. Wellman thought the chemistry between Hunter and Eastwood wrong and ironically replaced Eastwood with one of the actor's best friends, David Jannsen. Eastwood ended up playing a smaller supporting role.
This was director William A. Wellman's last film. Wellman, who had previously directed numerous aviation dramas -- including Wings, the 1927 winner of the first Academy Award for Best Picture -- saw Lafayette Escadrille as a tribute to his fellow World War I combat pilots. But the studio, Warner Bros., gave Wellman a very low budget, and Wellman felt he could not make the film he wanted to make. Originally, the film had a tragic ending for Thad Walker and his Parisian bride, but studio head Jack Warner demanded a happy ending. When Wellman refused, the studio took the film away and shot a new ending with Tab Hunterand Etchika Choureau. Afterwards, Wellman decided to retire from directing. His son, William Wellman Jr. later said that his father "just got tired of fighting with the studios."
William Wellman Jr., the director's son, plays a pilot, Bill Wellman, who is based on his father.
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