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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
William Brinkley (novel)
Dorothy Kingsley (writer) ...
more
Release Date:
December 1957 (USA) more
Tagline:
THE LAUGH OF YOUR LIFE-TIME! (original print ad - all caps) more
Plot:
On a small island in the South Pacific, the Navy's P.R. department is spending WWII without getting near a ship... more | add synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations more
User Comments:
Those Under Appreciated Navy Ad Men more (3 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Glenn Ford | ... | Lt. J.G. Max Siegel |
 | Gia Scala | ... | Melora Alba |
| Earl Holliman | ... | Adam Garrett |
 | Anne Francis | ... | Lt. Alice Tomlen |
| Keenan Wynn | ... | Gordon Ripwell |
| Fred Clark | ... | Lt. Cmdr. Clinton T. Nash |
| Eva Gabor | ... | Deborah Aldrich |
| Russ Tamblyn | ... | Ens. Tyson |
| Jeff Richards | ... | Lt. Ross Pendleton |
| Mickey Shaughnessy | ... | Farragut Jones |
| Howard Smith | ... | Adm. Junius Boatwright |
| Romney Brent | ... | Mr. Alba - Melora's Father |
 | Mary Wickes | ... | Janie |
| Jack Straw | ... | Lt. Cmdr. Gladstone |
| Robert Nichols | ... | Lt. Cmdr. Hereford |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
107 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Metrocolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)
Certification:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Quotes:
Gordon Ripwell:
You're taking good care of me, kid! Went to Harvard, didn't you, Junior?
Ens. Tyson:
Princeton.
Gordon Ripwell:
Six of one, half a dozen of the other! They're both pantywaist factories. I never go within spittin' distance of a college myself.
Lt. J.G. Max Siegel:
[sotto voce] I sensed that.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in The Money Pit (1986) more
Soundtrack:
Don't Go Near The Water more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (3 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Don't Go Near the Water (1957)| Recent Posts (updated daily) | User |
|---|---|
| Inspired famous Money Pit scene? | apass |
| Showing on TCM US | janig22 |
| Farragut Jones | nenue |
| Searching for Brinkley Estate | sbrook |
Recommendations
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| On the Town | Crash Dive | Mister Roberts | From Here to Eternity | Minesweeper |
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Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | IMDb Adventure section |
| IMDb USA section | Add this title to MyMovies |
Don't Go Near The Water is a film about those under-appreciated men of the second World War, those who served way in the rear echelon in the Navy's publicity department. They too, sacrificed and served their country in most unusual ways.
Hero of this piece and perfectly cast because of his gift for dead pan comedy timing is Glenn Ford, playing a Mister Roberts like officer assigned to the unit headed by Fred Clark. Actually Ford's a Roberts in reverse, he's already had his sea duty and now is assigned to this backwater of the war. He and Russ Tamblyn would like to get into action because it is in combat that promotions can be quickly earned. Not to mention they'd like to serve their country.
Now Clark's perfectly content where he is. He was a former advertising man in civilian life, so the Navy publicity unit is a perfect fit for him. He's even got far more leverage in 'disciplining' the men under his command. But he can be played and Ford does so like a piccolo.
Don't Go Near The Water has no real plot except for Ford's yeoman Earl Holliman falling for one of the Navy nurses, Anne Francis, and stealing her away from wolfish officer Jeff Richards. That's a romance that Ford's helping in every way he can despite those no fraternization policies between enlisted men and officers.
The film is a series of comic vignettes as the unit tries to deal with several non-military and military situations like a hero sailor played by Mickey Shaughnessy who can't control his language. I found that extremely true to life because back in those brief days when I was a weekend warrior, I remember those Anglo-Saxon expletives coming out just as frequently as they do from Shaughnessy. Still it won't do to have him on a bond tour with that coming out of him all the time, so Ford has the unenviable duty of cleaning his act up.
Ford's also taking time to romance island school teacher Gia Scala and he enlists her help in blackmailing an obnoxious war correspondent to help with building a new school house with the money he flashes around from his publisher. The correspondent is Keenan Wynn who thinks that Ensign Russ Tamblyn is his personal valet. No wonder Tamblyn wants to get to active duty.
And then there's the glamorous Eva Gabor who is a female correspondent who's been assigned to a forward area to cover the impending battle for Okinawa. As if Admiral Howard Smith hasn't enough troubles. He already has a low opinion of Clark and his outfit as a bunch of goldbrickers.
All in all it's a pretty funny service comedy and holds up well after over 50 years.