Mister Roberts Trivia Quiz

Answer: Pacific Ocean

The movie begins in the Western Pacific late in April 1945, near the end of WW2, as stated in the opening credits. The crew also gives us clues such as references to "Jap flags" on the island, and numerous mentions of Okinawa landings and kamikazes, both of which were only in the Pacific late in the war. Finally, we see Pacific Ocean maps on bulkheads.

The USS Reluctant performs a humble but necessary job. The ship has never seen any combat.

Answer: supply ship

She is a small supply ship, as stated in the opening credits. We see several scenes where the crew is loading/unloading cargo. Crew members make several references to topics such as "cargo handling award" and "best cargo record".

The actual Navy designation for this type vessel is "AKL"; "A" for Auxiliary, "K" for Cargo (I know - why not a "C"? Ask me in a message), and "L" for Light (small). Oddly enough, the ship actually used for filming was originally an Army AKL, and was transferred to the Navy in 1948. The ship became the USS Hewell (AG-145; later AKL-14).

Answer: A cigarette butt was thrown into the Captain's potted palm tree.

In the opening shot of the movie, dawn is just breaking and reveille is being called. We hear the bad news about the cigarette butt over the 1MC circuit (which is the official name of a US Navy ship's PA system.) The potted palm was an award for superior cargo handling, and was highly prized - at least by the Captain!

In WW2, movies were the major source of recreation on underway vessels; losing such a privilege could be devastating to morale. The Captain's tyrannical punishment hints almost immediately that this is a broken crew.

Answer: cargo officer

Mister Roberts (Doug) is the cargo officer. We determine this by the fact that Roberts is the only officer we see directing cargo work until he transfers from the Reluctant. The fact is also revealed by several conversations about Roberts' duties as cargo officer. Some written reference sources state that he is also the ship's Executive Officer (XO), although this is not stated in the movie.

Henry Fonda began acting in 1925. He was in 106 movies, and won two Best Actor Academy Awards during his career. He served in the US Navy during WW2 as both an enlisted man and officer, on a destroyer! Incidentally, Fonda also played the Mister Roberts role in the Broadway play of the same name - the play ran for 1157 performances from February 1948 until January 1951.

Answer: He is carrying a watering can.

In the early part of the movie, we see the Captain (played by James Cagney) stroll from the bridge - bathrobed, water can in hand - onto the weather deck to water his beloved palm tree.

Cagney's career as an entertainer spanned an amazing 65 years (1919 - 1984). He was well known for his tough guy roles. During his career James Cagney was thrice nominated for Academy Award Oscars, winning once for Best Actor. He was also awarded the American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Answer: in his own head

Sick call is a daily event in the Navy, and is sometimes used by marginal sailors as a convenient way to avoid work - just as we see in the USS Reluctant's sick call scene. The ship's doctor (played by veteran actor William Powell) isn't fooled; he prescribes "one aspirin; fit for duty" for the malingering seaman.

William Powell performed in vaudeville, stage and screen productions from about 1912 until 1955. Perhaps his most famous movie role was that of Nick Charles in "The Thin Man" series, beginning in 1934. He was a three time Oscar nominee for Best Actor, but never won. "Mister Roberts" was Powell's final performance. He spent the rest of his life in retirement.

Answer: a hospital flag

This incident happens shortly after reveille. Deck division men are chipping paint or cleaning binoculars. Left unsupervised, they start skylarking (goofing off), and one man spots the flag on the island.

The sailor's error is understandable. The standard flag for an American medical facility is the red cross on a white field. The standard Japanese flag is the classic red disk (the "rising sun") on a white field. Oddly enough, although it had been in use as early as 1870, this flag was not formally designated as the national flag of Japan until 1999.

Answer: Nurses can be seen in the hospital showers.

When the sailors are peering through binoculars (instead of working), they discover the nurses in the shower of the hospital. The newly arrived nurses are blissfully unaware that their activity is visible to the Reluctant's crew. Do these educated, college trained women have no idea that they can be seen? We really have to suspend our disbelief on this one, but - very well.

The senior nurse is played by Betsy Palmer, a well known actress/TV personality of the 1950s and 60s.

Location filming for "Mister Roberts" took place at Midway Island (of WW2 battle fame) and Oahu (of Pearl Harbor infamy) Hawaii. The long shots of a very low-lying island base are almost certainly at Midway. the rugged, mountainous terrain shown as Elysium are probably Oahu.

Answer: vanilla extract

The Scotch preparation sequence is a small part of a fairly long scene. The liquor begins with grain alcohol. Coke adds color; iodine adds taste (taste? ugh); and the coal tar based hair tonic ages the mixture. It may have been lousy Scotch, but it did not contain vanilla extract!

The US Navy had a daily rum ration until 1862; the Royal Navy halted the custom on Black Tot Day - 31 July 1970. Today grain alcohol in any form is officially forbidden aboard U.S. Navy ships. But don't worry. As we see in the movie, sailors are a resourceful lot.

This scene simultaneously showcases the talents of three film icons - Henry Fonda, William Powell, and Jack Lemmon.

Answer: Pulver has sampled dirty dishwater.

Ensign Pulver (Jack Lemmon) is touring the nurses around the ship. Immediately after Pulver's salt comment, the cook puts a stack of dirty dishes into the hot scrub water and adds soap powder - not salt.

In the old Navy, Cookie was used as a nickname for the cook; similarly, the radiomen on board had the moniker Sparks. Other unusual appellations for Navy jobs included skivvie waver, nut buster, and ping jockey - for signalmen, mechanic, and sonarman, respectively. In today's Navy such practices are probably considered derogatory and insulting.