WWII According to The Duke Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Fighting Seabees

"The Fighting Seabees" is a fictional account of the history of the Navy's Construction Battalions; the name Seabee being a play on the initials CB. In reality they were begun when Rear Admiral Ben Moreell, Chief of the Navy's Bureau of Yards and Docks, recommended their creation, prior to US involvement in the war. With the attack on Pearl Harbor he was given the go ahead and established a training facility in Davisville, Rhode Island that eventually trained over 100,000 personnel.

The movie follows the story of Wedge Donovan (Wayne), Lt. Cmdr. Robert Yarrow (O'Keefe), and war correspondent Constance Chesley (Hayward) in the South Pacific from just before the breakout of hostilities, up through the war. The three are involved in a love triangle. In the movie's, climax Donovan sacrifices himself to save his men and stop the Japanese.

Answer: They Were Expendable

"They Were Expendable" is based on a book of the same name, that tells of the exploits of John Bulkeley, a Congressional Medal of Honor winning PT boat commander, based in the Philippines at the outset of WWII. Both the movie and the book take some liberties with the facts. Another PT boat commander who would later gain fame was future President John F. Kennedy.

In the movie, Montgomery plays the character based on Bulkeley and Wayne plays a junior officer. It follows their exploits of proving the worth of PT boats in meeting the Japanese onslaught and in rescuing General MacArthur from Corregidor. Donna Reed co-stars as Wayne's love interest.

Answer: Back To Bataan

"Back to Bataan" is a fictional account of guerrilla activity in the Philippines, during the Japanese occupation. It follows the story of Colonel Madden (Wayne) and Captain Andrés Bonifácio (Quinn) as they fight against the Japanese. Although both characters are fictional, Quinn's character's grandfather was a national hero from Philippine history. Andrés Bonifácio led nationalist forces against the Spanish in the Philippine Revolution.

Answer: Sands of Iwo Jima

"Sands of Iwo Jima" is a fictional story about Marine Sergeant Stryker, played by Wayne. He trains his men hard and they resent him for it. They don't realize that the harder he trains them the more likely they are to survive the combat they will face.

At Tarawa the men begin to appreciate all that Stryker has done for them. The movie ends on Iwo Jima where Stryker is killed by a sniper and the men finally understand all that he has done in preparing them to survive modern warfare.

Answer: Operation Pacific

"Operation Pacific" is a fictional account of submarine warfare, but it portrays actual events that took place in real combat. Wayne plays Lieutenant Commander Duke Gifford, who becomes captain when his captain is killed. The scenes that are based on fact include, the solving of a difficult torpedo performance-design problem, the death of the original captain, who sacrifices himself by having the sub dive while he is still exposed, and the ramming and sinking of an armed freighter.

The captain who sacrificed himself in real life was Commander Howard W. Gilmore, captain of USS Growler.

He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, posthumously.

Answer: The Flying Leathernecks

"The Flying Leathernecks" is a fictional account of Marine aviators in the Pacific. Wayne plays Major Kirby and Ryan plays Captain Griffin. The movie follows the two as they tangle because Griffin thinks Kirby is too tough and Kirby doesn't think Griffin is tough enough to make the hard decisions required of combat commanders. By the end of the movie Griffin has learned to make the tough decisions and Kirby turns over command of the squadron to him.

While Capt. Griffin is completely fictional, Maj. Kirby is based on real-life ace Maj. John L. Smith, whose exploits over Guadalcanal were legendary. Maj. Smith was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1943. Real aerial combat footage was used in the film.

Answer: The Sea Chase

"The Sea Chase" is based on a novel of the same name and stars Wayne and Lana Turner. He is the captain of a German freighter, attempting to make it from Sydney Australia back to Germany at the onset of WWII. Turner is a German spy along for the ride.

They are chased by the British Navy, who is trying to stop them from completing their journey. At the time of its release "The New York Times" panned it for not staying true to the original novel, for Wayne's acting, and for wasting Turner's talent. (source: archived New York Times website article)

Answer: The Wings of Eagles

"The Wings of Eagles" was directed by John Ford. The movie is based on the story of Frank 'Spig' Wead, a pioneer of Naval aviation. In the movie, Wayne plays Wead. It follows him from the end of WWI and the beginning of Naval aviation through his injury and paralysis to his work in Hollywood as a screenwriter.

It ends with his time back in the Navy during WWII. Wead served aboard the USS Yorktown and the USS Essex, as well as helped establish the role of escort carriers in supporting the main battle groups. Wead wrote the screenplay for another John Ford/John Wayne collaboration, "They Were Expendable".

Answer: The Longest Day

"The Longest Day" is a factual representation of the events that took place on D-Day, June 6, 1944. It was based on the history book of the same name. The movie runs three hours long and focuses on all aspects of the invasion and is therefore a true ensemble piece.

Besides Wayne, the movie featured Robert Michtum, Robert Ryan, Red Buttons, Henry Fonda, Sean Connery, Richard Burton, Peter Lawford, Paul Anka, Robert Wagner, Rod Steiger, among others. Wayne played the role of Colonel Vandervoort of the 82nd Airborne who, despite breaking his ankle, commanded his troops throughout the day. Of special note was the casting of Richard Todd who played Major Howard.

He actually took part in the invasion on D-Day as a British paratrooper.

Answer: In Harm's Way

"In Harm's Way" was directed by Otto Preminger and follows Wayne's fictional character, Rockwell W. "Rock" Torrey, from disgraced Captain of a heavy cruiser to a redeemed Rear Adimral in command of a crucial mission. The movie co-stars Kirk Douglas, Henry Fonda, and Patricia Neal as the Navy nurse Wayne falls for.