I don't remember ever seeing this movie before, but I could have back in 1953 - I saw most of the movies that came to town then. I watched it this morning on AMC, and when the supplies were parachuted down I said to myself, "They're gonna find Spam and throw it away." Sure enough, that's what happened! Am I psychic, have I seen this movie before, or was that Spam gimmick used in some other WWII movie?
shareI like Spam.
shareTry slicing Spam and barbecueing it. That's how they do it in Hawaii. No, really.
share[deleted]
The taste of spam is better than this over ripe movie.
Nothing is more beautiful than nothing.
The Spam gag was also done in Wellman's Battleground, where there is an air drop for the surrounded 101st AB...some of the crates are ammo, but the squad, with the chaplin watching, look with disdain at the case of Spam...
BTW...My late father, a WWII European Theater Vet, had a burning hatred for all things Spam, as did my Father in Law, a WWII Pacific Theater Air Corps Vet...I kinda like the stuff...
Oh, thanks. I'll have to look for Battleground on TV. I recall it was a pretty good war movie, in the spirit of Bill Maudlin's perspective.
shareIf I recall correctly, the scene from Battleground has the squad looking on in disdain not at Spam but at an airdropped crate of K-rations, "all dinners!" as the grunt exclaims. K-ration dinners canned component was either cheese, cheese with ham bits or ham.
I kinda like Spam too but as somone else on this thread points out, the Spam availible in the 1940's was vastly inferior to what we know as spam today. My dad was a WW2 vet as well, only in the PTO and his post war food revulsion basically encompassed any sort of canned meat.
While driving through southern Minnesota, I drove by Austin where Spam is made. On a lark, I stopped in and visited the Spam Museum. The museum has a history of Spam and they have a large section devoted to Spam and its role in WWII with GIs. They claim that there were several meat packers around the country contracted to can pork for the military. Even though it was universally called "Spam" in many cases it wasn't truly Spam, which accounts for the wide variation in quality.
In the interest of full disclosure, it should be pointed out that the Spam Museum is funded by Hormel, the makers of Spam.
Falco...I recall the K-ration dinner gag, that was delivered by Marshal Thompson AFTER the air drop (echoing a prior complaint by Van Johnson's character, pissy that the dinners had lemonade instead of coffee), but the gag DURING the Air drop was John Hodiak removing the crate from the canvas bag to find it labled "spam"
Side note: Van Johnson, Pfc. Holley, in Battleground, passed away last week at 92...RIP to one of the great GI "character" actors.
I recall a Jerry Lewis film way back when. His character was water sking and wound up on the beach where he, still on skis, went over a picnic setup and wound up with a sandwich in his mouth. He took it out of his mouth, looked at it and said with disgust, "Spam" and threw it away. Seems nobody likes spaml. I certainly would have not thrown the spam away, after not eating for several days, I would have gobbled it up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8huXkSaL7o
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdpsfBsN_Dg
Can you fly this plane?
Surely u cant be serious
I am serious,and dont call me Shirley
We would sometimes have fried spam with our breakfast aboard ship. I liked it then and still do. BTW, fried bologna works fairly well, too.
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I love this movie and I also love spam, but then, I'm hawai'ian.
Life is a journey not a destination. Fear nothing.
My uncle was at Hickam Field 12/7/41 and served thru the war. He told tales of burying spam and chilling beer w/ Co2 fire extinguishers.
He loved bird hunting, and complained to my grandather, "I cant hit a G-D thing without tracers.
"Save me Jebus!", Homer Simpson
You have to remember that it wasn't Really SPAM! The type issued during the war and survival ration s was different, more like Treat Meat or Potted meat, both of which I hate, can't hardly grill it or fry it
I'd rather go hunting with Dick Cheney, than driving with Ted Kennedy
My father who was in the Navy in WWII, acquired a taste for Spam while there, and would often disgust me and my mother by grilling several pieces and making Spam burgers. He delighted in holding out his sammich and asking us, "Wanna bite?"
"We're fighting for this woman's honor, which is more than she ever did."
Mmmmm, Spam!
Would taste pretty good after a few days of starvation.
Yeah, I also questioned the idea of a starving man throwing away any kind of Spam.
My mom knew how to make it--baked, with a honey glaze and pineapple slices on top. My dad loved it, and he was a Marine in WWII who was at Pearl Harbor and later fought in the South Pacific.
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