MovieChat Forums > Hellcats of the Navy Discussion > What is a hellcat anyway?

What is a hellcat anyway?

posted 17 years ago by steveintucson
11 replies | jump to latest

I got the movie today from Blockbuster online but it was so bad I paid little attention. I never did catch what a hellcat was and how the hellcat got its name. I thought for a while they were perhaps the early "SEALS" that get off the sub and dynamite the Japanese installation but I never confirmed it.
If the hellcat is the sub itself then isn't that an odd name considering cats don't like the water?
I wonder if Nancy was on sedatives way back then, she had that "far away" look even in '57.

[–] moviemystic 17 years ago

A Hellcat name could also refer to nerdy Nancy herself. All the White House guys said she was a nightmare bitch on wheels while she was First Lady. They even had a codename for her - the Dragonlady!

Anyway, as to the nickname you asked about, I'm watching the film right now. (I picked it up cheap at a local store's $3 bargain bin.) Later in the movie, they explain at a briefing that it's a name they gave to the actual subs. There were also ones they dubbed called the Polecats, Bobcats, and even the Hepcats. Hey, don't laugh - in 1957 that was considered to be a pretty cool term!

[–] chuckbuc 17 years ago

A hell cat is was a U.S. Navy war bird during WWII; F-6F. Here's a photo:
http://www.vfa32.navy.mil/hellcat.jpg

[–] moviemystic 16 years ago

So the Navy gave the Hellcat name to BOTH subs and planes. Too bad they didn't win the war, though - the Air Force did, when they started dropping those A-bombs.

[–] 16 years ago

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[–] CGSailor 14 years ago

It is sort of a misnomer. They did not have a submarine or a class of submarine called Hellcat.

As used in the Movie. the Hellcats were a codename for a specific group of subs, on a specific mission. Other groups had the code name Bobcats, polecats, etc...
The only OFFICIAL HELLCAT was the F-6F Hellcat Navy fighterplane as mentioned above.

The Title "Hellcats of the Navy" is not referring to any officially named sub or class of ship.

The title comes from the book Hellcats of the Sea.
and refers to the subs and the men who sailed them in "Operation Barney"
as in the slang term, "He's a real hellcat" meaning a hell raiser.
I joined the Navy to see the world, only to discover the world is 2/3 water!

[–] pt100 9 years ago

The air force finished the job. But U.S. submarines were responsible for destroying more enemy shipping than all surface ships combined.

It is better to be kind than to be clever or good looking. -- Derek

[–] CGSailor 9 years ago

The air force finished the job.

I didn't even pay attention to that part of his post when I first read and responded otherwise I would have corrected him then.

The "Air Force" Did not even exist until 1947.
So how they were dropping Nukes in 1945... I'll never know.
Those were "Army" bombers.

And despite the Army dropping the two bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.. it was predominantly... overwhelmingly... a Navy/Marine gig, defeating the Japanese.

I joined the Navy to see the world, only to discover the world is 2/3 water!

[–] pt100 9 years ago

Yes, he incorrectly used the capitalized Air Force label. I used lowercase to denote the generic term "air force," which at time was the Army Air Force.

It is better to be kind than to be clever or good looking. -- Derek

[–] 9 years ago

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[–] lexp2005 13 years ago

chuckbuc your URL doesn't work.

[–] Taglaish 15 years ago

the Hellcats were:
quote:

The term "Hellcats" is a title of distinction given to those boats which participated in the carefully planned Operation Barney by braving the mine infested entrances in an effort to penetrate the Sea of Japan. The term is derived from the nickname applied by the US Navy to IJN mines - "Hell Pots". When the FM sonar picked up a contact there was, in addition to a visual "blip" on the screen, an audible bell-like tone which was referred to as "Hells Bells".
unquote.

from the website:
http://www.valoratsea.com/wolfpacks.htm