 Starring James Cagney and Captains of the Clouds on the Cavalcade of America sponsored by Dupont, maker of better things for better living through chemistry. Our play tonight is a play of our time, wartime 1942. In it you will meet a little known but vastly important race of men, the bush pilots of Northern Canada, men who carry freight and medical supplies to the remote outposts of North America, outposts which could not be maintained without these intrepid barnstorming aviators. But we meet these men tonight in wartime, and like most of us, they too have altered their way of living in this year of 1942. Dupont, maker of better things for better living through chemistry, presents an all-star cast of Dennis Morgan, Alan Hale, Reginald Denny, Miles Vander, Morton Lowry, and squadron leader, Cathcart Jones, in Captains of the Clouds, based on Warner Brothers' spectacular new technical emotion picture and starring James Cagney on the Cavalcade of America. A trading post in Northern Ontario, hunched over Willie's lunch counter, a group of bush pilots take a brief respite between flights. They're joined by Brian McLean, a swaggering red-headed Irishman. The door opens. McLean speaks. On your feet, man. Brian! It's that pirate. Scoundrel, you know McLean. Yes, I've met him, but I don't like him. Oh, now why do you say that? You know, I've always been very happy to see you. Look at Tiny. He never used to like me either. And now he hates me. Oh, come on and sit down. Come on, come on. Willie, three black coffees and some cakes. It's sure good to see you. Now tell me, where's Johnny? I don't know. I haven't seen him. I thought you'd be helping him run that airline by now. Oh, no. I haven't seen him for weeks. I waited for him to come back with Emily and Marrior so I could be best man, but he didn't come back. I don't know where he is. I guess he changes mine. Now, look, are you boys interested in a proposition? Whose back teeth you bestow enough? Oh, now, calm, calm. Be big. Look, I've got a little contract pegged out, flying a stamp millipiece at a time. Now, my plane isn't big enough to handle a job, so if you boys want to chip in a couple of hundred bucks apiece, I'll swap my plane in for a second-hand twin-motor job and... Couple of hundred bucks? Is there that much money? How should I know? Well, the last time I saw you, had 4,000. The last time I saw you, we both had 4,000. What happened to yours? Down the sink. And growing strength in the air. See, who's that on the radio? We shall strike down the beaches. Sounds like Churchill. That's what I thought. Quiet, you fellow, quiet. We shall fight on the land in the fields and in the streets. We shall never surrender. Now, there's a man who knows how to word an invitation. I don't know how you feel, gentlemen, but I've taken a sudden dislike to these clothes. And as a matter of fact, looking about me, I think we'd all benefit by a change. Well, correct me if I'm wrong, gentlemen, but I think I heard something about a government station at Upland. That's the rumor. Well, what are we going to do? Waste the rest of the evening sitting here? No, sir, I think not, sir. What is it? Civilian aircrafts are coming in for a landing. Well, they can't land on an air force field. Get out there and signal to them to fly on over. It's too late, sir. They're heading for the runway at the end of the field. The fools, they'll crash into those trainers. Come on, maybe we can have them off. Yes, sir. I wonder who they can be, sir. Never mind that now. We've got to save those trainers. They're coming in at high speed, sir. See if you can attract their attention. Wave your arms. Yeah, we'll do something. Hey, the planes! You'll crash the planes! Devil, if the planes are out to get us, I think signal the ground to us off the field. What's that you say? I can't hear you. I said run! Run! Be a lifeman! Come on! That's a pretty little bomber. Lucky we didn't whittle a wing off at coming in. Look here, you men. What in town does the idea of gutting in here like a bunch of maniacs? Don't you know this is an air force station? We just dropped in to see if you could use some good flyers. Well, the place to apply for the air force is the nearest recruiting center. Now, if you'll be good enough to move your ships... Well, they're not in the way here, sir. We just... Here comes the commanding officer now. Better tell your story to him. What's the trouble, Lieutenant? What are these aircraft doing here? They're ours, sir. We're bush pilots. Well, take them back to the bush. Get them out of here anyway. But you don't understand. We know where we are, sir. I'd call that a debatable point. Maybe we ought to tell them who we are, Brian. Yeah, yeah. I'm Brian McLean. These are my partners. Best ponds towing pilots in Canada. Tiny waving and scrounger hair. You, uh, came here to enlist, I take it? We just flew over to see if we could... We couldn't help out in this war. Well, we already know everything there is to know about flying. We just want a job to do. I see. Well, gentlemen, I'm sorry to disappoint you. But there's only one way to do a job for the RCAF. Yes, sir. You were listed headquarters in Ottawa. The address is on every recruiting poster. Mm-hmm. I see. Well, boys, looks like we got a bum steer. Yes, looks like it. Well, if you don't mind my saying so, sir, all this seems a waste of time to me. Here we are all set to start fighting tomorrow and we have to go back to Ottawa and fuss around with a lot of red tape. I don't make the regulations, Mr. McClain. Well, hope to see you fellas back here in uniform. Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir. Sorry we upset your routine. Well, come on, kid. Let's get out of here. Be seeing you, General. Mr. Murphy, Mr. McClain, Mr. Harris, will you step in here, please? That's us. The rest of you better come back tomorrow. The squadron leader not seen any more applicants today. Gentlemen, squadron leader Dutton. Squadron leader Dutton? I say. Johnny! Johnny, old man! The best bush pilot in the business. What are you doing here? Hello, tiny. Stranger, come on in. Greetings, sucker. Hello, McClain. Man, this is Flight Lieutenant Fife. Dad, to know you, gentlemen. Sit down. Thank you, sir. Nice to know you. All right, now, Johnny, let's hear it. What happened to Emily and your airline? You ought to know, McClain. When Emily walked out, she took the airline with her as far as I'm concerned. I joined the RCAF. Mm-hmm. Not going to make any difference about my getting into the service? You know it won't. If you make the grade, do the job the RCAF way. I'll do mine. That's all. I see. Now, then, all three of you have had a lot of flying experience. Well, I've had 5,800 hours, and Mc here. They're telling me. And I know you're anxious to get overseas and start tearing hunks out of the loof buffer. Johnny, when do we start? That's all we want to know. That's a spirit, tiny. That's a spirit we need in the RCAF. Well, is that a load off my mind? Your experience will be invaluable in training younger men who are physically able to take a 7G dive without blacking out. Now, just a minute. Just a minute. What kind of a run-around are you trying to give us, Johnny? No run-around? I'm offering you a chance to take the service training course for instructors. But we signed up because we wanted to fight. Yeah, we're flyers, not kindergarten. Listen, maybe I don't make myself quite clear. We understand, Johnny. We understand. And thanks for the offer. Now, where do we go to get our papers as fighting pilots? I'm afraid that's out of the question, McLean. You see, you're too old. Too old? You're telling me I'm too old? Johnny, you know we've been flying in the bush all winter. Is that a job for old men? I know how you feel. You know how we feel. What is a broken-down chair on the back of a desk know about piloting a plane? Lieutenant Fife will answer that. Mr. McLean, exhaustive medical experiments have shown beyond any shadow of doubt. Exhaustive medical bush while paper farms, paper farms, and more paper farms. Look at that desktop. Why don't you paper-form geniuses turn the Air Force over to flyers and stay home where you belong? I can't, Mr. McLean. My home was in Coventry. Sorry? That's quite all right. I'm 28 years old, and I'm too old to fly a fighter plane. I found that out at Dunkirk. You fought there? I got on the tail of a measurements. He dived, and I went after him. When he zoomed out of the dive, we both blacked out. But he was 20, and I was 28. He came out of it. All right, General, all right. You win. Where do we go? Manning Depot, Toronto. You'll be put under a drill sergeant. A drill sergeant? Right. And let me give you a word of advice. You're individualists, so was I. That's all very well and good. Our country needs individualists in peacetime. This isn't peacetime. I'd hate to see you washed out. Thanks for the advice, General. We can take care of ourselves, I guess. We're old enough anyway. You're listening to a radio adaptation of Captains of the Clouds, starring James Cagney on The Cavalcade of America, sponsored by Dupont, maker of better things for better living through chemistry. As our play continues several months have passed, Brian McClain, played by James Cagney, was taken into the RCAF only to be washed out for disobeying regulations. We find him now sitting in the back room of an Ottawa bar, drowning his sorrows in the company of his friend, Tiny Murphy. Washed out. Me, the best push pilot in the Old Dominion of Canada. Washed out. Me, too, old man. What for? You told me already. I fly by instinct, they say. I don't follow the rules. Bad influence on student pilots. Instinct my foot. I fly by the seat of my pants. That's how I fly, you understand? Me, too. The seat of my pants. Scrounger made it, though. Yeah, scrounger. Johnny's pet instructor now. Both suckers have asked me. Well, I didn't ask you. But say, Brian, I've been meaning to ask you for a long time. Why'd you give Johnny the double cross with Emily? Well, listen, long can I tell you, Emily's been around. She knew Johnny had to start his airline. If he'd married that dame, she'd have taken him for everything he had. I tried to talk Johnny out of it, no soap. I tried to talk Emily out of it. Still no soap. That's right. So I did the only thing there was left to do. You mean... Mm-hmm, you're improving. I married the dame so Johnny couldn't. Where is she now? How would I know? I haven't seen her since the wedding. But don't worry, brother. Wherever she is, Emily's doing all right for Emily. But you'd oughta told Johnny why you'd done it. I told her Johnny's still a kid. He wouldn't know what I was talking about. Piper, gents. Toronto store. All the lightest war news. What's the news? All the lightest. Don't worry, it isn't my war. Are they my war, too? You know why it isn't my war? Because I fly by the seat of my pants. Buy a paper from Danny. All right, here's the dime. Go on away now. Yes, sir. Here's your piper, sir. Thank you, sir. Oh, wait a minute. Well, I'm not reading the front page. I'm reading the inside of the local news. What's the news? Hey, Brian. Look at this. Picture. Who is it? Bishop. Billy Bishop. Mm-hmm. Bishop. There you are. Ace in the other war. He flew with the seat of his pants and they hung medals all over him. Listen to this. The Marshal will visit Upland's tomorrow where he will present wings to a graduating airman of the RCAF. Wings. Little white silk wings. What have we got? Well, we still got our old jalapes and we can fly circles around any of them. Guys, instruments or no instruments? Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Which gives me an idea. What? Come on, let's get back to the hotel and try not to sober up. Why? We're going to show those guys tomorrow at their own graduation ceremonies. We're going to show them we can fly. And we don't need their nice little white silk wings. And the wings that you young men will wear mean much more than defending your country and your empire. They are symbolic of the fine traditions of this newest of the services and of its great names. Their motto now is yours. The motto of the Royal Canadian Air Force and the RAF. Per ardua ad astra through hardship to the stars. Their magnificent heritage also now is yours. To fly, to fight, to give everything within you that there may remain on this earth a land where men are free. Sorry, sir, I can't imagine what those fellas are up to. Take the registration markings of those aircraft. I will, sir. They're obviously civilians. I say that was uncomfortably close. Wonder who on earth they can be. Very possibly bush pilots. But they're certainly experienced fliers. What can they be doing here? Here they come again, in a vertical dive. One is diving too steep. He'll never pull out of it. He better pull out now. It's suicide. Stop it! Stop it, man! Pull out! Look at that mess. It's too late for an ambulance, sir. Oh, they'll have it all cleared in a moment. Then perhaps we can identify the pilot. There we are. Yes, he's dead. The poor fool. Why, it's tiny. You know who it is? Quaternita Dutton? He looks familiar, sir. I believe he was a bush pilot. By the way, you were a bush pilot too, weren't you? Why, yes, sir. Why do you ask? Well, I thought you might be able to identify this plane. I know the plane, sir. It belongs to a man named Popcorn Kerns. I see. Well, there's not much left of the plane or Kerns either. Better notify the civilian authorities. Yes, sir. We will now carry on with the Wing's presentation. On with the helmets, on with the mortar. Tune him up and let him sing. Take him up and let him swing a hawk. A good beginning to a long and hilarious evening. Right, Scranger. Tonight's our night to hold. Exactly. This is the first relaxation we've had for over two months now. Special announcement. Special announcement of great urgency. All staff officers ought to report back to the station immediately. What's up, Orderly? I don't know, but it's something pretty urgent. They want all available staff pilots and instructors right away. Come on, Scranger. Things seem to be popping. Oh, dash it over. My first rail outing for months and I don't even get to the soup course. Yes, sir. All officers are present. Close the door, someone. Gentlemen. I've got a bit of bad news. Two transport planes carrying 44 transatlantic pilots to Canada have crashed. This could hardly have occurred at a worse time because we've just received a call for every available Lockheed Hudson bomber to be sent over at once. Fortunately, we have the aircraft and pilots to send. You men are among them. That is all. Except for this. I cannot stress too strongly the vital and immediate necessity of getting those bombers over. No obstacle. Breakdown, weather, enemy action must stop you. You've got to get them over. You're leaving for the Newfoundland taking off place at once. Go with Squadron Leader Duck. You and Francis Batwick Murphy. That's me, sir. Sergeant, there must be some mistake here this morning. Johnny, remember me, my name is Murphy. Of course I do. You're quite sure your name is Murphy. Quite sure, sir. I see. Oh, Crenbrook, you fly aircraft 39. It's warming up on the field. Step in the office, Murphy. We'll talk this over. Anything you say. Boyhead, sound off. Sure does. We have a few things to straighten out. Well, now, let's try to stick to one of them, huh? Do I fly that bomber? There's something else. Not for me there, isn't it? Then why are you trying to pass yourself off as tiny? Listen, fella, I'm all washed out of flying on this side of the ocean. I know that. For the RAF, I may get a crack at a new start. And there's one slim chance I can get even for tiny. For tiny? You knew why I was in the other plane, didn't you? Doing the aerobatics to bust up your graduation ceremony? Yes. Well, it was my fault, the whole thing. I didn't have that in any thought. You took a big chance, Brian, coming in this way? My only chance. I went through tiny things at the hotel afterwards. He had no relatives, nobody. So I took his papers and here I am. But I'm taking that bomber across and nobody's going to stop me. Do you get that? Nobody. Nobody will. Thanks. About that other thing, Brian, that day Tiny crashed, he wrote me a letter. Explain about you and Emily. Let's forget it, huh? What are you trying to do? Make me out a hero or something? Something like that. Anyway, in case I forget to tell you, you're navigator Scronger. Scronger? Wonderful! I'm a fool letting two bush pilots go in the same plane but it's too late to make other arrangements now. You all be sorry, Johnny. I have a feeling I won't. But listen, you, keep your eye on those dials. You can't fire the Atlantic with a seat of your pants. Corrigan did. You hear that, Scronger? Getting closer all the time. Yes, all downhill from now on. Look, Scronger, I'm wide awake. Don't let that cut thing down and get yourself some sleep. Oh, I'm not tired. I don't want to miss the first sight of England. I'll call you when we pass Ireland. Ireland! All out for Ireland! Next stop, England. Change for the Berlin subway. Oh, that's very good, old boy. By the way, Scronger, how long have you been away? Oh, 12 years. It's going to be nice getting back, you know. I always had a hunch I'd never see England again and then this chance popped along. Just how much a fellow can depend on hunches. What's it like? What does England like? Anything like the picture you see in books. Some of it. Narrow lanes, big hedges. That's cottages and gardens and so on. Oh, yes, all of that and other things too. The scent of lilacs. The sound of larks singing against the sky. They're beastly little nuisances, but nice. You'll be sniffing those lilacs another hour or so. No Scronger, I've been thinking. I'd like to skip right over England and fly straight to Berlin. Yeah, that's why they fitted these things unarmed. I see, Brian, if we should meet up with a Nazi fighter out here, what are we supposed to do? Oh, would you suggest? I don't know. I don't like to think about it. Think about seeing England or residing land any minute now. Scronger? Scronger? Look up ahead there, just inside those clouds on the left. Yes, well. See anything? Not you. I'm not sure. I thought I saw a reflection of something shiny. Where? I still don't see anything. Look sharp, Scronger. See? Just topping that cloud bank on the left. Brian! Brian, it is! It's a message mitt. Attention, squad. Hello, Johnny, listen. Is there anything we can do? Don't break for me. Just keep flying up to a fine thing. There's not much we can do. After all, these things have got no guns on them. Listen, Mr. Tacking, one of the ship's ahead. I can't see it very well for those clouds. Listen, listen. He's got one! We'll get another. Brian, Brian, what are you going to do? You know, don't you? Yes, I do now. Well, what do you say? Yes. Yes, we've got to. You'll never see those lanes and hedges and sniff those lilacs again. Oh, bother the lilacs. This is the chance we've both been praying for. Then hold everything, fellow. Message mitt, here we come. Twenty-one, go ahead, Johnny. It's on the formation at once. Sorry, Johnny, I've got a job to do. I'm going to get me a message mitt. Rejoin formation, do you hear me? No, I can't see you. Too many clouds. Where are you? About a hundred feet above the message mitt. If you listen real hard, you'll have a big crash in about ten seconds. Sorry to disobey orders, but this is the last time. It's never a lilac bush for scroungering me, will you? It's a long, fellow. Here comes our message mitt scrounger. He sees the scourge, but it's too late. Too late. We'll go over, tiny. Here we come. Landfall bearing 020 degrees. Straight ahead of you, gentlemen, is England. James Cagney for your performance in Captains of the Clouds on Cavalcade of America. And thank you, Dennis Morgan, Alan Hale, Reginald Denny, Miles Mander, squadron leader Owen Cathcart Jones and Morton Lowry. Ladies and gentlemen, in a few moments we will hear again from our star, James Cagney. But first, Gain Whitman would like to tell you something about the best dressed army in the world. In the ringing slam and crash of great steel plates in the deafening platter of riveting work, men are building more ships today than we have ever built before. Far down inside murky holes, their eyes wince from the purple rocket flare and yellow sparks of arc welders. From the blazing glare of high power incandescent bulbs. In winter, the steel is freezing cold. In summer, the confined space is reeking deafening furnace. Only one thing makes the work at all bearable to human flesh and blood. Fresh air. How to get fresh air continuously down to men working inside a ship in dry dock or on the ways. How to blow out the air that has grown foul has long been a troublesome problem. Today, when new keels are laid as greased ways still smoke from the launching of the latest ship, the problem of air is more vital than ever before. We bring you news that DuPont engineers have found a way to send clean air to these men at work building American ships. No matter how dark and deep the cranny inside the ship, even if a man has to crawl into it on his hands and knees, he can now take his supply of fresh air along with him. For down to him is sent a giant air hose. A flexible tube of chemically treated impregnated fabric. DuPont vent tube. The entire hold of a ship under construction may be ventilated by mounting a power fan above deck and dropping a length of vent tube down to the bottom of the ship, or the fan may be set in the hold and foul air blown out through the vent tube. DuPont vent tube has been used in mine tunnels for 24 years. It is made of cotton fabric, treated with chemicals, and coated to give it resistance to heat, moisture, mildew and decay, acids, alkalis, and gases. The tubing is impregnated with a compound that helps keep air in and water out and gives it great toughness. Some vent tube is the diameter of a small tree. Some of it, as big around as a barrel. Sections of it may be coupled together like a fire hose. It can be any length needed if the blower fan is powerful enough. If by accident a hole is drilled through it, or it is burned with an acetylene torch, the puncture can be repaired in the same way the inner tube of an automobile tire is patched. Underground tunnel workers and miners have known vent tube for years as a trustworthy friend. Because vent tube works so well in mines, DuPont engineers quickly asked why wouldn't it work equally as well down in the holes of ships? So in the roar and rattle and bang of a shipyard, they lowered a smooth grey tube into the darkness of a hold. And far down in brilliant glare and black shadow, riveters and welders drew into their lungs fresh, sweet air. Ask the men who are building the ships. They'll tell you, vent tube earns its name as one of the DuPont chemist's better things for better living through chemistry. And now, tonight's star, James Gagney. I want to take this opportunity to greet the men in the RCAF and thank them again for their help in making Captain to the Cloud. I mean, Billy Bishop, Bill McBrien and all the rest. At Uplands, Toronto, Jarvis, Trenton and Halifax, they worked with us magnificently. And all of us are very grateful. Well, it's certainly an exciting picture, Jimmy. When will it be out? It's to open in New York February 12th, and I think there's a little story about that that shows how much all of us felt the picture meant. We were the flyers, but at the public. For in spite of war conditions, they will open not only in New York, but simultaneously in Ottawa, Cairo, Melbourne and London. Thanks again to the RCAF and the RAF, prints were flown in their bombers to all four countries. Good work, I call it. It certainly was, Jimmy, and thanks a million. You are swell. Street Cavalcade presents again an epic story of America, a story which has won America's acclaim on the air, on the stage and as a book. It is the story of Abraham Lincoln, adapted by Robert E. Sherwood from Carl Sandberg's great biography, Abraham Lincoln, the War Years, starring Raymond Massey. In again presenting this play on the week of Lincoln's birthday, Cavalcade believes that the story of America's great war president more than ever today will be a source of courage and inspiration to his countrymen. On tonight's program, James Cagney appeared by special arrangement with Warner Brothers, producers of Captains in the Clouds, his latest starring vehicle. Original music was composed and directed by Robert Armbruster. Don't forget, next week on Cavalcade, Raymond Massey in Abraham Lincoln, the War Years. This is John Easton, sending best wishes from Dubai. To you from Hollywood. This is the National Broadcasting Company.