16. Hollywood and Stewart supported the US Air Force and its role in the Cold War
In the 1950s, the US Air Force and the US Navy competed for roles in delivering the atomic bomb to targets overseas. The Navy developed the Polaris missile system, and the Air Force the land-based missiles and bombs delivered by aircraft. Strategic Air Command was a film made by Jimmy Stewart. In real life, Stewart remained an Air Force Reserve Colonel, and during his required periods of service, he was assigned to the Strategic Air Command. Through Stewart’s own experience, and the full participation of the US Air Force, the film depicted the life of Air Force pilots and administrators during the height of the 1950s red scare.
Although it was one of Stewart’s favorite productions due to his personal closeness to the subject matter, the film left most critics unimpressed. The public was more kind, finding the innovative filming of aerial scenes impressive. The film, made in part to support the steadily rising Air Force budgets and the corresponding higher taxes they required, was the sixth-highest grossing picture of the year. Film critic Bosley Crowther wrote that the plot of the film was inspired by World War II and Korean War veteran Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox. The assertion was denied by nearly all involved in the film, including Stewart. It inspired two additional films depicting the Air Force’s Strategic Air Command in a highly favorable manner, neither of which included Stewart.