Editing Sergeant York (film)

{{Short description|1941 biographical film directed by Howard Hawks}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Sergeant York
| image          = Sergeant York (1941 poster).jpg
| alt            = 
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Howard Hawks]]
| based_on       = {{based on|''Sergeant York: His Own Life Story and War Diary''|[[Tom Skeyhill]]|[[Alvin York]]}}
| screenplay     = {{ubl|[[Harry Chandlee]]|Abem Finkel|[[John Huston]]|[[Howard Koch (screenwriter)|Howard E. Koch]]}}
| starring       = {{ubl|[[Gary Cooper]]|[[Walter Brennan]]|[[Joan Leslie]]}}
| producer       = {{ubl|Howard Hawks|[[Jesse L. Lasky]]|[[Hal B. Wallis]]}}
| editing        = [[William Holmes (film editor)|William Holmes]]
| studio         = [[Warner Bros.]]
| distributor    = Warner Bros.
| cinematography = [[Sol Polito]]
| music          = [[Max Steiner]]
| released       = {{Film date|1941|7|2|[[New York City]]}}
| runtime        = 134 minutes
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = $1.7 million<ref name="warners">Warner Bros financial information in The William Schaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, ''Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television'', (1995) 15:sup1, 1–31 p. 22 {{doi|10.1080/01439689508604551}}</ref>
| gross          = $8.3 million<ref name="warners"/>
}}
'''''Sergeant York''''' is a 1941 American [[biographical film]] about the life of [[Alvin C. York]], one of the most decorated American soldiers of [[World War I]]. Directed by [[Howard Hawks]], the film stars [[Gary Cooper]] in the title role, and was based on York's diary, as edited by [[Tom Skeyhill]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1:43758~T1 |title=Sergeant York Review |work=[[AllMovie]] |access-date=July 25, 2008}}</ref> and adapted by [[Harry Chandlee]], Abem Finkel, [[John Huston]], [[Howard Koch (screenwriter)|Howard E. Koch]], and Sam Cowan (uncredited). York refused, several times, to authorize a film version of his life story, but finally yielded to persistent efforts to finance the creation of an interdenominational Bible school. The story that York insisted on Cooper for the title role comes from a telegram that producer Jesse L. Lasky wrote to Cooper pleading with him to accept the part, to which he signed York's name.<ref>{{cite book|first=David D.|last=Lee|title=Sergeant York: An American Hero|location=Lexington, Kentucky|publisher=[[University Press of Kentucky]]|date=1985|isbn= 978-0813190280|page=105ff}}</ref>

''Sergeant York'' was a critical and commercial success, and became [[1941 in film|the highest-grossing film of 1941]]. Cooper went on to win the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] for his performance, while the film also won [[Academy Award for Best Film Editing|Best Film Editing]] and was nominated in nine other categories, including Best Picture, Director, Supporting Actor ([[Walter Brennan]]), and Supporting Actress ([[Margaret Wycherly]]). The [[American Film Institute]] ranked the film 57th in its [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers|100 most inspirational American movies]] list; it also rated Alvin York 35th in its list of the top [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains|50 heroes in American cinema]]. In 2008, ''Sergeant York'' was selected for preservation in the United States [[National Film Registry]] by the [[Library of Congress]] as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Complete National Film Registry Listing |url=https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/complete-national-film-registry-listing/|website=Library of Congress|access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Cinematic Classics, Legendary Stars, Comedic Legends and Novice Filmmakers Showcase the 2008 Film Registry|url=https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-08-237/2008-entries-to-national-film-registry-announced/2008-12-30/|website=[[Library of Congress]]|access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref>

==Plot==
Before America's entry into World War I, Alvin York is a poor, young farmer in rural [[Tennessee]], living with his widowed mother, sister, and younger brother. He spends his time fighting and getting drunk with friends. Alvin's goal is to purchase a piece of farmland, fertile "bottomland". He works hard to acquire the price for the land, and is given an extension by the owner. His sharpshooting skills enable him to raise the money needed, but the owner reneges, making Alvin seek revenge, only for him and his mule to be struck by lightning, prompting him to rejoin [[Christianity|his church]].

When the U.S. enters World War I, Alvin seeks exemption as a [[conscientious objector]], which is denied. He is torn between fighting for his country and the [[Thou shalt not kill|biblical prohibition against killing]]. His sympathetic commanding officer gives him leave to go home and come to a decision. He reconciles his moral conflict after reading the biblical injunction to [[Render unto Caesar|"render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's."]]

During the [[Meuse–Argonne offensive]], Alvin's qualms vanish when he sees his friends and comrades being killed as they assault a strong German position. With all of his superiors dead or incapacitated, he takes charge. He infiltrates the German lines by himself and finds a position that [[Enfilade and defilade|enfilades]] the main German defensive trench. He kills so many German soldiers that they eventually surrender to him en masse. After a prisoner of war treacherously throws a grenade that kills Alvin's good friend, "Pusher" Ross, Alvin shoots him dead. He and the handful of survivors from his unit lead their many captives behind their lines, but have a hard time finding anyone to take the Germans off their hands. The officer who finally does is astonished to learn that so few men captured so many of the enemy.

Alvin is decorated and hailed as a national hero, feted in Europe, New York, and Washington DC, but he desires to return home. He rejects commercial offers that would make him wealthy, explaining that he could not take money for doing his duty. He returns home to marry his fiancée, Gracie. To his surprise, the state has purchased the bottomland farm and built a house for Gracie and him.

==Cast==
<!--- Cast, order and roles per closing credits --->
{{Cast listing|
* [[Gary Cooper]] as [[Alvin C. York]]
* [[Walter Brennan]] as Pastor Rosier Pile
* [[Joan Leslie]] as Gracie Williams
* [[George Tobias]] as "Pusher" Ross,  a soldier from New York City and one of Alvin's friends
* [[Stanley Ridges]] as [[G. Edward Buxton Jr.|Major Buxton]]
* [[Margaret Wycherly]] as Mother York
* [[Ward Bond]] as Ike Botkin
* [[Noah Beery Jr.]] as Buck Lipscomb
* [[June Lockhart]] as Rosie York, Alvin's sister
* [[Dickie Moore (actor)|Dickie Moore]] as George York, Alvin's brother
* [[Clem Bevans]] as Zeke
* [[Howard Da Silva]] as Lem
* [[Charles Trowbridge]] as [[Cordell Hull]]
* [[Harvey Stephens]] as Captain Danforth
* [[David Bruce (actor)|David Bruce]] as Bert Thomas, another of Alvin's soldier friends
* [[Carl Esmond|Charles Esmond]] as German Major
* [[Joe Sawyer|Joseph Sawyer]] as Sergeant Early
* [[Pat Flaherty (actor)|Pat Flaherty]] as Sergeant Harry Parsons
* [[Robert Porterfield]] as Zeb Andrews
* [[Erville Alderson]] as Nate Tomkins
}}

==Reception==
''Sergeant York'' was a success at the box office and became the [[1941 in film|highest-grossing film of 1941]]. This was influenced by the [[attack on Pearl Harbor]], which occurred while the film was still playing in theaters. The film's patriotic theme helped recruit soldiers; young men sometimes went directly from the movie theater to military enlistment offices.<ref name="kennett1985">{{cite book | title=For the duration... : the United States goes to war, Pearl Harbor-1942 | publisher=[[Scribner's]] | first=Lee|last=Kennett | year=1985 | location=New York City| isbn=0-684-18239-4 | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/fordurationunite00kenn }}</ref>{{rp|156–157}} After its initial release, the film was frequently reshown at theaters all over America during the war as a quick replacement for box-office flops and as a theme program for bond sales and scrap drives.

According to Warner Bros. records, the film earned $6,075,000 domestically and $2,184,000 internationally.<ref name="warners"/>

On review aggregator [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an 88% rating based on 24 reviews, with an average rating of 7.4/10.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sergeant_york |title= Sergeant York (1941)|website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=November 28, 2020}}</ref>

==Accolades==
[[File:Joan Fontaine and Gary Cooper.jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Gary Cooper]], with his [[Academy Award]] for the film, and [[Joan Fontaine]], 1942]]
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Award
! Category
! Nominee(s)
! Result
|-
| rowspan="11"| [[14th Academy Awards|Academy Awards]]<ref name="Oscars1942">{{Cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1942 |title=The 14th Academy Awards (1942) Nominees and Winners |access-date= August 13, 2011| work=oscars.org}}</ref><ref name="NY Times">{{cite web |url= https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/43758/Sergeant-York/details |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121026111412/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/43758/Sergeant-York/details |url-status= dead |archive-date= October 26, 2012 |department= Movies & TV Dept. |work= [[The New York Times]] |date= 2012 |title=NY Times: Sergeant York |access-date= December 14, 2008}}</ref>
| [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Outstanding Motion Picture]]
| [[Hal B. Wallis]] and [[Jesse L. Lasky]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| [[Howard Hawks]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]
| [[Gary Cooper]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| [[Walter Brennan]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]]
| [[Margaret Wycherly]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Original Screenplay]]
| [[Harry Chandlee]], Abem Finkel, [[John Huston]] and [[Howard Koch (screenwriter)|Howard Koch]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Production Design|Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration – Black-and-White]]
| [[John Hughes (art director)|John Hughes]] and [[Fred M. MacLean]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Cinematography|Best Cinematography – Black-and-White]]
| [[Sol Polito]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Film Editing|Best Film Editing]]
| [[William Holmes (film editor)|William Holmes]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Original Score|Best Scoring of a Dramatic Picture]]
| [[Max Steiner]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Sound|Best Sound Recording]]
| [[Nathan Levinson]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[National Board of Review Awards 1941|National Board of Review Awards]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1941/ |title=1941 Award Winners |website=[[National Board of Review]] |access-date=July 5, 2021}}</ref>
| Best Acting
| Gary Cooper
| {{won}}
|-
| [[National Film Preservation Board]]
| colspan="2"| [[National Film Registry]]
| {{won|Inducted}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[1941 New York Film Critics Circle Awards|New York Film Critics Circle Awards]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nyfcc.com/awards/?awardyear=1941 |title=1941 Awards |publisher=[[New York Film Critics Circle]] |access-date=February 23, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304093319/http://www.nyfcc.com/awards/?awardyear=1941 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>
| colspan="2"| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]
| Gary Cooper
| {{won}}
|}

The film was nominated by the [[American Film Institute]] for its 2006 [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers|list of most inspiring movies]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.afi.com/Docs/100Years/cheers300.pdf |title=AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers Nominees |access-date=August 14, 2016 |archive-date=April 2, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402033732/http://www.afi.com/Docs/100Years/cheers300.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
* Michael E. Birdwell, ''Celluloid Soldiers: The Warner Bros. Campaign against Nazism'' (NY: New York University Press, 1999)
* McCarthy, Todd, ''Howard Hawks: The Grey Fox of Hollywood'' (NY: Grove Press, 1997), ch. 22: "Sergeant York"
* Robert Brent Toplin, ''History by Hollywood: The Use and Abuse of the American Past'' (Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1996)

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
{{Commons category|Sergeant York (film)}}
* [https://www.loc.gov/static/programs/national-film-preservation-board/documents/sergeant_york.pdf ''Sergeant York''] essay by Donna Ross at [[National Film Registry]]
* {{TCMDb title}}
* {{IMDb title}}
* {{AFI film||}}
* {{Mojo title||}}
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|sergeant_york|Sergeant York}}
* [https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/19117 Sergeant York And His People], by Sam Cowan, 1922, from [[Project Gutenberg]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061030025924/http://www.historynet.com/wars_conflicts/world_war_1/3717286.html Alvin York and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive], by Douglas Mastriano, Military History magazine, Sept 2006. (Corporal York's actions as seen from the German perspective.)
* [http://www.sgtyorkdiscovery.com/ Photos and details of the discovery of the site where York earned the Medal of Honor], Discovered October 21, 2006, by the Sergeant York Discovery Expedition.
* {{cite web| url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/10/26/news/york.php/ |work=International Herald Tribune | 
archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090221001052/http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/10/26/news/york.php/ | archive-date= February 21, 2009 | title= Proof offered of Sergeant York's war exploits| date= October 26, 2006| author= Craig S. Smith| access-date=November 22, 2011}}
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=deq3xI8OmCkC ''Sergeant York''] essay by Daniel Eagan in America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry, A&C Black, 2010 {{ISBN|0826429777}}, pages 333–335

{{Howard Hawks}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1941 films]]
[[Category:1940s war films]]
[[Category:1940s biographical films]]
[[Category:American war films]]
[[Category:American biographical films]]
[[Category:American black-and-white films]]
[[Category:1940s English-language films]]
[[Category:American World War I films]]
[[Category:Western Front (World War I) films]]
[[Category:World War I films based on actual events]]
[[Category:Films set in Appalachia]]
[[Category:Films set in Tennessee]]
[[Category:Films about Christianity]]
[[Category:Films featuring a Best Actor Academy Award–winning performance]]
[[Category:Films whose editor won the Best Film Editing Academy Award]]
[[Category:Warner Bros. films]]
[[Category:Films produced by Hal B. Wallis]]
[[Category:Films directed by Howard Hawks]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by John Huston]]
[[Category:Films scored by Max Steiner]]
[[Category:Films about the United States Army]]
[[Category:United States National Film Registry films]]
[[Category:Biographical films about military personnel]]
[[Category:Films based on diaries]]
[[Category:1940s American films]]
[[Category:English-language war films]]
[[Category:English-language biographical films]]