Friday, May 27, 2016

Friday's Film Adaption: They Were Expendable: An American Torpedo Boat Squadron in the U.S. Retreat from the Philippines by William Lindsay White


Summary:
A national bestseller when it was originally published in 1942 and the subject of a 1945 John Ford film featuring John Wayne, They Were Expendable offers an account of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three's heroic actions during the disastrous Philippine campaign early in World War II. The author uses an unusual and effective format to tell the story: an interview with the four young survivors whose names are forever linked with the tragedy - John Bulkeley, Robert Kelly, Anthony Akers, and George Cox. Deeply moving, it describes Squadron Three's brave exploits, from the first appearance of Japanese planes over Manila Bay to its calamitous end, including a thrilling account of Gen. Douglas MacArthur's escape from Bataan.


Film
A Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II.
Release Date: December 19, 1945
Release Time: 135 minutes

Cast:
Robert Montgomery as Lieutenant John Brickley
John Wayne as Lieutenant (junior grade) "Rusty" Ryan
Donna Reed as 2nd Lieutenant Sandy Davyss
Jack Holt as General Martin
Ward Bond as "Boats" Mulcahey C.B.M.
Marshall Thompson as Ensign "Snake" Gardner
Paul Langton as Ensign "Andy" Andrews
Leon Ames as Major James Morton
Arthur Walsh as Seaman Jones
Donald Curtis as Lieutenant (J.G.) "Shorty" Long
Cameron Mitchell as Ensign George Cross
Jeff York as Ensign Tony Aiken
Murray Alper as TM1c "Slug" Mahan
Harry Tenbrook as "Squarehead" Larsen SC2c
Jack Pennick as "Doc"
Alex Havier as 'Benny' Lecoco ST3c
Charles Trowbridge as Admiral Blackwell
Robert Barrat as The General
Bruce Kellogg as Elder Tompkins MoMM2c
Tim Murdock as Ens. Brant
Louis Jean Heydt as "Ohio"
Russell Simpson as "Dad" Knowland
Vernon Steele as Army Doctor

Awards:
1945 Academy Awards
Best Sound - Douglas Shearer - Nominated
Best Special Effects - Donald Jahraus, Robert MacDonald, Michael Steinore, Arnold A. Gillespie - Nominated



Author Bio:
White, author, journalist, and war correspondent, worked for the Washington Post and Fortune before taking over his Pulitzer Prize-winning father's famous paper, the Emporia Gazette.






Film
AMAZON US  /  AMAZON UK  /  B&N
ALL MOVIE  /  WIKI  /  IMDB  /  TCM





Author Spotlight: Kira Hillins

Author Bio:
Kira writes to create a fantasy world in which to exist until she's beamed back to her home world of Oregon. Or until Superman rings her doorbell and asks her to fly away with him on an adventure that may, or may not, include the Tardis. Wherever she lands, writing will always be her passion.


FACEBOOK  /  TWITTER  /  WEBSITE

Grand Prize‬
Summary:
Genre: Erotic Suspense with ménage and romantic suspense element
Two hot men. Twice the danger.

Melanie Cranberry joined the dating service to meet a nice man, fall in love, and spend her nights cuddling in bed. Who knew that one five-dollar ticket for a raffle would win her two men instead of one? Now, per signed contract with Match Making For Happiness's Sake, she's required to go out on a date with each man to discover which will win her heart.

Prize number one, attorney Cage Niching, joined the dating service to find a woman to settle down with, or at least, to settle him down—after he finds out who murdered his friend. All he has to do is get admitted to the secret, invitation-only level of a certain sex club, and all he must do to get the invite is bring his Match Making date, Melanie Cranberry, prove they're in love, and have sex with her in front of as many witnesses as possible. Which doesn't look promising as long as her second date keeps hovering around her...

Prize number two, narcotics detective Victor Wine, wasn't looking for a date. Desperate to get the drug that killed his girlfriend off the streets, he's joined the dating service to get close to the woman who lives near the hangout of a major distributor. Only thing is, he actually likes the Cranberry woman, more than he wanted to. And now his investigation has put her right in the drug cartel's sights. Keeping her out of harm's way and playing the perfect date won't be easy. And there's something about her other date that raises his hackles...

Take You Away
Summary:
Genre: Contemporary Suspense/Erotic Elements
**Warning: vivid flashbacks of rape**
Online gaming brought them together.

Small town Kansas girl Zoe Kearny never meant to befriend anyone in an online video game. But after a year of talking to Ben over the headset, he's traveled five hundred miles to meet her. Now she needs to prove to herself, and her two cynical friends, that a long distance relationship could work out, even if her violent ex-boyfriend works to ruin everything she's worked for.
Time can change a person, for better or worse. He was proof of that.

Guilt-laden Benjamin Solmer hit the bottle hard after his brother died in a motorcycle accident two years ago. If he hadn't met Zoe online when he did, alcohol would've driven him to the grave. Now he knows there’s more to life than video games and playing guitar in a rock band. He’s ready to pursue love. But with Zoe's fear that long distance relationships don't work, and deeply guarded secrets she won't reveal, he worries maybe Zoe's not the one.


Grand Prize
Victor stood, dressed to kill in a black, long-sleeve shirt and slacks. His fabulous six-foot three body towered above everyone else. Short, jet-black hair. Bangs stuck up in tufts. Hazel eyes shimmered under the hanging lights over the stage. Fair skin and a shadowed jaw gave him a sophisticated look—a “don’t mess with me, I’m a badass” look no woman in her right mind could resist. A sense of safety and danger was all wrapped up into one gorgeous package.

Victor spoke in a deep, soft tone. Gooseflesh had spread over her body during their chat sessions. Parts of her ached for his touch. Rather than meet his striking, stern eyes, she’d kept her attention on the dark-brown panels of the walls in the room. Or she’d watch his long fingers tap against the top of the bistro table. When she found the courage to meet his gaze, she’d calmed the urge to wrestle him to the floor as if he were one of the bad guys he chased down on his job.

Their second session was worse. Thoughts of Victor ripping her dress from her body had invaded her mind. Fantasizing about his mouth over hers, and those strong, warm hands fondling her flesh had made their conversation about his career as a detective non-existent. Handcuffs had worked into her daydream before his remarkable voice brought her back to the bistro table—back to her senses. That’s when she’d realized drool had pooled at the corners of her mouth.

His dark brows had furrowed. An incredible grin had spread across his face as he cupped her burning cheek with his soft, cool hand. He’d dabbed her wet lips with the white cloth napkin from their table, setting her entire body ablaze.

Victor was toned, not overly muscled like Cage’s colossal physique. Victor had no flaws. None she could see anyway. He was perfect. Sweet. Intelligent. Courteous. Drop-dead gorgeous.

Each man had their pros. Both were beautiful. Both had remarkable careers. But Melanie’s desires swayed toward Victor. It seemed too good to be true that she’d met someone like him at a dating service. He didn’t belong here like the others.

Take You Away
“Maybe you should consider yourself lucky. I’m not much of a cook.”

“Says the gal who runs a bakery.” He traced the scar on her forearm. “What happened here?”

His gentle touch sent a jolt of electricity through her body. She shivered.

“I burned myself pulling a loaf of bread from the oven.”

“That must’ve been some loaf of bread.”

“They can get pretty big and heavy.”

He slid his thumb across the thin slanted scar on her index finger. “And where did you get this from?”
“Electric bread knife.”

“You weren’t kidding when you said you were accident-prone.”

“When I was a little girl, my dad sent me to school with a note telling the teacher not to let me use scissors.”

Ben snickered. “No joke?”

“The teacher thought my dad was paranoid.” She breathed a laugh through her nose. “I have several scars on my stomach to prove otherwise.”

“Hmm.” He combed his eyes over her body. “You’ll have to show me the scars sometime.”

Face on fire, she nodded. This was so much better than earlier. The way he looked at her, with eagerness in his eyes, was nice and kind of scary.

“You ready to go back to your place?”

“Yeah,” she said softly.

His cool, musky scent enchanted her, lured her in. Closer. Just a little farther and his lips would touch hers.


Grand Prize

Take You Away

Brought to you by: