When the United States joined World War II in December 1941 following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, millions of American men were drafted to serve in the war. Among them were some of the biggest actors of the Golden Age of Hollywood. Let’s take a look at five of these actors who temporarily traded scripts, costumes, and casting calls for weapons, commanding officers, and tanks.
James Stewart
The first major Hollywood actor to enlist in the U.S. military during World War II, James Stewart was already a well-established Hollywood film star when he joined the Army Air Corps in 1941. He was 33 years old and an experienced pilot. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant, and both flew and commanded bombing missions to Nazi-held places across Europe. Even after the war ended, Stewart remained in the U.S. military as an Air Force reservist and rose to the rank of brigadier general.
James Stewart’s most well-known role is that of George Bailey in the beloved Christmas classic, It’s a Wonderful Life. He also gained acclaim for his role in Rear Window, a Hitchcock thriller and the political drama Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. He won an Academy Award for his performance in The Philadelphia Story and was nominated for five additional Academy Awards for his performances in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, It’s a Wonderful Life, Anatomy of a Murder, The Naked Spur, and Harvey.
Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas made his mark in the world of westerns, appearing in such classics as Out of the Past, The Big Sky, and The Indian Fighter. Douglas’s star began to rise in the 1950s, when he starred in such iconic films as The Bad and the Beautiful, Lust for Life, and Ace in the Hole.
The 1960s saw Douglas come into his own as a leading man. He starred in the biblical epic Spartacus, which was one of the most successful films of the decade and earned him an Academy Award nomination. He also appeared in the war drama Paths of Glory and in the western The War Wagon.
Before he found success on the silver screen, in 1941, Kirk Douglas joined the U.S. Navy. He was a communications officer aboard the USS PC-1139, an anti-submarine craft. In 1944, Douglas was medically discharged after he was wounded when a depth charge exploded prematurely.
Jason Robards
Jason Robards was a recent high school graduate when he joined the United States Navy in 1940. As a radioman 3rd class serving on the USS Northampton when it was sunk by a Japanese torpedo. Robards treaded water for hours until he was rescued. He later was assigned to the USS Nashville. He was honorably discharged and enrolled in acting classes.
Robards was not just an acclaimed film actor – he was also a stage actor and a playwright. He won two Pulitzer Prizes for his plays: The Disenchanted (1959) and A Thousand Clowns (1963).
Robards first gained fame for his performance in the classic 1967 film The Graduate. He played the role of Mr. Braddock, the father of Anne Bancroft’s character, Mrs. Robinson, which earned him the 1967 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He went on to star in some of the most iconic films of the era, including All the President’s Men (1976), Magnolia (1999), and Philadelphia (1993).
Paul Newman
Paul Newman enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1943 after receiving his high school diploma. An aviation radioman 3rd class, Newman was stationed in Hawaii and later was a turret gunner in an Avenger torpedo bomber. The pilot of Newman’s bomber was unable to fly due to illness in early 1945 ahead of the Battle of Okinawa. While Newman and his crew were sitting out the battle, a kamikaze pilot attacked their aircraft carrier, killing hundreds of people.
Paul Newman earned his first Academy Award nomination in 1958 for his performance in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. In the early 1960s, he starred in some of his most iconic films, including Hud and The Hustler. In 1969, Paul Newman starred in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, which became a massive box office hit and earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. This began a string of successful films for Newman, including The Sting and The Towering Inferno.
Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks was a high school student when he aced the Army General Classification Test and was recruited to be an electrical engineer and radio operator for the U.S. Army. He served in France and Belgium, participated in the Battle of the Bulge, and was honorably discharged as a corporal.
In 1968, Mel Brooks wrote, directed, and starred in the classic comedy, The Producers. The movie was a major success, and it won Mel Brooks an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. He released the classic western comedy Blazing Saddles in 1974. The film has become one of the most iconic comedies of all time. It is widely credited with launching Mel Brooks’ career as a filmmaker, and it was nominated for three Academy Awards. That same year, he released the horror-comedy Young Frankenstein.