332 WALK IN THE SUN, A
Fisher, a con man and former bootlegger turned bookie and Beverly Hills bar owner
(he owned The Nineteenth Hole on Melrose Ave nue). Fisher came up with the
money— prob ably laundered gambling proceeds from Las Vegas— but stipulated
that he populate the film with his own extras in order to keep his investment under
surveillance (Lloyd and Parker, 1993, pp. 95–96). With $750,000 in financing
secured, Milestone brokered a new distribution contract with Darryl Zanuck’s
20th Century Fox and the shoot resumed. Principal photography on A Walk in the
Sun wrapped on 5 January 1945.Plot Summary
During the pre- dawn hours of 3 September 1943 the 53 soldiers comprising Lee
Platoon of the 26th Infantry (“Texas”) Division are on a landing barge approach-
ing the beaches near Salerno, Italy, as part of the Allied invasion of Italy (“Opera-
tion Avalanche”). The platoon commander, Lt. Rand (Robert Lowell), is hit by
shrapnel that takes off half of his face. Platoon Sgt. Pete Halverson (Matt Willis)
assumes command and orders Sgt. Eddie Porter (Herbert Rudley) to lead the men
to the beach while he tries to find the captain and confirm their orders. McWil-
liams (Sterling Holloway), a medic, remains with Rand while the rest of the unit
disembarks and digs in, doing what he can to avoid machine- gun fire. At sunrise,
the men are ordered into the surrounding woods to seek shelter from the strafing
by Nazi fighter planes. Tyne intends to wait on the beach for his comrades, but is
informed that both Rand and Halverson are dead. Soon after, McWilliams dies in
a strafing attack. Entering the woods, Tyne finds three men hit by gunfire, includ-
ing Sgt. Hoskins who was the se nior surviving noncommissioned officer (NCO).
Hoskins’ wound takes him out of the war, and Porter, as se nior NCO, is forced to
take command. Hoskins warns Tyne to keep an eye on Porter, who is showing signs
of combat fatigue. Porter, Tyne, and Sgt. Ward (Lloyd Bridges) then lead the men
in three squads along a road toward a bridge six miles inland that they’re ordered
to destroy. An enemy fighter plane strafes the platoon; they run for cover to a nearby
ditch but sustain several casualties. The men encounter two Italian soldiers in
retreat, who surrender and warn the squads that German troops control the road
and surrounding area. Soon thereafter, the platoon meets a small reconnaissance
patrol of U.S. soldiers. A patrolman takes a motorcycle to a nearby farm house to
investigate, offering to report back. Tyne tells the men to “take ten” while he sits
with Porter, who is beginning to break down completely as the motorcyclist fails
to return, and tells Ward that he is putting Tyne in charge. When a German half-
track approaches, Tyne commands his men to attack it with hand grenades and
machine- gun fire. The bazooka men, who had been sent ahead, destroy two tanks
and another half- track, but use all their bazooka rockets in the pro cess. Leaving a
man to guard Porter, Tyne orders his men to advance. The soldiers make it to the
farm house, but Germans open fire and two men are killed. Tyne and Ward are
stymied. Windy ( John Ireland) suggests going around the farm by way of the river
and blowing up the bridge. Tyne sends two patrols, one headed by Ward and
another by Windy, to reach the bridge. Once Rivera opens covering fire Tyne and
his men go over the stone wall and into the field in a frontal assault on the farm-
house. On his way to the house, Tyne discovers the body of Rankin (Chris Drake),