Alaska Highway (film)

Alaska Highway
Directed by Frank McDonald
Charles Kerr (assistant)
Produced by William H. Pine (producer)
William C. Thomas (producer)
Written by Lewis R. Foster (writer)
Maxwell Shane (writer)
Starring Richard Arlen
Jean Parker
Ralph Sanford
Music by Freddie Rich
Cinematography Fred Jackman Jr.
Edited by William H. Ziegler
Distributed by Pine-Thomas Productions
Release dates
  • 1943 (1943)
Running time
 66 minutes
Country United States
Language English

Alaska Highway is a 1943 American film directed by Frank McDonald.

Synopsis

In February 1942 a road construction gang working in Northern California are summoned to a meeting. The boss of the gang has been commissioned as a Major in the US Army Corps of Engineers and signs up the entire crew with his two sons gaining direct entry as Technical Sergeants to build the Alcan Highway. One of the brothers wishes to enlist in the US Marine Corps to fight the Japanese rather than build another road. He changes his mind when he meets the daughter of one of the heads of the project with the two brothers fighting over her as they build the highway. Their feud is forgotten when the Japanese invade Kiska.

Plot

The film begins with the attack on Pearl Harbor. Alaska at the time was weakly defended. Canada had already built the northwest staging route; a series of airfields spread across northwestern Canada.

The decision is made to build a highway to Alaska. The workers are divided into three starting camps, Fort Nelson, B.C., Skagway, Alaska, and Valdez, Alaska.

The workers from Fort Nelson, B.C. begin building a highway north.

The workers in Skagway are transported by the White Pass and Yukon Route railway to Whitehorse. From Whitehorse they begin building a road north and south.

The workers in Valdez, Alaska move to a point inland and begin building a road towards Fairbanks and Whitehorse.

The movie goes on to show some amazing footage of bulldozers building the highway. The black troops arrive and all work hard building the highway.

The highway is opened to traffic. The truck drivers find that the road is better to drive than expected.

However, some of the highway is not correctly built and becomes impassable in rain. Flooded rivers wash away some bridges and they have to be rebuilt. Some of the highway is not properly drained and ice builds up on the road.

Trucks sink into the mud and are frozen into the mud. Some grades are too steep and accidents happen. Civilian contractors are hired to improve the highway.

New bridges are built and telephone lines are added to the route.

Skagway is given a new life by all the troops stationed there. The port is expanded. The White Pass and Yukon Route railway is leased by the army. Supplies flow from Skagway to Whitehorse. One train engineer is given the soldiers medal for risking his life to save his train.

The decision is made to build a highway from Hanes, Alaska to connect to the Alaska highway. The Indians living in remote Alaska are now connected with the rest of the world by the highways.

The airports are upgraded, planes and supplies flow to Russia.

The peace river bridge is dedicated. Politicians and army brass from the US and Canada make speeches.

The highway contractors finish their rebuilding of the highway. This allows supplies to flow into Alaska.

The film ends with scenes of massive convoys of trucks headed north into Alaska. "Now we can press home the attack. This is the road through the brooding wilderness. This is the wedge that has pried open the last great frontier of America. The key which has unlocked the treasure chest of Alaska and the Canadian northwest."

Cast

Soundtrack

External links

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