In 1926, the Paramount-Famous Lasky Corp. reached out to the United States War Department with a request for production assistance on the film Wings, starring Charles Rogers and Richard Arlen as World War I aviators vying for the same woman, played by Clara Bow. Director William Wellman, a veteran of the elite Lafayette Flying Corps during World War I, wanted to ensure historical accuracy, but he also hoped the Army Air Corps would help film the movie’s complex flying sequences, which included aerial dogfights. Could the War Department perhaps loan the production a few planes and pilots?
The War Department was happy to oblige. In addition to several planes and scores of pilots, it provided bases, advisors, equipment, and soldiers to play extras. The movie’s climax, the epic Battle of St. Mihiel, was filmed at Camp Stanley, and aerial sequences were filmed above Kelly Field, both near San Antonio, Texas. Capt. E.P. Ketchum, a skilled military engineer, oversaw the construction of the trench systems featured in the movie, and Lt. Henry H. “Hap” Arnold, who was taught to fly by the Wright brothers and as a general would have a stellar career during World War II, was on set as a technical consultant.
The movie was a difficult shoot. Weather postponed the filming of key sequences for weeks, and the action scenes proved hazardous — one stunt pilot even broke his neck but recovered. When filming concluded, however, it was obvious that the struggle had been worth it. The movie premiered in August 1927 and enjoyed a year-long run, with a musical score and sound effects added in 1929 to capitalize on innovative new sound technologies. That year, Wings became the first motion picture to receive the Academy Award for Best Picture. It also received the award for Best Special Effects — all thanks to support from the U.S. War Department.
Over the next century, the War Department — and after 1949 the Department of Defense — established an ongoing relationship with the entertainment industry, providing assistance for motion pictures, television shows, documentaries, videogames, and more. Its efforts range from minor “courtesy assistance,” such as reviewing scripts and suggesting changes, to providing equipment, personnel, and access to facilities. Whether a production needs advice on how to properly salute a commanding officer or the use of an active aircraft carrier, filmmakers turn to the Department of Defense Entertainment Media Office.
“We fall under the Public Affairs apparatus of the Department of Defense and the various services,” reports Glen Roberts, Chief of Entertainment Media for the DoD. “Our mission is the same as it is for Public Affairs, and that is to inform and educate the American public and the world on the Department of Defense, what we do, and how we do it. My job is to project and protect the Department’s image in the entertainment space.”
Most people assume that high-action blockbusters make up the majority of assistance requests received by the DoD, but according to Roberts, a good 70 percent come from documentary filmmakers. “We provide access to installations, equipment, subject matter experts, and — most importantly — men and women in uniform for interviews about their jobs and more,” he notes.
As an example, Ken Hawes, Director of Western Region U.S. Army Public Affairs, assisted with a documentary about Georgia Ann “Tiny” Thompson Broadwick, who invented the parachute ripcord in 1914. Hawes arranged for the filmmakers to interview a female Army rigger at Fort Liberty, North Carolina, about her job packing parachutes for the 82nd Airborne Division. “It’s a pretty important job because you’ve got someone else’s life in your hands,” Hawes observes. “This was a unique opportunity to showcase that particular Army occupational specialty.”
The DoD has also provided assistance to an eclectic array of television shows over the years, including scripted series like Army Wives, cooking shows like Chopped and Cake Boss, the game shows Jeopardy! and The Price Is Right, and fan favorites such as Say Yes to the Dress, American Idol, and American Ninja Warrior.
The DoD offers help in newer forms of entertainment, too. The Air Force, for example, provides fly-bys and the Thunderbirds formation flying team for use in popular sports videogames, such as the Madden NFL series. Military strategy and flight simulator games also receive significant DoD assistance.
“The nature of entertainment has changed, especially what Gen Z and Gen Alpha see as entertainment,” observes Lt. Col. Alex Lim, Director, USMC Entertainment Media Liaison, citing not only videogames but the proliferation of social media. “They are watching YouTube shorts on their phones instead of two-and-a-half-hour movies about the military.” So, in addition, the DoD has embraced some social media influencers because of both their staggering number of followers and their specific focus that appeals to both military personnel and the general public, especially young men of recruitable age. One example of an influencer who has benefitted from DoD assistance is Dude Perfect, a comedy troupe that performs nutty stunts, such as dropping giant darts or basketballs from the back of a C-17 cargo plane.
“Fitness influencers are also very popular,” says Lim. “For example, individuals who are interested in the outdoors want to tour the Jungle Warfare Training Center in Okinawa, Japan. We also have a lot of physical fitness influencers who want to see how they compare to the average Marine.” According to Lim, the fitness influencer community offers a platform to showcase the physicality of the Marine Corps to an audience that is attractive to the Department of Defense, and who in turn are typically attracted to the military. These are individuals who commonly challenge themselves both physically and mentally, such as Luke Nichols of Outdoor Boys, a travel and adventure YouTube channel, who recently tested himself during a visit to the Marines’ Jungle Warfare Training Center.
“Additionally,” says Lim, “there are moments in which influencers speak a resounding message that aligns with ours, and we mutually benefit through collaboration. We were intentional in collaborating with UFC fighter Paddy Pimblett shortly after his message [that promoted men’s] mental health awareness.”
“Many influencers today have 30 or 40 million subscribers,” Roberts adds. “We get more bang for our buck in terms of DoD promotion spending a day with a popular influencer than we would get spending three weeks on a movie set and investing hundreds of man hours and use of assets.”
Movies, though, remain the largest focus of the DoD media teams. Recent films that benefited from DoD assistance include Top Gun: Maverick, Fly Me to the Moon, A Journal for Jordan, The Blue Angels (a theatrical documentary), and Apple TV+’s Masters of the Air miniseries.
What do filmmakers want? “Everything from aircraft carriers to submarines to fighter jets to tanks to locations to small arms. We even got a request to come out and see a nuclear warhead,” Roberts says. “The answer to that was no, by the way.”
Action filmmakers like cutting-edge technology, and often ask the DoD for access to its latest war machines. The Army assisted Fast & Furious 8 by providing an experimental light tank called the Ripsaw, which took the film’s action to a new level. “Dealing with the Department of Defense, some great people in the U.S. government put it together, and we got our Ripsaws,” reports Picture Car Supervisor Dennis McCarthy in a video featurette. “It’s a great military tool and it worked out perfect for our film.”
Develyn Watson, Deputy Director of the Department of the Air Force Entertainment Liaison Office, has helped support films ranging from Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, starring Henry Cavill as Superman, to Steven Spielberg’s Bridge of Spies, starring Tom Hanks.
Filmmakers on Man of Steel were given access to a Globemaster III cargo plane displayed at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force’s Air Park in Dayton, Ohio, as well as 11 days to film at Edwards Air Force Base in California, during which the production received logistical support and the use of airmen as extras. “Choosing to cast the servicemembers as extras was an easy decision,” notes Bill Doyle, the film’s supervising location manager, in a release issued by Edwards AFB. “Not only did it make sense from a logistical standpoint with the incredible tactical skills that they bring to the table, but they really fill the uniform. It’s a natural role for them and it works great. Everyone in uniform has been hugely supportive.”
For Bridge of Spies, which was about the 1962 prisoner exchange involving downed American U-2 pilot Gary Powers, the Air Force provided access to USAF historians and vintage U-2 spy planes as well as current U-2 pilots.
Watson also was involved in supporting Apple TV+’s Masters of the Air, a miniseries about American bomber crews in Europe during World War II. The special effects were extensive, and the Air Force assisted by inviting the series’ special effects crew to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force so they could use a technology called LIDAR to scan war-era aircraft and re-create them on computers.
On rare occasions, a production will invite a DoD Entertainment Liaison to help resolve script issues. On Fast & Furious 8, Hawes notes that the DoD had concerns because the story’s original villains were actual adversaries of the United States, which was potentially problematic. Eager to showcase the Ripsaw, Universal Studios agreed to change the villains to separatists. Army Entertainment Liaison Lt. Col. Tim Hyde also provided dialogue that helped explain why the Ripsaw was in the film. “Universal Studios were great to work with, and we were pleased to be a part of Fast & Furious 8 because it was seen by millions,” Hawes notes.
The DoD has strict criteria regarding which projects it will assist. With movies, the process begins with confirmation that it already has funding and distribution lined up; the DoD can assist with neither. From there, says Roberts, scripts are reviewed for security, accuracy, policy, and impropriety.
Security concerns include revealing certain military tactics, techniques, procedures, or classified programs; that’s a big no-no. Accuracy concerns range from the decorations on a soldier’s uniform to how a military mission would actually be carried out. Policy concerns ensure that movies and television shows are accurate specific to the time period in which they are set, such as the types of communication technology that armed forces really used. And a propriety review protects the privacy of participating servicemembers and their families, such as making sure filmmakers do not show actual battlefield injuries, which would be a violation of medical privacy. “We won’t approve anything that is overly profane, pornographic, or violates the general propriety of the military,” Roberts adds.
Accuracy in the portrayal of servicemembers, their jobs, and military actions is understandably important to the DoD because inaccuracies can confuse the public regarding the real-life functions of the military. Gross inaccuracies may even cause the DoD to decline assistance if changes aren’t made. Refusing support is always a last resort; the DoD genuinely wants to help filmmakers and other creators put their best foot forward when it comes to portraying the military. But sometimes it has to say no.
One of the most notable denials is Francis Ford Coppola’s 1979 Vietnam War film Apocalypse Now. Based on Joseph Conrad’s novel Heart of Darkness, the film is about a soldier (Martin Sheen) ordered to travel upriver and assassinate a rogue American Army colonel (Marlon Brando) who had amassed his own army and started murdering civilians. The production approached the DoD with a request for helicopters, jet fighters, and more, but was rebuffed on the grounds that the story did not accurately reflect the war in Vietnam. Only if significant changes were made to the script could the request be accommodated, Coppola was told. (He refused and instead turned to the Philippine government for military support.)
A frustrated Coppola cabled Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld about the decision, suggesting that the DoD “will not allow any film to be made which, in their opinion, is anti-military.” That the DoD censors filmmakers and tries to impose its will on their projects with the intent of creating propaganda is a common misconception, and one that Roberts vehemently denies. He notes numerous DoD-supported projects that have been critical of the military, including documentaries such as The Invisible War, which explored sexual assault within the services, and HBO’s Escape from Kabul, which was critical of the 2021 Afghanistan evacuation. “We supported those projects because they had important stories to tell, and they’re truthful first-person accounts in most cases,” Roberts explains. “They show incredible sacrifice and heroism, but they don’t have happy endings.”
Even when she has to decline significant support, Watson says she likes to leave the requestor with something. Often, it’s a lead to a civilian organization that can provide the materiel they require, subject matter experts outside of the DoD, or an offer to answer simple questions regarding such things as uniforms or tactics. “It’s seldom black and white,” Watson says. “We may not be able to help you with a particular thing, but we can direct you to others who can. We try to never slam a door.”
When the Department of Defense does say yes, its support doesn’t come cheap. “We charge by the tenth of an hour, or every six minutes that an aircraft or helicopter is running,” Roberts says. “Some of these expenses can run into the millions of dollars.”
That said, DoD support can still save a production quite a bit of money. “The costs for a production company to get support from the DoD are often still much lower than if they had to generate DoD assets or locations on their own via CGI or set-building,” says Lt. Col. Gina McKeen, Director, USAF and USSF Entertainment Liaison Office. “It also should be noted that DoD support is at no cost to the taxpayer.”
Of course, both parties benefit when the DoD agrees to support a film or other project. The creators get access to locations, materiel, and personnel, and the DoD may see a spike in recruitment as a byproduct of collaboration. “That’s a big part of what we do,” Roberts admits, “but recruitment is not the mission of my office. When reading a script, I don’t consider whether or not it would be good for recruitment. What I do care about is whether it’s a good story that honestly informs and educates the American public regarding the roles and missions of the Department of Defense.”
Watson agrees, adding, “It’s about the impact we can have by reaching an audience we wouldn’t normally be able to reach. It’s not propaganda. We’re not hitting people over the head. It’s all in the story. But when the audience sees Superman fighting bad guys at Edwards Air Force Base, you can’t buy that kind of advertising.”
Don Vaughan is a freelancer writer whose work has appeared in Writer’s Digest, Mad, Scout Life, and elsewhere. To learn more, visit donaldvaughan.com.
This article is featured in the January/February 2025 issue of The Saturday Evening Post. Subscribe to the magazine for more art, inspiring stories, fiction, humor, and features from our archives.
Become a Saturday Evening Post member and enjoy unlimited access. Subscribe now
