Baby Blue Marine is a 1976 film set during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 that was directed by John D. Hancock

John D. Hancock

John D. Hancock is an American stage and film director, producer and writer. He is the son of Ralph and Ella Mae Rosenthal Hancock. His father was a musician with the NBC Symphony Orchestra in Chicago, Illinois and his mother a school teacher. Hancock spent his youth between their home in...

. It stars Jan-Michael Vincent

Jan-Michael Vincent

Jan-Michael Vincent is an American actor best known for his role as helicopter pilot Stringfellow Hawke on the 1980s U.S. television series Airwolf .-Early life:...

 and Glynnis O'Connor

Glynnis O'Connor

Glynnis O'Connor is an American actress, perhaps best known for her work in the mid-1970s, including her lead actress roles in the TV version of Our Town and the films Ode to Billy Joe and Jeremy, all of which co-starred Robby Benson.O'Connor was born in New York City, the daughter of stage, film...

.

Film critic Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert

Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...

 gave the film 2½ out of 4 stars.

Plot

Marion, a Marine recruit during World War II is kicked out of the Corps and sent home in a blue fatigue uniform. As recruits sent their civilian clothes home or sold them, the Corps did not wish less than honourably discharged Marine recruits to wear a uniform they had not earned. In real life the Corps issued light blue uniforms used by Flying Cadets prior to Pearl Harbor; hence the name "Baby Blue Marine" for a failed recruit.

Ashamed, Marion meets a Marine Raider (Richard Gere

Richard Gere

Richard Tiffany Gere is an American actor. He began acting in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and a starring role in Days of Heaven. He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo, which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol...

 in his second big screen appearance) a young, battle-scarred war hero back from the Pacific who has aged beyond his years with prematurely gray hair. As the Raider doesn't wish to return to the war, he knocks out Marion and changes uniforms with him.

Marion enters an idyllic small town where the decorations and Raider shoulder sleeve insignia of his uniform make him a hero to the community whose own young men are away at the war.

Film Locations

Baby Blue Marine was primarily shot in Siskiyou County, California

Siskiyou County, California

Siskiyou County is a county located in the far northernmost part of the U.S. state of California, in the Shasta Cascade region on the Oregon border. Yreka is the county seat. Because of its substantial natural beauty, outdoor recreation opportunities, and Gold Rush era history, it is an important...

. Most elements were filmed in McCloud, California

McCloud, California

McCloud is a small town and census-designated place in Siskiyou County, California, United States. The population was 1,101 at the 2010 census, down from 1,343 at the 2000 census.-Commerce and tourism:...

 with the scene at a local football game filmed in Weed, California

Weed, California

Weed is a city located in Siskiyou County, California. As of the 2010 Census, the town had a total population of 2,967, down from 2,979 at the 2000 census. There are several unincorporated communities adjacent to, or just outside Weed proper. These include Edgewood, Carrick, Lake Shastina, Rancho...

 at the high school. It showed one of the rare times Mount Shasta

Mount Shasta

Mount Shasta is located at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California and at is the second highest peak in the Cascades and the fifth highest in California...

was shown in a motion picture. Other elements were shot in Hollywood.