Bette Midler: For The Boys – Facts And Trivia
After the release of the movie, Martha Raye claimed publicly that the character Bette Midler portrayed was plagiarized from her own career and especially the efforts she had made during several wars. Raye sought compensation in court, but after hearing the evidence of both sides, the judge decided that Raye did not have a case.
Many reviewers noted that James Caan seemed miscast in the role of comedian Eddie Sparks (a caricature of Bob Hope) and wondered why co-star George Segal, who as an actor had proved equally adept at comedy and drama, wasn’t cast in the role instead. The truth is that Caan’s career was hot again after the success of Misery (1990) and Segal was not, so Caan got the lead and Segal the supporting role.
Many of the U.S. Marines from Camp Pendleton, California, were going to be used as extras in some scenes. Unfortunately, Operation Desert Shield started and many of them had to be shipped to the Middle East. Producers had to hire clean-cut civilians to fill the ranks.
Lonzo Jones turned down a role in this film due to being cast in a pilot at the time.
In the film during a World War II sequence Bette Midler sings “Come Rain or Come Shine” which was not written until after the war and wasn’t introduced until 1946.
During a skit on an early Fifties TV variety show, Dixie makes an off-handed joke about group sex that would have triggered a major scandal had it really been broadcast during that era.
When Dixie arrives in England in December of 1942, there is a P-51 Mustang on the ramp. This airplane was not in service in December 1942. Also this airplane has the black and white identification stripes not used until June 6, 1944.
At the military funeral of Dixie’s husband, the folded flag she receives is folded wrongly. The trim with the grommets would never be shown. A properly folded flag ONLY shows the blue field with stars, and nothing else. Throughout the scene, you can see that several versions of the flag were used, but in each snippet, you can always see the trim, which should have been tucked under and inside the fold.
