Sgt. Milton Warden – From Shanghai to Hawaii in From Here to Eternity
Posted: November 20th, 2018 | 1 Comment »You know the movie – From Here to Eternity (1953) with Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr – Hawaii in 1941, a private (Montgomery Clift) is cruelly punished for not boxing on his unit’s team, while his captain’s wife (Kerr) and second-in-command (Lancaster)are falling in love. Pearl Harbor looms.
I saw the movie again the other day but don’t remember ever noticing before the Lancaster’s character, Sgt. Milton Warden is partly admired and revered by the men in his command for his Shanghai experience with the “15th”. The US 15th Infantry began service in China in 1900 at the time of the Boxers. They were to stay until 1938 serving in Peking and Tientsin mostly. Nice to know the scriptwriters did their research….
and the 15th for real in China…
The 15th Infantry, the “Can Do” Regiment. There is an enjoyable read by Charles G. Finney (“The Old China Hands”), about the author’s time spent in China in the 15th Infantry.