Barnstorming pilots Speed Condon, Bill Adams, and Eddie Smith travel the country with their manager, Alec Dugan, performing at fairs and air shows and hawking rides for the locals. But when Speed's rambunctious flying results in tragedy, he gives up flying in despair and guilt. Alec tracks him down and hopes to get him back on his feet and back in the air.
USANR
USA
It's another great bromance for Jack Oakie, this time with Richard Arlen. It also included barnstorming pilots, humor, tragedy, sadness and suspense. The lovely Virginia Bruce added a touch of romance. Apparently, it was an emotional production all around. As per Wikipedia:
Essential to filming the story was a seven-pilot team of Associated Motion Picture Pilots led by Leo Nomis, and later Frank Clarke. On February 5, 1932, the production was halted when lead pilot Nomis was killed while performing a stunt. He had been seriously injured weeks earlier in a race track accident while driving as a stunt double in The Crowd Roars (1932). Although not fully recovered from his injuries, Nomis tried to perform a difficult spin and…
Weirdly titled movie ("Sky Bride" is the name of the protagonist's airplane, but it's never mentioned in the film) about barnstorming pilots in the early 1930s. Richard Arlen, who starred in the first Best Picture Oscar-winner Wings a few years earlier, returns to aviation drama in this nifty little picture. Arlen and his buddies travel around the country doing air shows, and Arlen is a real showboat, taking big risks for fun and to thrill the crowds. But when his recklessness causes tragedy, he turns his back on flying and on life. Arlen is quite good portraying both sides of the despairing daredevil, and Jack Oakie is fine in the semi-comic role of his manager-buddy. Randolph Scott has a bit part as the real-life Frank Robertson, one of the sponsors of Charles Lindbergh's transatlantic flight. The aviation scenes are very exciting, with no CGI to create doubt about whether they are real or not.
This one was a nice little gem about a show pilot who crashes and kills his friend and struggles to deal with it drifting along. Handsome Richard Arlen shows quite a bit of emotion in his role and with strong support from Jack Oakie as his manager and pal who gets him on the right track again and bringing the smiles. The story might not be the most original, but this is a well crafted movie and one also get to see some nice air stunt work along the way. And it's sad to know that the stunt pilot Leo Nomis actually did die during the production of this movie making the story seem even more real.
