Just as people of the 1950s call themselves Elvis fanatics , those of the 1960s will proclaim they're of the Beatles generation, and 1970s fans boast they're of the Rolling Stones generation, I'm a proud member of the 1940s movie generation. We've been honored previously by the name of the Greatest Generation, because so many of us fought in World War II, but we also feel we lived through the greatest decade in movie history. Before I make my choices, I have a brief story.

As WWII was winding down in 1945, the Navy established a movie exchange service, and built a quonset hut and erected several tents next to the Fleet Landing Pier along the Pasig River in Manila. Because I didn't have enough points to get home for another four months, I was assigned to live in a tent and work all day in the movie exchange. As Navy ships came into the pier, sailors brought big 35 millimeter cans of films the crews had already seen to us, and we swapped them for newer productions. We also traded with nearby Army units, and had a repair service in the back of the quonset hut, where our techs fixed 16mm and those big ponderous movie house size 35mm projectors.

Just about every night, we put up a big white sheet on the outside bulkhead of a hut and ran films. We set up rows of benches, and showed free movies. Although most of the attendees were sailors and GIs, we also invited local Manila citizens to sit in on our makeshift theater. When the war ended, and the terribly-war-ravaged city of Manila was beginning to recover, we were actually competing ... we charged nothing ... with the civilian theaters that were beginning to show their programs. At times, we even were able to show films made in 1945 that had not yet been released in the States.

Since I had nothing better to do at night except fight off mosquitoes and rats in my tent, I attended many of the shows. Thus, after several months, I became somewhat of an expert in the Hollywood productions in the years from about 1939 to late 1945. However, I must preface a bit in naming my top ten from the 1940s, because as film historians know, the year 1939 was one of the most prolific for great movies. So, before I go into the required ten of the 1940s, I must name everyone's 1939 favorites: Gone With The Wind, Stagecoach, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Gunga Din, The Wizard of Oz, Goodbye Mr. Chips. It wouldn't take too much research to come up with a top ten for 1939 alone.

Here are my favorites for the decade of the

• 1
• 2
• 3
• next page >>

---

Add your voice

Know something about Top ten movies from the forties?
We want to hear your view. Write now!