Ski Patrol
Cast & Crew
Lew Landers
Philip Dorn
Luli Deste
Stanley Fields
Samuel S. Hinds
Edward Norris
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
When Viktor Ryder stops to help his rival and friend Ivan Dubroski, who has fallen during the running of the 1936 Olympic ski marathon, Ivan wins the race for the Russians, while Viktor places second for the Finns and Dick Reynolds takes third place for the Americans. Viktor returns home to Finland to celebrate the coming marriage of his sister Lissa to Paavo Luuki when a Russian bomber rains death on his Finnish village, killing Lissa. As war is declared between Finland and Russia, Viktor and his fellow townsmen are posted at a dugout on Salma Mountain, a strategic point that guards the pass, and there they are joined by Dick Reynolds and fellow skier Jan Sikorsky. As the enemy begins to tunnel and mine the mountain, Viktor runs the enemy lines on skis and reaches town. There, he sends Jacob Sorenson for reinforcements and falls in love with Julia Engle. Returning to the mountain dugout, Viktor realizes that the post is doomed unless the enemy mining can be stopped. Thus, fellow townsmen Birger Simberg, Dick, Jan and Paavo join Viktor on a suicide mission to blow up the entrance of the mine tunnel. On their mission, Jan dies a hero when he blows up a machine gun nest, Dick is wounded, Birger is wounded while saving Dick from sniper fire, and Paavo is killed while covering Viktor in his attempt to reach the mine entrance. Ivan, Viktor's Olympic rival and now a Russian soldier, is sent to intercept Viktor. Ivan overtakes Viktor, but is unable to shoot his old friend. After he allows Viktor to escape, Ivan carries his nitroglycerine back to Aranoff, his supervisor, as evidence that he has killed the Finn. Aranoff has witnessed Ivan and Viktor shake hands, however, and so he shoots Ivan, touching off the explosives and blowing up the tunnel entrance. His objective completed, Viktor returns to marry Julia and visit the graves of Paavo and Lissa.
Director
Lew Landers
Cast
Philip Dorn
Luli Deste
Stanley Fields
Samuel S. Hinds
Edward Norris
John Qualen
Hardie Albright
John Arledge
John Ellis
Henry Brandon
Kathryn Adams
Abner Biberman
Wade Boteler
Addison Richards
Reed Hadley
Trevor Bardette
John Gallaudet
Jodi Gilbert
Christian Rub
Leona Roberts
Nels Nelson
Victor Zimmerman
Karl Hackett
George Magrill
Jack Gardner
Crew
Bernard B. Brown
Ed Curtis
Ralph M. Delacy
Warren Douglas
R. A. Gausman
Paul Huston
Vernon Keays
Milton Krasner
Jack Otterson
Ben Pivar
Robert Pritchard
H. J. Salter
George Thomas Jr.
Vera West
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
According to a news item in Hollywood Reporter, the story of this picture was inspired by the Finnish White Patrol's struggle against the Russians during the Russian invasion of Finland in 1939. Reviews comment upon the resemblance of this film to Universal's 1932 film Doomed Battalion (see entry above).
