The Adventures of a Rookie (1943) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Bob was scolded because his commanding officer was his uncle, Colonel Prescott. The colonel reprimanded him for two things: losing two men (Jerry and Mike) during the bus ride to boot camp and for wearing a dirty uniform. This dash Bob's dream of becoming an officer since his uncle made it clear he expected better from him.

Foreshadowing: Earlier, a passing car driven by Peggy Linden had splashed mud on Bob's uniform, which the colonel specifically noted during the scolding.

• bob prescott
• colonel prescott
• boot camp
• officer training
• uncle nephew

Dr. Potts diagnosed Hilda, the Lindens' cook, with scarlet fever. This prompted health officials to order a two-week quarantine of the house, trapping the three soldiers inside with Peggy and her five friends. The quarantine was later revealed to be a misdiagnosis when the doctor returned and corrected himself.

• scarlet fever
• quarantine
• linden house
• hilda
• dr potts

Burke ordered Bob, Mike, and Jerry to march twelve miles to their field base. Trying to save time, they hitched a ride with a convoy heading toward San Francisco. They fell asleep and woke up to discover the convoy was part of a larger overseas deployment, and they were being shipped out on an ocean-bound freighter.

• freighter
• convoy
• awol
• overseas
• san francisco

After going AWOL on the freighter, the three men tried to escape by using cargo nets to swing back to shore. The net jammed and they fell into the water, but they happened to recover a dispatches briefcase that had fallen overboard from another vessel. This act of retrieving important military documents turned them into unlikely heroes.

Foreshadowing: Their decision to cut corners by hitching a ride led to the chain of events that made their recovery possible.

• dispatches
• heroes
• briefcase
• cargo nets
• awol

Bob was worried because if General Ames discovered they had been AWOL (Absent Without Leave), it would ruin Bob's chances of being selected for officer training. The general was coming to personally thank them for their heroic recovery of the dispatches, not knowing they had technically deserted their post to get those documents.

• general ames
• officer training
• awol
• hospital
• bob prescott

After being jailed for their AWOL escapade, Bob received a letter from General Ames describing their courageous actions. The colonel then forgave Bob, who faced a dilemma: he could pursue officer training or stay with his friends. Bob chose to abandon his ambition for officer training to stay with Jerry and Mike as they shipped overseas to join the war effort.

• officer training
• friendship
• colonel
• overseas
• bob prescott

The three soldiers attempted to escape the hospital because they learned General Ames was coming to personally thank them for recovering the dispatches. They feared that if the general discovered they had been AWOL when they retrieved the documents, it would end Bob's chance at officer training. Their escape attempt failed when nurses spotted them and called the MPs.

• hospital escape
• general ames
• awol
• nurses
• mp

After the soldiers were jailed for their AWOL status, Jerry suggested they claim they got lost during the march. Peggy drove them to a deserted ravine to help them disappear and support their story. However, Burke eventually confronted them at the ravine and brought them back to face the colonel.

• peggy linden
• ravine
• jail
• burke
• escape plan

During the bus ride to boot camp, Jerry Miles and the slower Mike Strager were somehow pushed off the bus and left behind at the roadside. This created the first test of camaraderie among the trio and gave Bob trouble with his uncle, who reprimanded him for losing two men.

• jerry miles
• mike strager
• bus
• left behind
• boot camp

Despite being quarantined at the Linden house, Sgt. Burke refused to let the lockdown derail their training. He conducted improvised exercises and drills inside the house, insisting on maintaining discipline and keeping the men in shape even while confined to the premises.

• burke
• quarantine drills
• training
• sgt burke
• linden house