This Is the Army (1943) Plot Summary Explained

After being wounded in the leg by German artillery fire in the French trenches, Jerry Jones could no longer dance professionally. Rather than seeing this as an end to his career in entertainment, he chose to focus on producing shows that could boost troop morale. This decision was also influenced by him becoming a father, he wanted to find something useful and stable to provide for his family.

Foreshadowing: Earlier in the film, Jerry is shown as a successful song-and-dance man whose identity is tied to performing.

• jerry jones
• wounded
• producer
• dancing career
• wwi
• leg injury

The troops received sudden orders to deploy to France immediately. Rather than finishing the finale, the production made a dramatic choice to have the soldiers march up the aisles through the audience and out to waiting trucks. This was meant to show the abrupt reality of wartime departure, the soldiers had to leave their performance and their loved ones without warning to head to the front lines.

Foreshadowing: The earlier success of the show contrasts sharply with this sudden interruption.

• yip yip yaphank
• theater exit
• orders
• france
• deployment
• wwi

Johnny refused to marry Eileen before deploying because he didn't want to make her a widow. He told her they would marry only after he returned from the war. This decision reflects his sense of responsibility, he wanted to ensure he would be there to care for her rather than leaving her potentially alone if he didn't survive.

Foreshadowing: The film establishes Johnny as following his father's sense of duty and responsibility.

• johnny jones
• eileen
• marriage
• war
• widow
• wwii

During the performance in front of President Roosevelt, it was announced that this would be the final performance because the soldiers in the production had been ordered back to their combat units. The tour was ending abruptly so the soldiers could rejoin their respective military divisions as the war effort required more combat personnel.

Foreshadowing: The audience's emotional reaction connects to the earlier scene where soldiers had to leave suddenly during the WWI show.

• washington
• last performance
• president roosevelt
• combat units
• orders
• wwii

Eileen, who had joined the Red Cross auxiliary, specifically brought a minister to persuade Johnny to marry her immediately rather than waiting until after the war. She recognized the urgency of the situation, the soldiers were being deployed and she didn't want to risk Johnny being sent overseas without them being married. Her proactive approach reflects her determination to secure their future together.

Foreshadowing: This ties back to Johnny's earlier refusal to marry before deploying, which Eileen clearly wanted to change.

• eileen
• minister
• backstage
• wedding
• red cross
• persuasion

Johnny Jones followed directly in his father's footsteps by accepting the assignment to stage a wartime musical during WWII. The film parallels their experiences, both staged morale-boosting productions and both faced the reality of deployment. Jerry's legacy as a producer from his WWI experience with Yip Yip Yaphank set the foundation for Johnny's mission with This Is the Army, creating a generational story of art serving wartime duty.

Foreshadowing: The film opens with Jerry's story and frames Johnny's role as continuing that legacy.

• jerry johnny
• father son
• generational
• wwi
• wwii
• musical production

Both Sgt. McGee and Pvt. Eddie Dibble survived the German artillery barrage in WWI along with Jerry Jones. Twenty-five years later, Eddie Dibble has become a key figure in Johnny's life as his sweetheart Eileen's father. The film doesn't detail their full histories between the wars, but they represent the soldiers who returned home and continued their lives through the interwar period and into WWII.

Foreshadowing: Eddie Dibble's presence as Eileen's father creates the connection between the two generations of soldiers.

• sgt mcgee
• eddie dibble
• wwi
• survival
• connection

Johnny and Eileen got married in the alley behind the theater out of necessity and urgency. With the soldiers about to be deployed and no time for a traditional wedding, Eileen seized the moment when the show had a break. The alley provided a quick, private location where they could be married before Johnny left, with both their fathers serving as witnesses. It was a spontaneous ceremony reflecting the wartime reality of seizing moments when you can.

Foreshadowing: This spontaneous wedding mirrors the abrupt departures shown throughout both timelines.

• wedding
• alley
• theater
• eileen
• johnny
• spontaneous
• wartime

Jerry Jones married Ethel just before deploying because he was already married when he received his deployment orders, his wedding was recent enough that he was still a newlywed when he had to leave. In contrast, Johnny and Eileen were engaged but not yet married when Johnny enlisted after Pearl Harbor. Johnny made a deliberate choice not to marry before deploying because he didn't want to leave Eileen as a potential widow, whereas Jerry's situation was different as he was already committed to his marriage.

Foreshadowing: The parallel between Jerry's tearful goodbye to Ethel and Johnny's eventual wedding highlights the different circumstances.

• jerry
• ethel
• marriage
• newlywed
• deployment
• difference

Jerry Jones was wounded in the leg by shrapnel from a German artillery barrage while serving in the French trenches during World War I. This injury left him with a permanent limp requiring a cane. Unlike his fellow cast members who were killed or wounded in the same attack, Jerry survived but his dancing career was over, this injury fundamentally changed his career path from performer to producer.

Foreshadowing: The attack happens during a performance in the trenches, showing that even military life included entertainment that couldn't escape the war.

• jerry
• leg
• shrapnel
• artillery
• wwi
• trenches
• injury