The Deep Six

The story

The conflict between duty and conscience is explored in the WWII drama The Deep Six. Alan Ladd stars as Naval gunnery officer Alec Austin, a Quaker whose sincere pacifist sentiments do not sit well with his crew members. When he refuses to fire upon an unidentified plane, the word spreads that Austin cannot be relied upon in battle (never mind that the plane turns out to be one of ours). To prove that he's worthy of command, Austin volunteers for a dangerous mission: the rescue of a group of US pilots on a Japanese-held island. The ubiquitous William Bendix costars as Frenchy Shapiro (!), Austin's Jewish petty officer and severest critic. If the film has a villain, it is Keenan Wynn as ambitious Lt. Commander Edge, who seems to despise anyone who isn't a mainline WASP.

Cast & crew

Alan LaddAlexander 'Alec' Austen

Dianne FosterSusan Cahill

William Bendix'Frenchy' Shapiro

Keenan WynnLt. Cmdr. Mike Edge

James WhitmoreCmdr. Warren Meredith

Efrem Zimbalist Jr.Lt. Blanchard

Joey BishopSki Krokowski

Barbara EilerClaire Innes

Ross BagdasarianPvt. Aaron Slobodjian

Jeanette NolanMrs. Austen

Walter ReedPaul Clemson

Peter HansenLieutenant Dooley