Memphis Belle - The Movie (1990)
From the 5 Flying Fortresses, up to all G-versions, which were trimmed on F-versions without the chin turret, came the Mother and Country and the Baby Ruth from France, the Winty City from England and C Cup as well as the Memphis Belle from the USA.
The aerial photos already weeks before the turning work with that actors began, under roof and subject brought. 17 machines were partial in air including the camera airplanes. They flew to one thought out Choreographie exactly, so that the individual scenes could be built later easy into the suitable film sequences. The firing scenes, or such of exploding machines, were made with remote controlled models of large yardstick.
Than the procurement of original machines the search for a suitable airfield was nearly more difficult. After that the producer Catherine Wyler, daughter of the famous Hollywood director William Wyler, who during the war as a documentary film producer several times employments flew with the Memphis Belle and which for the equipment responsible production designers had visited Stuart Craig of dozens of airfields in the USA, gave up it. No place had the correct mixture from typically English landscape and the airfields embedded therein, with their unmistakable resounding and control towers. They found all of this then however in England, on from the RAF left airfield Binbrook.
The fulfilled even a further demand, which was for the aerial photos from great importance: It offered sufficiently air space, to that free was from any other air traffic.
3 the ME 109, Spanish reproductions came from Europe. From the 5 assigned P-51D mustang three from England and 2 came from the USA.
Unfortunately there was an accident, which entailed the total destruction of the B-17G Baby Ruth with the turning work also. On 25 July 1989 the machine broke out when starting in Binbrook and burned. All crew members could escape from the inferno fortunately.
The true Memphis Belle was called Margaret Polk and was at that time the friend of the pilot Captain Robert K. Morgan.
Eight former crew members of the genuine Memphis Belle followed by the way gladly the invitation of the film company, which flew veterans to England and provided with them for publicity. Among them also the former pilot of the Memphis Belle, Robert Morgan, today 83 of year old, retired Colonel, which was allowed to transfer the command to Binbrook again over a B-17. The interior photographs were by the way made in a B-17 trunk mockup, which was built and set up in the famous Pinewood of studios.