The Story:
In the summer of 1940 close-knit Oklahoma National Guard men from Green Hill including lifelong best friends Gil Hackett [John Derek] and Tom McCreery [John Drew Barrymore] both deeply in love with Mary Caldwell [Eileen Christy] finish annual training before sudden mobilization sends them to camps where they clash with regular Army and Gil later finds solace with Lt. Ellen Henderson [Mona Freeman].
After Pearl Harbor the Thunderbirds deploy to Mediterranean campaigns facing brutal combat in North Africa Sicily and Italy while Keith Watson [Scott Elliott] spreads rumors of Tom’s father’s dishonorable discharge and Sgt. Logan [Ward Bond] fiercely protects Tom refusing rescue after he goes missing behind lines yet heroically spotting German tanks before being wounded.
As Allied forces prepare for southern France the platoon uncovers Sgt. Logan is pseudonym for John McCreery Tom’s father seeking redemption after a World War I court-martial cementing unbreakable bonds as they fight into Germany validating the fierce legacy of these citizen-soldiers.
