Most of the choices are obvious: but why is Operation Petticoat there?
The other Cary Grant submarine movie – this time a comedy – and a pretty good one. Tony Curtis is great as the officer assigned to get spare parts “no questions asked” which was, back in the day (and perhaps today), a valuable skill set. Was there really a pink submarine in the Navy?
well, according to IMDb:
A submarine based at Cavite, the USS Seadragon, did go on patrol with a red paint job. Her original black paint was damaged by fire in the air raid, and ended up peeling off while she was on patrol. She ended up sinking three Japanese ships during the time her paint was peeling, leading Tokyo Rose to make broadcasts about "Red pirate submarines."
Wikipedia link.
Three salvos of bombs dropped close aboard, but Seadragon went deep and again made her way eastward—this time to investigate the cause of the plane sightings. She surfaced after 18:00. No oil or air leaks were spotted, but her black paint was coming off the entire hull. Red lead undercoating showed from the waterline to the side plating, and, "in spots", on the bow planes and propeller guards. In shallow tropical waters, her original black paint was easily spotted against a light colored background. With red showing, she stood out regardless of the color of the seabed. From then on, Seadragon ran at 140 feet (43 m) between periscope exposures except in areas known to be patrolled by air, when she went to 200 feet (61 m).
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