Produced in the 1950s, THE NAVY WAY was one of many films created by the service to instill a moral backbone in service personnel as part of an overall Navy Moral Standards and Character Education Program. The target for this film appears to be officers charged with leadership, who needed to deal with the attitudes, mixed backgrounds, and lack of motivation by blue jackets. With so many of the men in service having only a high school education, films like this one attempted to show officers how they can shape men, and how to convince them that patience, study, and discipline can lead to a better life and career in service, and better morale.

The film shows two different leadership styles and how one, the paternalistic officer, triumphs over the other.

The film includes an extended “leave” segment at the 8:30 mark, with sailors getting into trouble in hotels with women of ill repute, and getting something he’ll regret for a lifetime — a venereal disease. Drunks are seen at the 10 minute mark, getting in trouble on liberty.

The film was shot aboard USS Piedmont (AD–17), a Dixie-class destroyer tender built during World War II for the United States Navy.

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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD and 2k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com