Armored Command


Armored Command is a 1961 American war drama film directed by Byron Haskin, and starring Howard Keel and Tina Louise. It was filmed in Hohenfels, Bavaria, but takes place in the Vosges Mountains during the Eastern France campaign of World War II.
"It was the one picture that Howard Keel didn't sing on", reminisced Burt Reynolds later. "That was a terrible mistake."

Plot

The Germans use a female spy to infiltrate an American position to get information on the movement of troops at the height of the Ardennes offensive, the start of the Battle of the Bulge.

Cast

Ron Alcorn produced and directed the film and raised finance via Allied Artists. Filming started 21 November 1960.
Lt. Col. Thomas A. Ryan, who appeared in the film as the Major, also acted as the film's technical advisor.

Reception

The Los Angeles Times called the film "fairly good but it could have been better. A kind of poor man's Battleground." The New York Times called it an "improbable little melodrama".

Lawsuit

Major General Daniel H. Hudelson, who commanded the 40th California National Guard in Korea and fought in the Battle of the Bulge, sued Allied Artists and Ronald Alcorn for $350,000 alleging unauthorized use of his story ideas. He claimed in 1955 he sent a tape recording of his experiences in the Vosges Mountains in France to a film company, and said they used his ideas in the film. He claimed the film had earned profits of $1.5 million.