U.S. Army Thomas Parran, Surgeon General, U.S. Public Health Service Noah Beery Jr. as Bomber Ground Crew Joseph Crehan as Doctor at Hospital Richard Fraser as Young Doctor Thomas Gomez as Compton - Member of the Local Draft Board Anne Gwynne as Nurse Samuel S. Hinds as Harrison - Member of Local Draft Board Arthur Loft as Griffith - Member of the Local Draft Board Robert Mitchum as Bomber Ground Crew Production The film was made at the request of the Public Health Service and the California State Department of Public Health, using public funds. The director and all the actors volunteered their time for the film and it was shot in November 1943. The intent was for the film to be distributed free by the Public Health Service to the armed services, schools, civic organisations and industrial groups. The film was made with the co operation of the office of the Surgeon General and the script was approved by the army and the Office of War Information. Reception Diabolique magazine says the film "is the sort of doco that is easy to laugh at (“syphilis – say it!”) but actually has a fine message: don't be ashamed if you're infected, look to science rather than urban legend, get tested and treated, follow the example of Denmark when it comes to sex education. This is all sensible stuff, and accordingly offended the Catholic Legion of Decency." Protests The Catholic Legion of Decency protested the finished film, saying it failed "to stress that promiscuity is the principal cause of venereal disease." The Legion said the film would "pave the way for a flood of pictures by producers who do not hesitate to avail themselves of every opportunity for lurid and pornographic material for financial gain." Producer Wanger argued that the film did not violate the Production Code section on sex and hygenie as the Code did not apply to government films. He said the Code did apply to commercial pictures and would ensure any commercial film did not promote promiscuity. However the protests worked and on March 30, 1944 the Public Health Service withdrew its sponsorship of the film. On April 16, the California Department of Health made the film available for public showing. Catholics continued to protest the movie. Awards The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short. References External links Watch To the People of