scene in which Tibbet's wife calls over one of the men in white coats that she was told by her husband were "sanitary engineers", but were in fact nuclear scientists from Los Alamos, to help her repair a drain, was true. Promotion When initial reviews came in, Taylor's performance in Above and Beyond was considered the "finest performance of his career to date". Taylor was also proud of his accomplishments in the film and urged MGM to allow him to promote the film on television. Taylor and Tibbets appeared together on Ed Sullivan's Toast of the Town show in order to promote the film, an unusual step at a time when the major Hollywood studios disapproved of its stars appearing on television, which they saw as a threat. Although the studio was hesitant about the television appearance, the publicity gained was important to the film's initial success. Reception Above and Beyond received generally favorable reviews. The New York Times critic Bosley Crowther found the military elements of the film superior to its focus on the relationship between Tibbets and his wife. He liked Taylor in the military scenes, but not in the scenes concerning his marriage and found Parker to be "utterly theatrical." Reviewer Robert Parish considered the film a comprehensive if lengthy account that was a "too meticulous detail-by-detail presentation," and considered Parker's performance "overwrought". Although considered an aviation classic due to its subject matter focusing on the mission of the "Enola Gay", aviation film historians considered the flying sequences to be limited, and that the romance scenes "got in the way". Above and Beyond was named one of the year's 10 best films by the National Board of Review, and celebrity and film columnist Louella Parsons, chose it as the "Best Drama of the Month" in Cosmopolitan. Leonard Maltin considered the film, "a meaningful account" of an important event. A more tepid later review by Alun Evans, noted the film was "pretty boring fare, but the right kind of Hollywood fodder for the days of McCarthy and Stalin". Box office According to MGM records, the film earned $2,647,000 in the US and Canada and $1,333,000 overseas, resulting in a profit of $1,037,000. Awards Above and Beyond was nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Original Motion Picture Story for Beirne Lay Jr. and Best Scoring of a Dramatic Picture for Hugo Friedhofer. References Notes Citations Bibliography Evans, Alun. Brassey's