ON YOUR TOES

Year Published: 1942

Description: This training film from 1942, “On Your Toes,” is part of the "Fighting Men" training series produced by The Signal Corps for the War Department. It demonstrates the difference between an ordinary soldier and a first class fighting man, teaching soldiers the importance of staying alert and vigil at all times. :40 A squad of U.S. Army soldiers is asleep in a bombed out building. :50 One soldier nearby is on watch. Suddenly an explosion sends up a cloud of smoke. The soldier yells, ‘gas!’ and dons a gas mask. A second soldier rings an alarm bell alerting the sleeping soldiers. The soldiers wake and quickly find their gas masks. One disorganized solider struggles to find his mask. Before he can protect himself, he dies from gas exposure. 02:08 Two medics wearing gas masks remove the dead solider on stretcher. 02:40 One soldier falls into a deep sleep as soon as his head hits his Haversack. A second soldier sleeps lightly. Neatly organized next to him his rifle, Haversack, gas mask, and helmet. 03:41 On a football field, a halfback takes the ball. He races past defenders and scores a touchdown. 03:50 Two duck hunters in a duck blind patiently wait for prey. 03:59 American sniper, expertly concealed in foliage, peers at an unsuspecting German soldier. 04:10 Field artillery opens fire. 04:16 An unsuspecting German soldier is knifed by an American solider. 04:27 U.S. Army troops march on parade past the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. 04:42 U.S. soldiers on maneuvers in the field. One solider walks up to a suspicious mound of debris, suspects a trap, and cautiously walks around it. U.S. troops continue through the woods. An unperceptive soldier walks right into a trip wire, igniting an explosion. 05:06 A soldier in a covered fox hole alertly scans the area for activity. He sees a German soldier. The American takes careful aim and fires. 05:34 A soldier on his back wiggles under low hanging barbed wire. He silently cuts the wires one-by-one. 06:30 Another solider, also on his back cutting barbed wire, carelessly shifts his weight, his boot applies pressure on an unseen landmine that explodes. 06:57 A German Messerschmidt Bf 109E strafes the ground with bullets. An alert soldier safely dives for cover. 07:06 U.S. soldiers cross open ground. Two soldiers set up a Browning machine gun. Three German Junker JU87s roll inverted to drop bombs. The machine gunners keep firing amid explosions. 07:44 In battle, a U.S. soldier digs through his utility belt for ammo. A German soldier unwittingly backs into the American. The American alertly overtakes the German and kills him. 08:04 A U.S. soldier comes upon dead soldiers in the jungle. Hiding in a tree above is a Japanese sniper who shoots the American. 08:24 Amid jungle battle, someone behind a cloud of gun smoke waves a white flag. Japanese soldiers surrender. American troops move in. Hidden Japanese machine gunners kill the unsuspecting Americans. 09:10 An American soldier in the jungle spies a dead Japanese soldier. He hits the ground cautiously. The “dead” man opens his eyes, moves to throw a grenade, but the American shoots him dead. 09:31 From behind, we see a solider wearing a U.S. Army helmet. A front view reveals it is a Japanese soldier wearing a U.S. helmet. 09:39 An American soldier in camouflage moves cautiously through the jungle, suspicious of everything. A Japanese soldier, hidden in the foliage, whispers to him in English. The American isn’t fooled; he hits the ground behind a tree and raises his rifle, shooting the enemy. 10:43 A wild leopard crawls stealthily through the jungle. 11:12 A U.S. soldier walks through the jungle mimicking animal stealth. He stops next to a tree. A leave falls. The solider immediately raises his rifle and fires into the tree, killing a Japanese soldier. 12:05 END

Complete Record: This training film from 1942, “On Your Toes,” is part of the "Fighting Men" training series produced by The Signal Corps for the War Department. It demonstrates the difference between an ordinary soldier and a first class fighting man, teaching soldiers the importance of staying alert and vigil at all times. :40 A squad of U.S. Army soldiers is asleep in a bombed out building. :50 One soldier nearby is on watch. Suddenly an explosion sends up a cloud of smoke. The soldier yells, ‘gas!’ and dons a gas mask. A second soldier rings an alarm bell alerting the sleeping soldiers. The soldiers wake and quickly find their gas masks. One disorganized solider struggles to find his mask. Before he can protect himself, he dies from gas exposure. 02:08 Two medics wearing gas masks remove the dead solider on stretcher. 02:40 One soldier falls into a deep sleep as soon as his head hits his Haversack. A second soldier sleeps lightly. Neatly organized next to him his rifle, Haversack, gas mask, and helmet. 03:41 On a football field, a halfback takes the ball. He races past defenders and scores a touchdown. 03:50 Two duck hunters in a duck blind patiently wait for prey. 03:59 American sniper, expertly concealed in foliage, peers at an unsuspecting German soldier. 04:10 Field artillery opens fire. 04:16 An unsuspecting German soldier is knifed by an American solider. 04:27 U.S. Army troops march on parade past the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. 04:42 U.S. soldiers on maneuvers in the field. One solider walks up to a suspicious mound of debris, suspects a trap, and cautiously walks around it. U.S. troops continue through the woods. An unperceptive soldier walks right into a trip wire, igniting an explosion. 05:06 A soldier in a covered fox hole alertly scans the area for activity. He sees a German soldier. The American takes careful aim and fires. 05:34 A soldier on his back wiggles under low hanging barbed wire. He silently cuts the wires one-by-one. 06:30 Another solider, also on his back cutting barbed wire, carelessly shifts his weight, his boot applies pressure on an unseen landmine that explodes. 06:57 A German Messerschmidt Bf 109E strafes the ground with bullets. An alert soldier safely dives for cover. 07:06 U.S. soldiers cross open ground. Two soldiers set up a Browning machine gun. Three German Junker JU87s roll inverted to drop bombs. The machine gunners keep firing amid explosions. 07:44 In battle, a U.S. soldier digs through his utility belt for ammo. A German soldier unwittingly backs into the American. The American alertly overtakes the German and kills him. 08:04 A U.S. soldier comes upon dead soldiers in the jungle. Hiding in a tree above is a Japanese sniper who shoots the American. 08:24 Amid jungle battle, someone behind a cloud of gun smoke waves a white flag. Japanese soldiers surrender. American troops move in. Hidden Japanese machine gunners kill the unsuspecting Americans. 09:10 An American soldier in the jungle spies a dead Japanese soldier. He hits the ground cautiously. The “dead” man opens his eyes, moves to throw a grenade, but the American shoots him dead. 09:31 From behind, we see a solider wearing a U.S. Army helmet. A front view reveals it is a Japanese soldier wearing a U.S. helmet. 09:39 An American soldier in camouflage moves cautiously through the jungle, suspicious of everything. A Japanese soldier, hidden in the foliage, whispers to him in English. The American isn’t fooled; he hits the ground behind a tree and raises his rifle, shooting the enemy. 10:43 A wild leopard crawls stealthily through the jungle. 11:12 A U.S. soldier walks through the jungle mimicking animal stealth. He stops next to a tree. A leave falls. The solider immediately raises his rifle and fires into the tree, killing a Japanese soldier. 12:05 END

Transcription

[Music] [Music] yes [Music] C [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] listen Soldier know why you're name on a casualty list why you're going for the last long ride while the rest of the gang's moving into action you knew plenty about fighting got your share of Germans but you wound up count it out because you didn't learn the thing that makes the difference between an ordinary Soldier and a first class fighting man and that is that you've got to be on your toes not only in battle but before battle and after battle let's go back and visualize what happened your outfit had a tough fight yesterday you were out there dodging lead for hours but you kept on driving forward and you and your outfit took your objective on schedule and then the old man gave you a chance to catch a couple hours rest you came in Dead Tired Che down your rifle your helmet your mask and fell in a heat you were asleep before you hit the ground you were sound asleep unaware of what had passed or what might come and now you're on a stret your head in way the man on your right he knew that even asleep a soldier's mind must be half awake he must be able to come alive to know instantly where his equipment is reach for it even before his eyes are open before he went off into that well earned rest his rifle his mask his helmet all of his Fighting Tools were where he could snatch them without a second's loss he's a top notot Soldier awake and to sleep he's alert alertness means many things it can mean the speed and shiftiness of a back tight looping down a sideline the ability to use your muscles and mind quickly and cleverly or it can mean patience the ability to endure long tiresome waiting perhaps for many minutes on end to decide whether a dark blur in the landscape is a bush a corpse or a sniper gunpowder and steel are not the only things you fight with your brain is a weapon your five senses used correctly are weapons on Parade all is precision Cadence heads up eyes fight ahead your feet take care of themselves on Parade but out here your feet demand a Little Help from your eyes your eyes must seek out the enemy and any sudden death he may have placed in your path if you forget your eyes if you don't use them constantly you're forsaking one of your greatest safety devices and it may cancel your serial number your girl may think your ears stick out but the more they stick out the better off you are when your life depends upon them one more name for the enemy casualty list a victim of keen hearing and alert action wire cutting is no picnic it requires skill care caution and above all silence wire is sure to be covered by machine guns the slightest sound may start them hammering a soldier must be vigilant on the lookout for anything he must be careful where he puts his weight bobbed wire entanglements a good spot for anti-personnel Minds when his sense of touch comes to his Aid when he feels something with his hand or foot he better not fiddle with it or kick it or he may provide another job for the graves registration alertness means lightning re action getting the dirt fast when you have to the means judgment and guts enough to save fo when your job calls for a alertness means getting the jump on your enemy moving fast and first alertness means being alive for the meaning of things on the battlefield a blasted machine gun net maybe just that or it may be a suan a perfect setup for a trap bait for a sniper in combat things are not always what they seem probably UNL the Japs are well trained in treachery this might be a legitimate surrender and it might not be the alert Soldier is prepared for either he'll F this sort of [ __ ] trick every time come on us you bastard the alert Soldier knows that the Japs are great on Hocus Pocus tactics and that plenty of dead Jabs are counterfeit they play corpse until the stage is set and then come to life with a vengeance the alert fighting man knows an American helmet May conceal an enemy skull this sharp smart Soldier moves cautiously suspicious of everything even suspicious of a voice in his own language Whispering something like hey buddy come here a minute he isn't fooled by familiar sight and he isn't checked by familiar sounds he's on the beam and ready for them the [ __ ] set the stage all right but the American brought down the curtain his five senses and his brain making use of them that's a combination no good soldier abandons ever like the law of the jungle war is the survival of the fet the soldier who is alert is like the leopard stalking his prey intensely acute aware of every movement every sound every odor he stops Dead free he tests his weight he stays in the shadows blends with the natural surroundings he walks slowly stey there's no fat formula for keeping on your toes it's coupling the intelligence of the human with the instincts of an animal when you're patrolling and when you're sleeping when you're out of combat or under Fire it's using your mind and your body and your senses all of the time for every purpose it's hearing with your eyes and seeing with your ears it's knowing that the slightest thing can be of the utmost importance a twig snaps a leaf falls a jaap dies [Music] and a good American Soldier moves on

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