THE LONGEST DAY (1962) B/W widescreen 180m dirs: Andrew Marton, Ken Annakin, Bernhard Wicki, Gerd Oswald

w/John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, Henry Fonda, Robert Ryan, Rod Steiger, Robert Wagner, Fabian, Paul Anka, Tommy Sands, Richard Beymer, Richard Todd, Richard Burton, Red Buttons, Peter Lawford, Curt Jurgens

From Variety's review of the film: "Darryl F. Zanuck achieves a solid and stunning war epic. From personal vignettes to big battles, it details the first day of the D-Day Landings by the Allies on June 6, 1944.

"The savage fury and sound of war are ably caught on film. It emerges as a sort of grand scale semi-fictionalized documentary concerning the overall logistics needed for this incredible invasion. It carries its three-hour length by the sheer tingle of the masses of manpower in action, peppered with little ironic, sad, silly actions that all add up to war.

"The use of over 43 actual star names in bit and pivotal spots helps keep up the aura of fictionalized documentary. But it is the action, time, and place, and the actual machinery of war, that are the things.

"The battles [coordinated by associate producer Elmo Williams] ably take their place among some of the best ever put on the screen. A German strafing the beach, Yanks scaling a treacherous cliff only to find that there was no big gun there, British commandos taking a bridge, Yanks blowing up a big bunker, the French taking a town, all are done with massive pungent action. The black and white and Cinemascope screen help keep the focus on surge and movement."

THE LONGEST DAY won Oscars for Best B&W Cinematography (Jean Burgoine & Walter Wottitz) and Special Effects (Robert MacDonald for visual & Jacques Maumont for audible). The film was also nominated for Best Picture, B&W Art Direction, and Editing.