Till the End of Time

Till the End of Time is a 1946 American drama film directed by Edward Dmytryk and starring Dorothy McGuire, Guy Madison, Robert Mitchum, and Bill Williams. Released the same year but preceding the better known The Best Years of Our Lives, it covers much the same topic: the adjustment of World War II veterans to post-war civilian life. It was based on the novel They Dream of Home by Niven Busch (whose wife Teresa Wright appeared in The Best Years of Our Lives); unlike the soldier, sailor and airman of that film, the male leads in Till the End of Time are all U.S. Marines. Frédéric Chopin's Polonaise Op. 53 is played throughout the film; it was given lyrics and adapted by Buddy Kaye and Ted Mossman and became a major hit for Perry Como at the time spending 10 weeks at number one on the Billboard popular music charts. Plot Right after VJ Day, two decorated Marine Corps buddies, Cpl. William "Bill" Tabeshaw and Pfc. Cliff Harper, are among a group being immediately discharged in San Diego. Bill (Robert Mitchum), a former cowboy, was wounded in Iwo Jima and has a silver plate implanted in his head. Former college student Cliff (Guy Madison), is physically uninjured but harbors a deep resentment about losing nearly four years of his life because he enlisted right after Pearl Harbor.