Tell It to the Marines

Sergeant O’Hara is trying to make marines out of raw recruits, and the one who costs him most is Skeets Burns, who takes none of it seriously. Worse, Burns is also after the nurse Nora Dale, whom O’Hara secretly loves. Nora knows nothing of the sergeant’s feelings and is drawn to the handsome younger man, until something turns her against him, and matters are only settled after an expedition to China and a fight with a warlord’s band. George W. Hill directed for MGM. Lon Chaney wore no makeup at all in this film, and his performance was found so convincing that he was made an honorary member of the United States Marine Corps; it became the biggest commercial success of his career. Warner Oland is also in the cast, a Swedish-born actor who built his career largely on playing Asian characters.