Introduction

The Last Days of Patton is a 1986 American made-for-television film biographical drama film and sequel to the 1970 film Patton, which portrays the last few months of the general’s life.

George C. Scott reprises the role of General George S. Patton, and Eva Marie Saint portrays Beatrice Patton, the general’s wife.

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Outline

As a result of General George S. Patton’s (George C. Scott) decision to use former Nazis to help reconstruct post-World War II Germany (and publicly defending the practice), General Dwight Eisenhower (Richard Dysart) removes him from that task and reassigns him to supervise “an army of clerks” whose task is to write the official history of the US military involvement in World War II.

Shortly thereafter, on 09 December 1945 (a day before he was to transfer back to the United States), Patton is involved in an automobile accident that seriously injures his spinal column, paralysing him. As he lies in his hospital bed, he flashes back to earlier pivotal moments in his life, including stories his father told him of his grandfather’s service during the American Civil War which inspired him to attend the United States Military Academy at West Point, his marriage to his wife Beatrice (Eva Marie Saint), and his championing of the use of tanks in the United States Army.

President Harry S. Truman and other government officials, not wanting Patton to die on German soil, order him transferred to a stateside hospital. Preparations, including a full plaster body cast, are made, but Patton dies of an embolism on 21 December 1945.

Cast

• George C. Scott as General George S. Patton.
• Eva Marie Saint as Beatrice Patton.
• Murray Hamilton as Brigadier General “Hap” Gay.
• Ed Lauter as Dr. Lt. Col. Paul Hill.
• Richard Dysart as General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower.
• Kathryn Leigh Scott as Jean Gordon (Red Cross), Beatrice Patton’s niece and the general’s onetime mistress.
• Ron Berglas as Lieutenant George S. Patton.
• Horst Janson as Baron von Wangenheim.
• Daniel Benzali as Col. Glen Spurling.
• Don Fellows as Lt. Gen. Walter Bedell Smith.
• Errol John as Sgt. 1st Class George Meeks.
• Alan MacNaughton as Brigadier Hugh Cairns.
• Paul Maxwell as Lt. Gen. Geoffrey Keyes.
• Lee Patterson as Col. Paul Harkins.
• Shane Rimmer as Dr. Col. Lawrence Ball.
• Michael Domenico as 8-year-old George S. Patton.
• Oscar Quitak as Fritz Schäffer.

Production & Filming Details

• Director(s): Delbert Mann.
• Producer(s): Robert E. Fuisz, Alfred R. Kelman, and William F. Storke.
• Writer(s): William Luce.
• Music: Allyn Ferguson.
• Cinematography: Dennis C. Lewiston.
• Editor(s): Bill Blunden.
• Production: Entertainment Pictures.
• Distributor(s): CBS.
• Release Date: 14 September 1986.
• Running Time: 146 minutes.
• Country: US.
• Language: English.