https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/66f25599-e690-459a-a878-1fd201f92112 Longer version: https://youtu.be/z8HxtTKodMM This US Navy Department film from 1957, "The Silent Service", provides gripping footage of submarine warfare in the Pacific Theater of WW2. It opens with the tragic sinking of the USS Sculpin. The Sculpin entered a deadly battle with the Japanese destroyer IJN Yamagumo near Truk Atoll. During the battle, over 50 depth charges were dropped resulting in irreparable damages forcing the crew to make hasty decisions and ultimately scuttle the vessel. Captain John Cromwell chose to go down with the submarine.  The film is missing the beginning and opens abruptly (:08) with the USS Sculpin. Crew members detail being hit with depth charges (:12). These ASW weapons set off a hydraulic shock and high explosive charge. An explosion erupts under water (:15) and the crew reacts below deck. More depth charges burst (:23). Underwater the ship is hit; and it bounces back (1:18). After five hours of rigorous underwater combat, the crew is haggard (1:28). Temperatures within the vessel had reached 115 F. The commander and captain discuss rumors of torture upon capture by the Japanese (1:38). Reportedly; Cromwell and Fred Conway argued as far as whether to remain submerged. The inexperienced Conway wanted to surface and continue to fight.  The order is given to continue the battle with deck guns (1:53). Sculpin surfaces (2:03) and crew members head for the deck guns (2:06). Gunfire rumbles and shells sing through night air (2:17). Two dozen men were killed almost instantly including Conway (2:23). The order is given to scuttle the ship. Cromwell and a shipmate decide to go down with the vessel (2:44). Remaining crew members surface as the submarine goes down (3:12). The Royal Hawaiian Hotel appears (3:52). Stress of patrols were relieved by a program of relaxation approved by Fleet Admiral Nimitz. Waikiki Beach appears (4:09). Soldiers enjoy a boxing match (4:24) and other physical maintenance activities (4:32). Men shoot pool (4:42) and play ping pong (4:46). Hula girls sway under grass skirts (5:15). Statistics for submarine warfare during the year of 1944 follow (5:43).  A Japanese vessel tips to it's side as it sinks (6:20). Crew members target Japanese shipping vessels (6:41) along the coast of China. A submariner searches through binoculars for downed aviators as rescue missions became part of submarine duty (6:58). Crew members fight topside (7:27). One man operates gun sights of the deck gun (7:43). An enemy ship is hit (7:52). Prisoners are captured (8:08). One is pulled into the vessel and searched (8:28). Morse code informs them of a B-29 in distress (8:36). The B-29 heads for the water (8:48). Aviators appear dropping with parachutes (9:03). The submarine reaches the men (9:11). Medics service wounded pilots aboard the submarine (9:40). Another plane appears in distress (10:08). Pilots are scooped up from life boats (10:30). Dead soldiers are wrapped in white sheet (10:53). The summer of 1945 saw few enemy targets (11:42). They board merchant vessel's, checking their cargo (12:06). Prisoners are captured (12:17). A mine explodes (12:27). A Japanese freighter is spotted (12:36). A war council is held (13:04). The submarine changes course (13:21). The skipper addresses the crew (13:26). Crew members head for positions (14:13). They near 1000 yards from the vessel (15:28). Torpedo’s are fired (15:36). The ship is hit (15:44). Crew members scramble on the ships deck (15:53). View from the periscope watches crew head for the deck gun (16:02). Another round is fired off (16:21). This is a misfire (16:34). The gun crew spots the submarine's periscope (16:40). The camera traces the trail of a third torpedo (16:59). This is a direct hit (17:07). The submarine surfaces (17:25). They notice the bow plank was still stuck up signifying they had surfaced too quickly (17:54). Enemy fire nears the submarine (18:04) as they watch the bow plank drag up slowly (18:07). Submarine fighters receive decoration for their service (18:30) upon returning home. The film concludes over the US Navy Department seal (19:58).  Motion picture films don't last forever; many have already been lost or destroyed. For almost two decades, we've worked to collect, scan and preserve the world as it was captured on 35mm, 16mm and 8mm movies -- including home movies, industrial films, and other non-fiction. If you have endangered films you'd like to have scanned, or wish to donate celluloid to Periscope Film so that we can share them with the world, we'd love to hear from you. Contact us via the weblink below. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9ZWz-cFBfw Mirrored from Periscope Film (https://www.youtube.com/@PeriscopeFilm) Sat, 13 Jun 2026 13:23:01 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://peertube.dngr.us https://peertube.dngr.us/lazy-static/avatars/41a6fee9-7f57-42d0-a5fc-5db4f1af2e31.png https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/66f25599-e690-459a-a878-1fd201f92112 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://peertube.dngr.us/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.