The Last Days of Patton

The Last Days of Patton
Genre	Biography Drama
Based on	The Last Days of Patton by Ladislas Farago
Written by	William Luce
Directed by	Delbert Mann
Starring	George C. Scott Eva Marie Saint Murray Hamilton Ed Lauter Richard Dysart
Theme music composer	Allyn Ferguson
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Executive producer	Robert E. Fuisz
Producers	Alfred R. Kelman William F. Storke
Production locations	Wandsworth Town Hall, Wandsworth High Street, Wandsworth, London, England Harlaxton Manor, Harlaxton, Lincolnshire, England
Cinematography	Dennis C. Lewiston
Editor	Bill Blunden
Running time	146 minutes
Production company	Entertainment Partners
Original release
Network	CBS
Release	September 14, 1986 (1986-09-14)
Related
Patton

The Last Days of Patton is a 1986 American made-for-television biographical drama film and sequel to the 1970 film Patton, portraying 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. It was directed by Delbert Mann.

Plot

As a result of General George S. Patton's (George C. Scott) decision to use former Nazis to help reconstruct post-World War II occupied 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 U.S. military involvement in World War II.

Shortly thereafter, on December 9, 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, paralyzing 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, orders that he be transferred to a stateside hospital. Preparations, including a full plaster body cast, are made, but Patton dies of an embolism on December 21, 1945.

Cast

• George C. Scott as General George S. Patton
• Eva Marie Saint as Beatrice Patton
• Murray Hamilton as Brigadier General Hobart "Hap" Gay
• Ed Lauter as Lieutenant Colonel (Doctor) 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 Colonel Glen Spurling
• Don Fellows as Lieutenant General Walter Bedell Smith
• Errol John as Sergeant 1st Class George Meeks
• Alan MacNaughton as Brigadier General (Doctor) Hugh Cairns
• Paul Maxwell as Lieutenant General Geoffrey Keyes
• Lee Patterson as Colonel Paul Harkins
• Shane Rimmer as Colonel (Doctor) Lawrence Ball
• Michael Domenico as 8-year-old George S. Patton
• Keith Edwards as George S. Patton Sr.
• Oscar Quitak as Fritz Schäffer

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result
1987	39th Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Makeup for a Miniseries or a Special	Del Acevedo, Eddie Knight, and Alan Boyle	Won
		Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition for a Miniseries or a Special	Allyn Ferguson	Nominated

External links

• The Last Days of Patton at IMDb
• The Last Days of Patton at AllMovie
• The Last Days of Patton at the TCM Movie Database