It is loosely based on the true story of U.S. Navy warrant officer Arthur Parker, who rescued an injured filly during World War II.

His horse Bess falls ill and dies just before he is sent to the Pacific to fight in World War II.

Bess learned tricks, including to run to a sandbagged cave for protection whenever the air-raid siren sounded.

Celebrities such as Judy Garland, Elizabeth Taylor and Charles Lindbergh would occasionally visit Bess.

Bess foaled Gallant Pat in the 1950s and lived the rest of her life with Parker on a ranch in Grass Valley, California.

The rights to Gallant Bess are now owned by Warner Bros.,[5] and the film is occasionally shown on the Turner Classic Movies channel.