[1] Previously, Warner Bros. had produced three short documentary films, Winning Your Wings (1942) starring Jimmy Stewart, Men Of The Sky (1942) and Beyond the Line of Duty (1942).

The studios produced more than features, with countless cartoons and short subjects that were intended to inform the public, boost morale, encourage support of the Red Cross and other organizations that were helping at home and overseas or in recruitment.

Rear Gunner is one of the best examples of how Hollywood pitched in and worked to boost morale and also recruit men into military service.[3]L.A.

Noticing that he has the ideal characteristics of small stature and determination, pilot Lt. Ames (Ronald Reagan) asks if he is interested in being an air gunner.

He joins hundreds of other students, including Benny (Dane Clark), a recruit whose sole experience with guns is in winning Kewpie dolls at an arcade.

The film begins with the strains of the fourth verse of the "Air Corps Song": Off we go into the wild sky yonder, Keep the wings level and true; If you'd live to be a gray haired wonder, keep the nose out of the blue.

The Rear Gunner was the fourth wartime film short produced by Warner Brothers Studios and proved popular with audiences.