Yes, 'The Wackiest Ship In The Army' Was Loosely Based On A True Story - A Look At The Real USS Echo

Military movies are often based on true stories — such as "American Sniper" and "Black Hawk Down" — and "The Wackiest Ship in the Army" is no different. The 1960 film had mixed reviews regarding its humor and pacing, but the real-life story and ship it's based on are quite interesting. Directed by Richard Murphy, the slapstick comedy focused on Lieutenant Rip Crandall (played by Jack Lemmon) as he took on the most crucial mission of his career in World War II.

A civilian yachtsman called upon by the Navy for his expertise, Rip is asked to bring an Australian spy into enemy territory — but he must do it aboard the USS Echo. You might expect this vessel to be a battleship, which the U.S. military doesn't use anymore, but instead it's a 40-year-old wooden, flat-bottomed schooner. Rip and his crew do their best to navigate storms and minefields in the unprepared ship, leading to a lot of heartfelt moments and shenanigans.

While the film was a bit of a miss for some audiences, it did follow a real-life story on a real-life ship that Lt. Meredith "Rip" Riddle shared with a men's magazine called Argosy. It's a tale that history buffs won't soon forget.  

In his recount of what inspired "The Wackiest Ship in the Army," the 27-year-old Riddle recalled being proud to receive orders from the U.S. Navy to command his first ship on an important mission: place coastal watchers behind enemy lines in the South Pacific, a quite dangerous task. However, he felt a bit duped when he found out he was going to be aboard the USS Echo, a very dated, wooden ship that nobody had really heard of, according to Riddle's wife (via the Honolulu Advertiser.)

While the covert operation ended up being quite the challenge — involving a clueless crew of which Riddle had to share command over with an Army major, disguising the ship to sneak past heavily patrolled waters in Japanese territory — the USS Echo was a lot more reliable than expected. It was built in New Zealand out of kauri timber in 1905, rigged with topsails. By 1920 twin diesel engines were added.

In 1942, it was transferred to the U.S. Navy, where it delivered cargo as a supply ship. From 1942 to 1944, it was used in the Pacific for various tasks, including Riddle's mission, which became the aforementioned film and then a television show in 1965. The USS Echo may not have been "wacky," like some of the strangest ships in the world, but it was definitely an unexpected, dated ship to use for such a dangerous mission — and having an inexperienced crew only added to the insanity of the situation. 

The ship featured in "The Wackiest Ship in the Army" is not the real USS Echo. At the time of filming, the Echo was too busy hauling cargo to star in the film, so the crew used a ship named the Fiesta instead. Unlike the USS Echo, the Fiesta was built in Hong Kong out of teakwood in 1932. It was also just 72 feet long compared to Echo's 104 feet — could be one of the smaller ships in the U.S. Navy.

The movie remained accurate in other ways, such as its location. It was filmed around the Hawaiian islands of Oahu, Hawaii, and Kaua — and even Pearl Harbor.  By the 1990s, Echo was deteriorating and nearly broke apart. It was later preserved at Picton, New Zealand's Echo Gallery near the Picton Marina. The USS Echo's strange journey will be remembered through Riddle's wild story, whether you read about it, watch the movie, or binge the TV show.