This 1958 film is about one of the famed acts of individual heroism during World War II in 1943, when Commander Howard Gilmore, fatally wounded, for the last time from the USS Growler (SS-215) battle-scarred bridge, commanded, "Take Er Down," bringing about the birth of one of Navy's great traditions.

For sacrificing himself to save his ship, Commander Howard Gilmore was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, "the first man of the submarine force to be so decorated".  He also received two Navy Crosses, second only to the Medal of Honor.