Sergeant Dixie Smith has more raw recruits to turn into Marines, if he can. Among them is cocky casanova Chris Winters, son of an officer, who's just tried to "mash" Mary Carter, a major's niece. Once on base, he finds Mary's a nurse and an off-limits officer. Does this stop him? Of course not. But his attitude problem soon puts him in a position where he must redeem himself, with December 7, 1941 fast approaching.