The Purple Plain the three men struggle to survive in the hostile environment, the self-destructive Bill finally realises that he can depend on support from others and that he may have someone to live for. Blore, however, abandons them to attempt to return to the crash site and commits suicide. "The Purple Plain" is regarded generally as historically accurate with good production values and attention to detail, and depicts the native Burmese in a respectful manner. The film is based on the 1947 novel "The Purple Plain" by H. E. Bates, one of three novels he wrote after his travels to Burma and
USS William H. Bates (SSN-680) USS William H. Bates (SSN-680) USS "William H. Bates" (SSN-680), a "Sturgeon"-class attack submarine, was planned to be the second U.S. Navy ship to be named USS "Redfish"—for the redfish, a variety of salmon also called blueback, sawqui, red salmon, and nerka—when the contract to build her was awarded to Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, on 25 June 1968. However, upon the 22 June 1969 death of William H. Bates (1917–1969), the U.S. Representative from Massachusetts's 6th Congressional District (1950–1969) known for his staunch support of nuclear propulsion in the U.S. Navy, she was renamed "William H. Bates" and was