Ken Annakin

The film records the making of '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea' and 'Third Man on the Mountain'. This episode of Walt Disney Presents is actually an extended advertisement for the upcoming Disney theatrical feature Third Man on the Mountain. Although the stars of that film (including James MacArthur and Michael Rennie), the real hero of the proceedings is French mountain climber Gaston Rebufatt, who functioned as Third Man on the Mountain's guide and second-unit director while the company was on location in Switzerland. The highlight finds Rebufatt instructing a novice (Maurice Baquet) on the intricacies of mountain climbing. The images belong to Rebufat's film 'Etoile et tempête'.

Rudi is a kitchen worker determined to conquer the Citadel -the jagged, snowcapped peak that claimed his father's life. Encouraged by both a famed English climber and the youth's devoted girlfriend, Rudi goes through a grueling training period before hi is ready to face the incredible dangers of the killer mountain. The story is slightly inspired by the figure of Edward Wymper and by story of the conquest of the Matterhorn.