The United States, 1944. A trio of boys becoming men in a time of war, sacrifice and heroism--a time and place trying to hold on to innocence in the face of everyday horrors--enter a future that holds both promise and danger for everyone who graduates with the Class of '44.Hermie (Gary Grimes), Oscy (Jerry Houser) and Benjie (Oliver Conant) take separate paths: Benjie enlists in the Marines, but Hermie and Oscy follow the ivy-shrouded path to college. There, they confront a harrowing world of fraternity hazing and alluring coeds as they take their first, tentative steps toward maturity.