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Article: South Pacific. (the post-World War II racial and political context in which the musical 'South Pacific' was created)(Film in Contect)
- Article from:
- History Today
- Article date:
- August 1, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 History Today Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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When the musical-comedy South Pacific was released by Twentieth Century Fox in March 1958, Variety predicted the film would `mop up'. The movie had, after all, almost a decade of pre-publicity in the form of the highly successful Broadway production which first opened in April 1949. Apart from South Pacific's entertainment value, though, it provides a window on some American preoccupations in the mid-twentieth century. First, it reflected on the American presence in the Pacific during the Second World War. South Pacific's underlying themes of racial and cultural tolerance also came at a crucial juncture in American race relations. It is in these contexts that the film ...