post-war ventriloquism
(c) 1999 John Borneman & Linda Fisher, All Rights Reserved
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A
few days after the surrender of Japan to Allied forces, a diminutive
Hirohito paid a visit to General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander
of the Allied Forces. MacArthur arranged for this one photo to be
taken, sending that the Japanese people an indisputable message
that their Emperor was, in fact, a small man, and leaving no doubt
about who was in charge. Later, on the Battleship Missouri,
a formal ceremony would be held in which representatives of the
Emperor would sign documents of surrender. Hirohito was spared execution
for his war crimes, because the Allies felt that as a purely symbolic
Emperor, he could be useful to them in carrying out their plans
for post-war Japan. Under MacArthur's tutelage, Hirohito announced
that he was not a god, but merely a normal man. MacArthur and the
Americans prepared a new Constitution for Japan which is still in
use today. (credit: unknown) Music montage: The Japanese National anthem, Kimigayo, begins and is at once interrupted by General Douglas MacArthur announcing the surrender of Japan accompanied by a rousing rendition of Star Spangled Banner, the national anthem of the U.S. A fragment of the Japanese anthem reappears and fades away. (credit: sound montage by L. Fisher combines fragments from Star-Spangled Banner, Kimigayo, and the voice of General MacArthur (United Newsreel, National Archives, USA) --Load time: ~17 sec. |
(c) 1999 John Borneman & Linda Fisher, All Rights Reserved