American Cultural Icons Defining the Cold
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A Dissertation Entitled American Cultural Icons Defining the Cold War: A Study of the Attributes Embodied in the Rosenthal Iwo Jima Photograph, the John Wayne Screen Persona, Apollo Images, and Berlin Wall By John T. Nelson Submitted to the Graduate Faculty as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in History ___________________________________ Dr. Ronald Lora, Committee Chair ___________________________________ Dr. Michael Jakobson, Committee Member ___________________________________ Dr. Robert R. Smith, Committee Member ___________________________________ Dr. Leonne Hudson, Committee Member ___________________________________ Dr. Patricia R. Komuniecki, Dean College of Graduate Studies The University of Toledo August 2010 Copyright 2010, John T. Nelson This document is copyrighted material. Under copyright law, no parts of this document may be reproduced without the expressed permission of the author. An Abstract of American Cultural Icons Defining the Cold War: A Study of the Attributes Embodied in the Rosenthal Iwo Jima Photograph, the John Wayne Screen Persona, Apollo Images, and Berlin Wall by John T. Nelson Submitted to the Graduate Faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in History The University of Toledo August 2010 Prior to World War II, the European powers, Japan, and the United States controlled multiple spheres of influence over most of the world. The conclusion of the planet‘s greatest conflict left the Axis nations in ruins and America‘s Allies severely weakened. In the postwar era, America emerged as the dominant leader of the Western world and engaged Joseph Stalin‘s Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in a struggle for global dominance. As the former colonial societies developed into independent nations, the two superpowers sought to align the emerging countries within their respective spheres. The so-called Third World became the quarry in a bipolar conflict. Since the advent of atomic weapons made a direct clash unthinkable, the contest dragged on for decades as both superpowers utilized diplomacy, political maneuvering, and propaganda on surrogates in limited conflicts. This Cold War conflict between superpowers imposed appalling stress on American society. The United States government and a wide variety of media continuously reminded the citizenry that the worldview constituted an East/West or them- iii against-us structure that illuminated ―good versus evil.‖ The possibility of nuclear holocaust generated significant cultural anxiety for a nation in the immediate aftermath of World War II. To counter this black/white challenge, society obsessed over security and military preparedness. During the binary struggle for global dominance, still photography and motion pictures generated images, which gained widespread societal exposure. These photographic and electronic representations evolved to iconic status within American culture. To many members of society, these emblems expressed powerful traits that citizens found desirable and, hopefully, descriptive of their nation. This work examined four cultural icons: the Joseph Rosenthal Iwo Jima flag-raising, John Wayne screen persona, Apollo images, and the Berlin Wall. These symbols embodied powerful traits articulated in government documents, especially the Congressional Record, and popular media. The research sought a synthesis between the official record and commercial media, which projected these cultural icons and the traits that they reflected. In this study, investigation focused on the Congressional Record and commercial media, both print and film, which senators and representatives entered into that official document. When the four icons garnered attention, the work assessed the traits that national leaders addressed. This dissertation explored American culture that embraced these representations during the Cold War. Following the conclusion of that bipolar struggle, these icons with fundamental attributes endured to the present. iv Mary Nelson genuinely deserved the dedication of this dissertation. As a professional, she has wrangled a herd of elementary students with four preparations a day, five days a week. As a companion, she has skied in minus 60 degree Fahrenheit wind chill and has climbed to 13,000 feet above sea level. Moreover, she also has scuba dove with poisonous invertebrates and schooling sharks, and once has vacationed in a Central America coup d’état. While never faltering, she continually has admonished me to ―think about what you are doing‖ with but occasional success. Nevertheless, as a stalwart typist who really knew how to ―Cowboy up,‖ she faced her greatest challenge when she grimly supported my pursuit of a Ph.D. in history. Motivated by the mantra of keep firing, keep moving, meet production, the completion of this research has rested on the foundation of her loyalty and love. It is not possible to extend either sufficient credit or adequate thanks. Acknowledgements Dr. Ronald Lora has patiently guided this dissertation while he allowed me the academic latitude to explore research in unconventional corners. For a dissertation advisor and committee chair, I would wish for no other. Dr. Michael Jakobson welcomed me in his capacity as graduate coordinator for the History Department and served as my first point of contact at the University of Toledo. Your enthusiastic support and unique perspective for my research on the bipolar conflict called the Cold War represented an invaluable contribution. Another committee member, Dr. Robert Smith, held me accountable both in his seminar class and as his graduate assistant. Under your command, you kept me marching forward and focused on the academic mission. I extend my sincere thanks to Dr. Leonne Hudson of Kent State University who agreed to serve as an outside reader on my committee. No description of staff excellence would be complete without the mention of Debbie MacDonald, Department administrator extraordinaire. Without her expertise, daily operations within the Department surely would suffer. Finally, I extend my deepest thanks to Natalie Dickendasher who answered my call in the middle of the night. Your technical expertise and computer skills prevented hair loss, which I could ill afford, and possibly averted a stomach ulcer. vi Table of Contents Abstract iii Acknowledgements vi Table of Contents vii List of Figures viii 1. Cultural Impact of Still Photography and Motion Pictures Reflected in the Congressional Record and Other Documents 1 2. American Cold War Culture Exposed in Popular Media 12 3. The Impact of Still Photography and Joseph Rosenthal‘s Iwo Jima Photograph as an Icon in the Cold War 32 4. Motion Picture Cinematography and the John Wayne Screen Persona as an Icon in Cold War Culture 64 5. Apollo Iconic Images and Their Traits in the Cold War 107 6. The Berlin Partition: A Study in Negative Iconic Traits During the Cold War 129 7. A Window About to Close: Early 1960s Berlin Division Presages Iconic Wall 162 8. Berlin Wall Rises; Tensions Soar; An Icon Assured 188 9. American Cold War Icons: The Joseph Rosenthal Iwo Jima Flag-Raising Photograph, John Wayne Screen Persona, Apollo Images, and Berlin Wall Explored in the Post Cold War Era 212 10. Enduring Icons 258 References 265 vii List of Figures 3-1 Figure 1: Rosenthal Photograph 36 3-2 Figure 2: Map of Iwo Jima 38 3-3 Figure 3: Lowery Photograph 40 3-4 Figure 4: Flag Exchange on Iwo Jima 43 3-5 Figure 5: Bronze Statue Dedication 47 3-6 Figure 6: Ground Zero/Iwo Jima Comparison 60 3-7 Figure 7: Poster from Sands of Iwo Jima 61 3-8 Figure 8: Political Iwo Jima Cartoon 62 3-9 Figure 9: Political Iwo Jima Cartoon 63 4-1 Figure 1: Rooster Cogburn, True Grit 84 4-2 Figure 2: John T. Chance, Rio Bravo 86 4-3 Figure 3 Ringo Kid, Stagecoach 88 4-4 Figure 4: Tom Dunson, Red River 91 4-5 Figure 5: Ethan Edwards, The Searchers 94 4-6 Figure 6: Davey Crockett, The Alamo 100 4-7 Figure 7: Sergeant John M. Stryker, Sands of Iwo Jima 105 4-8 Figure 8: Key Scene from Sands of Iwo Jima 106 5-1 Figure 1: Fill ‗Er Up—I‘m in a Race 123 5-2 Figure 2: They Went Thataway 124 5-3 Figure 3: Whole Earth 125 5-4 Figure 4: Earthrise 126 5-5 Figure 5: Lunar Footprint 127 5-6 Figure 6: Astronaut With Flag 128 8-1 Figure 1: Berlin Wall 208 8-2 Figure 2: Check Point Charlie 209 viii 8-3 Figure 3: Viewing Stand 210 8-4 Figure 4: Brandenburg Gate 210 8-5 Figure 5: Memorial Crosses for Slain Defectors 211 ix Chapter 1 Cultural Impact of Still Photography and Motion Pictures Reflected in the Congressional Record and Other Documents Still photography and motion pictures constituted two of the greatest communication advances in the twentieth century, and each produced images that made powerful impressions on American society and achieved iconic status. This work will examine and compare four of those icons. The first is the Joseph Rosenthal photograph of the Iwo Jima flag-raising on Mount Suribachi and another is a motion picture image, the John Wayne screen persona. Both were significant icons during and after the Cold War. Wayne‘s portrayal of the character, Sergeant John M. Stryker, in the film Sands of Iwo Jima became a benchmark in his career.1 Since its release, this exemplary war film has connected to the Joseph Rosenthal battle photograph because that image was integral to the production‘s plot and conclusion. Lunar images from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) comprise the third icon. The fourth and last media representation is the Berlin Wall, which stood as a figurative and literal divide between the western and eastern spheres of influence during the Cold War struggle. This study will investigate to what extent American society embraced these linked images and examine the political and military figures who endorsed these icons. All of these images 1 Sands of Iwo Jima, directed by Allan Dwan (Republic Pictures, 1949): 109 min.