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On the Beach -- 1959
by Ed Mauget
In 1959 the Cold War couldn't have been more real. We dealt with
the constant threat of destruction by ignoring it. I believe this is
human nature. What else can you do, after you take precautions? What
significant precautions were available anyway?
I took several classes from Mr. Grafious. He seemed the intellectual
philosopher of the Rogers faculty. He tried to make us think. He
seemed fascinated that we could all vaporize any second. He wanted
us to confront the issue, so he had us read "On the Beach"
by Nevil Shute. At about that time, Stanley Kramer directed a movie
adaptation of the book.
Mr. Grafious required us to read the book and also see the movie. We
were to do a "movie report". I read the book, but remember
only the movie. I saw it in Spokane, but I cannot remember in what
theater, except that it was downtown.
The cast of this black-and-white movie included Gregory Peck, Ava
Gardner, Fred Astaire and Anthony Perkins, before we knew him as
Norman Bates. The title song was Waltzing Matilda. I vividly
remember Fred Astaire in a scene at the end. More on that … at the
end.
The setting was Australia after nuclear Armageddon. Australia was
the only part of the World spared from the initial Cobalt bomb
destruction. The Aussies know that they have just months to survive
and that the rest of the World has already died.
The story deals with people coming to terms with the significance of
their lives. Are they alone? Did one's life count as a contribution?
If so, to what? The characters deal with those issues and with
one-another while putting their affairs in order (no pun intended).
I'm sure there was a love story, but it seems to have been lost on
me. The ending has the characters preparing for death. Gregory Peck
captains a US submarine that is "going home" to San
Francisco, and certain death for those aboard.
Now about my vivid memory of Fred Astaire. I had believed that he
was mainly a dancer, but he never danced a step in this film. His
character had a fine auto that he loved. When the end was near, he
removed the spark plugs and put a spoonful of oil into each
cylinder. He replaced the plugs and put the car up on blocks to
preserve the tires longer. Then he sat in the car and waited for
death … to the strains of Waltzing Matilda. This was incredibly
bittersweet and sad.
- Ed Mauget |
