Book description
During World War II, Hollywood studios supported the war effort by
making patriotic movies designed to raise the nation's morale. They
often portrayed the combatants in very simple terms: Americans and
their allies were heroes, and everyone else was a villain. Norway,
France, Czechoslovakia, and England were all good because they had
been invaded or victimized by Nazi Germany. Poland, however, was
represented in a negative light in numerous movies. In Hollywood's War
with Poland, 1939-1945, M. B. B. Biskupski draws on a close study of
prewar and wartime films such as To Be or Not to Be (1942), In Our
Time (1944), and None Shall Escape (1944). He researched memoirs,
letters, diaries, and memoranda written by screenwriters, directors,
studio heads, and actors to explore the negative portrayal of Poland
during World War II. Biskupski also examines the political climate
that influenced Hollywood films.
""HWWP is an essential resource that proves, behond any
question, that powerful people, prompted by geopolitical competition
and deep hostility worked hard to sully the image of poles,
Polish-Americans, and Poland." -- Writing the Polish
Diaspora" --
M. B. B. Biskupski, Stanislaus A. Blejwas Endowed Chair in Polish
History at Central Connecticut State University, is the author of many
publications, including The Polish Diaspora, Heart of the Nation.
