Some observations about “Kings Go Forth” (1958):
--In “Kings Go Forth,” Frank Sinatra plays Lieutenant Sam Loggins. Sam narrates the film and volunteers his perspective as the events unfold. In keeping with many of the other Sinatra films we’ve seen, Sam comes from a working class family on the west side of Manhattan. I was intrigued by the fact that Sinatra continues to play characters from such similar backgrounds—often, backgrounds strikingly similar to his own. Does he select these roles because he feels as though he can identify with the character based on origins alone? Or does playing the tough New York guy become a fallback for Sinatra? I suppose his role in “High Society” was a departure from the “raised on the mean streets of New York” role that he so often falls in to. I found myself wondering if the New York background gave his characters some kind of intangible credibility in the military films, but Sinatra played characters from New York in other films too, like Nathan Detroit in “Guys and Dolls.”
--The racial twist in “Kings Go Forth” surprised me. I was not expecting the lovely French-born American Monique Blair (Natalie Wood) to announce that she had a Negro father. It just goes to show you that looks can be deceiving…especially in films.
Throughout his career, Sinatra was a vocal advocate for civil rights. In his 1945 short film “The House I Live In”, Sinatra addresses religious tolerance. The film doesn’t allow him to discuss race outright, but by bringing a conversation about religious differences to the table, Sinatra helps to open the door for conversations about racial inequality.
In the ten-minute short, there is a brief discussion about blood and the mixing of blood. Sinatra’s argument is that people are people and blood is blood, regardless of where that blood’s body goes to church. The unspoken argument here about race is as close as “The House I Live In” gets to touching upon the tense subject. In “Kings Go Forth,” Monique’s blood, according to the prevailing quasi-scientific measures of the time, is half black. Despite her lily-white skin, Monique would have been considered black and subjected to much (if not more) of the segregation and discrimination faced by African Americans in the US.
I found Sam’s response to Monique’s surprising news to be very believable, considering the time period—he stepped back and took some time to figure out what to do about the situation and to decide whether or not he was going to continue to pursue a relationship with Monique and her mother. This was definitely Sam’s reaction to the announcement, not Sinatra’s. Frank likely would have brushed off the news about Monique’s father and continued to see Monique, but Sam needed time to sort out his thoughts.
Amy, your point about Sinatra choosing roles that reflect his own working-class background as a possible way to identify with the characters he portrays, is worth thinking about in terms of the point about Sam's reaction in your final paragraph. I had not previously considered how Sinatra himself might react if put in a similar situation as Sam, but I find it intriguing that you propose that he "would have brushed off the news about Monique's father and continued to see Monique." From out examination of "The House I Live In" and the materials we've read on Sinatra and racism, it may seem sensible to presume he would be more tolerant, yet I find it interesting we have read very little about Sinatra and black women. And for all of his affairs, Sinatra has never been paired with a black woman. So, though he may be tolerant, I wonder if this tolerance would ever extend to a relationship with a non-white woman. Perhaps, like Sam (a character with an upbringing similar to Sinatra's), it would be more in character for Sinatra to at first feel betrayed, and then lean towards acceptance after some time to process. Your post has certainly made me want to learn more about Sinatra and his interactions with women from different races.
ReplyDeleteCourtney McDermott