Roll the Credits

I am looking forward to tonight’s screening and subsequent Q&A with Portland filmmaker Ilana Sol. It will be screened at the Grand Cinema in Tacoma. If you have been following along you already know the story. Ms Sol’s 48 minute documentary is a completely different take than the one on which I am currently drafting, which is, of course, one of the main reasons I am interested in viewing her work. 

Here we have a historically significant event that occurred seventy-seven years ago towards the end of WWII, in a small coastal Oregon town, that, while not considered a major air battle of the war, contains enough detail, intrigue and irony to satisfy even the most demanding cinematic historian. It is a classic feel-good tale demonstrating the hope of humanity through the lens of bitter enemies turned compassionate global citizens. 

I was drawn the story largely because of its historical trivia, after all Brookings, OR remains to this day the only town in the contagious US to have bombs dropped on it in a time of war by the enemy. THAT in itself qualified in my book as worthy of further review and investigation. What I found during the dig for details continued to pique my interest and open my eyes to the bigger story. It continues to do so as the dig has unearthed a treasure chest of fascinating events that were simultaneously taking place in LA, Seattle, Washington DC, Los Alomos, NM, Tokyo, Guam, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Oak Ridge, TN and Mt. Emily, OR. 

The facts that they are all connected by the actions of one man I simply find astounding, and worthy of whatever story can be created about him. That guys name is Nobou Fujita. His was a Japanese aviator who dropped the aforementioned bombs, 160 pound thermite incendiary ordnance, just outside of Brookings, OR on September 6, 1942. The idea was to start a massive west coast forest fire that would distract the allies and misdirect their resources. 

That it the war part. The humanitarian part is, as all good stories will ask, is what happened next? 

In rapid succession and as a direct result of his attack on a civilian non-military target, this:

The West Coast freaked out. 

The Battle of Los Angeles took place.

FDR and Truman green-lit the Manhattan Project,

The Doolittle Raid leveled much of Tokyo.

The allies took back the Pacific at Okinawa, Midway, Guadalcanal and the Philippines. 

Hitler surrendered.

The US dropped Fat Man and Little Boy on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Japan surrendered.

Fujita returns to Brookings as an honored guest.

He bequeaths his family's 400 year old Samurai sword as a gesture of friendship.

He hosts high school kids in Japan for science fairs.

He is awarded honorary citizenship by the Brookings Chamber of Commerce. 

Geeze, roll the credits.