Entertainment industry pulls through in time of need

Through all the confusion of the last 20 or so days, I can say that I’ve been pretty impressed with the performance of our entertainment industry. I’m talking about the movies, sports and TV stations.

In a time of national crisis when the country’s mood is one of mourning, anger and fear, our leaders talk of war nearly every day, and Americans face the grim reality that our country has changed forever, the entertainers have really displayed sensitivity to the masses and have led the national charge to return some semblance of normalcy to our lives.

Sports

I’m particularly impressed with the return of Michael Jordan to the gladiatorial arena.

Right now, when America is scrambling from a devastating blow and the country is in a state of shock, out from the ashes of retirement strides good ole’ MJ, a world-wide symbol of America.

I can just see it: Jordan stepping out of a telephone booth, sporting a determined expression and a Versace suit and tearing it open to reveal the famous "23" (or "45", whichever he chooses) on his jersey with the Superman theme thundering in the background.

(I know that he was planning to do it before the attack but I must say that his timing is impeccable.)

And not only that, he’s donating his entire year's salary to the New York relief effort.

I realize that he won’t be as good as he was in the past, that it’s only for fun, and that a year's salary to him is a mere fraction of his net worth. But he’s doing it simply for his love for the game and his donation is a very noble one (would you donate a year’s salary?).

Among the other sports, football and baseball players all across the country are wearing the American flag on their uniforms, donating money and giving blood. For an industry that is often criticized to be populated by a bunch of self-indulgent crybabies, this is an inspiring showing of American pride.

Hollywood

I am equally impressed with Tinseltown’s efforts.

Last Saturday’s telethon had the industry’s biggest names hosting the effort and had the best and most talented musicians playing poignant songs from the past 30 years (my only complaint: Where was Huey Lewis and the News?). Actors who bill millions of dollars per show were answering the phones and participating for free. Julia Roberts worked the show and even contributed two million of her own money.

In addition to that, actors who lived in New York at the time of the attack could be found among rescue personnel aiding the medical and rescue effort. For instance, Kathleen Turner was in scrubs at one of the hospitals administering first aid to people injured by the building collapses.

What a fine showing of American selflessness.

Some movie releases were postponed indefinitely because of the attack. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s "Collateral Damage" was delayed because of a terrorist bomb scene, and next summer's "Spiderman" is being put off for over a year and some scenes involving the late World Trade Center will be re-shot.

I realize that this is partly because of the bad press that these movies would get if released now, but I must say that it is pretty sensitive on the part of the producers.

TV networks

The last example is the television networks during the crisis. For the day of and a few days following the attacks, none of the major networks ran a single commercial. Now this may seem trivial, but networks earn a tremendous amount of income from those ads, that is why there are so many of them.

The network producers felt that the enormity of the crisis took much precedence over the necessity of income. Plus, seeing "Do the Dew" commercials followed by footage of planes crashing into buildings would surely be in bad taste.

And I must praise the news anchors such as Peter Jennings and Tom Brokaw who steadfastly informed Americans over marathon sessions of news-casting. The service that they provided for America should not be overlooked.

The entertainment industry is often blamed for many evils such as teaching our children sex and violence, over-glorifying athletics and patronizing shallow character. But I think that their actions and efforts over the last couple weeks have been honorable and truly exemplify the American spirit in our country’s hour of crisis.

John Wakefield is a senior in the School of Liberal Arts. He can be reached at Opinions@purdueexponent.org.

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