This 48-minute cautionary documentary was the brainchild of Theodore S. Geisel, better known to generations of children as Dr. Seuss. An expert on Oriental history, Geisel and his wife Helen hoped to steer audiences clear of war by underlining the unheeded warning signs of WWII. Utilizing captured Japanese newsreel footage, the film theorizes that future wars can be averted by keeping power-hungry, nationalistic "racketeers" in check. In addition to Geisel himself, the film was narrated by Kent Smith, representing the Typical American, and by Hans Conried, as the personification of Japanese Militarism. Design for Death won an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Following the war, Peter Rathvon at RKO, who had seen Our Job in Japan during his own military service, decided to produce a commercial version of the film.[2] He hired the original writer and editor to work on the new project. Theodor S. Geisel, who is better known by his pen name Dr. Seuss, co-authored Design for Death with his wife Helen Palmer Geisel. Elmo Williams was the editor for both films. Subsequently, Sid Rogell replaced Rathvon, and became the film's producer.
The film was given wide release in January 1948; a review in Daily Variety characterized it as, "a documentary of fabulous proportions ... one of the most interesting screen presentations of the year".[3]Bosley Crowther, writing in The New York Times, was not complimentary; he wrote that the film "makes the general point that too much control by a few people is a dangerous — a "racketeering" — thing and that another world war can be prevented only by the development of responsible, representative governments throughout the world. That is a valid message, but the weakness with which it is put forth in a melange of faked and factual pictures and in a ponderous narration does not render it very forceful."[4]
In his memoir, Elmo Williams maintains that he and Geisel created Design for Death nearly in its entirety, and that the credits for Fleischer and Warth were nominal ones.[2] Rogell, Fleischer, and Warth received the Academy Awards for the film.
Copies of Design for Death are apparently rare. Geisel thought that they had all been destroyed.[3] However, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences sponsored a screening in October, 2005,[5] and parts of the film were included in the documentary The Political Dr. Seuss.[6] Some materials related to Design for Death, including its script, are in an archive of Geisel's papers.[7] Perhaps because screenings have been infrequent, there has been relatively little critical discussion of Design for Death; Our Job in Japan, which is in the public domain, has been better studied.
^ abMorgan, Judith; Morgan, Neil (1995). Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel. Random House. pp. 119-120. ISBN0679416862.. Secondary reference; primary reference hasn't yet been confirmed.
