Tomorrow the World

Tomorrow the World (1943), a play by James Gow and Arnaud d'Usseau. [ Ethel Barrymore Theatre, 500 perf.] Emil Bruchner (Skippy Homeier), whose liberal father was killed by the Fascists, is a young boy who was raised and thoroughly indoctrinated into the Nazi philosophy. He is brought to America by his uncle, Michael Frame (Ralph Bellamy), a university professor. Emil spews hatred, tries naively to spy for the Germans, and in a particularly vicious moment slashes an old family portrait. But Frame, his sister Jessie (Dorothy Sands), and, most of all, a compassionate schoolteacher, Leona Richards (Shirley Booth), eventually make him see the error of his ways. This was one of the war's more literate propaganda pieces. James Gow (1907–52), who was born in Creston, Iowa, and Arnaud d'Usseau (1916–90), who was born in Los Angeles, were primarily film writers. Their only other stage success was Deep Are the Roots (1945).