27994 1945 POST-VE DAY, PRE-VJ DAY WORLD WAR II MOVIE "ON TO TOKYO"
Produced in 1945, "On to Tokyo" is a cautionary film made by the U.S. Army Pictorial Service. Featuring Chief of Staff George Marshall, the film speaks to the troops who won the war against Germany about the absolute necessity to defeat the Japanese. "They think we will grow tired of war," says Marshall, "and call it quits...our purpose is to crush Japan just as quickly as we can." To do this, Allied forces must be redeployed as soon as possible, and sent to Asia to defeat the remaining Japanese forces.<p><p>The film is fascinating in that it paints a portrait of the many scenarios that could have unfolded in the wake of the German collapse, all of them set against the assumption that for the war to come to an end, will involve a massive invasion of Japan. That of course would have occurred had the USA not dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.. As the film shows, a massive effort was in the works to shift those U.S. forces in Europe not needed as occupation forces, and re-direct them to Asia.<p><p>At 3:30, a series of questions that might have been asked by battle weary forces in Europe are directed at General Dwight Eisenhower, General Joseph Stilwell, General Somervell, and others. Apparently few of the troops would have been given furloughs on the way to fight the Japanese. <p><p>At 9:12, Secretary of War Stimson speaks about the logistics of moving troops across the Atlantic and the nature of the war economy. At 10:00, General Hap Arnold speaks about the idea of shipping troops home using aircraft.<p><p>The film ends with a surprising discussion of the reasons that the Japanese must be dealt with. This includes an admonition by Stimson and by General Marshall that, even in the wake of the triumph of V-E Day, the big picture has to be remembered and Japan defeated. "Japan must be completely crushed before we turn to the ways of peace...this must be the first priority..."<p><p>We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: "01:00:12:00 -- President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference."<p><p>This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com