Actors - Born on the Fourth of July

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	Actors - Born on the Fourth of July

Born on the Fourth of July (ISBN 1888451785) is the semi-autobiography of Ron Kovic, a paralyzed Vietnam War veteran who became an anti-war activist. Taking its title from the chorus of George M. Cohan's famous song, "The Yankee Doodle Boy," the book was adapted into a 1989 film by Oliver Stone and Ron Kovic, starring Tom Cruise and Willem Dafoe.

Origin

According to Kovic, Born on the Fourth of July was written in Santa Monica, California during the fall of 1974 over a period of one month, three weeks and two days. It tells the story of Kovic's life from growing up in Massapequa, New York to signing up for the Marines and going to Vietnam, before being wounded and left in a wheelchair, and eventually starting a new life as an anti-war activist.

:"I wrote all night long, seven days a week, single space, no paragraphs, front and back of the pages, pounding the keys so hard the tips of my fingers would hurt. I couldn't stop writing, and I remember feeling more alive than I had ever felt. Convinced that I was destined to die young, I struggled to leave something of meaning behind, to rise above the darkness and despair. I wanted people to understand. I wanted to share with them as nakedly and openly and intimately as possible what I had gone through, what I had endured. I wanted them to know what it really meant to be in a war -- to be shot and wounded, to be fighting for my life on the intensive care ward -- not the myth we had grown up believing. I wanted people to know about the hospitals and the enema room, about why I had become opposed to the war, why I had grown more and more committed to peace and nonviolence." — Ron Kovic, on writing his autobiography.

Tom Paxton also wrote a song based on the book.

Film adaptation

In 1989 a film adaptation of the book was released. Oliver Stone wrote the screenplay, produced and directed the film.

Cast

Tom Cruise
as Ron Kovic
Kyra Sedgwick
as Donna
Raymond J. Barry
as Mr. Kovic
Willem Dafoe
as Charlie
Frank Whaley
as Timmy
Minor actors:
*Stacey Moseley

Plot synopsis

The film opens when Ron Kovic is a young boy living in Massapequa, Long Island. He grows up in a patriotic and Catholic household, instilling within him a strong sense of pride in the USA and his religion. As a high school teenager he wrestles for his high school and is an exceptional student. When a Marine recruiting sergeant visits his school and gives Ron and his fellow Seniors an impassioned lecture about the Corps, Ron decides to enlist. He misses his own prom, mainly because he's unable to ask his love interest, Donna. He confronts her at the dance, kisses her, then says goodbye.

The film then jumps to Kovic's second tour in Vietnam. On patrol, his unit massacres a village of Vietnamese citizens, believing they are hiding rifles for the North Vietnamese Army (NVA). During the retreat, Kovic becomes disoriented and confused and accidently shoots one of the new arrivals to his platoon, a younger private named Wilson. Overwhelmed by his guilt, he appeals to his commanding officer who tells him to forget the incident. The meeting has an obviously negative effect on Ron who seems crushed at being brushed off by his CO.

The platoon goes out on another hazardous patrol. During a terrible firefight Kovic is critically wounded and trapped in a field for what seems like several hours. Paralyzed from the mid-chest down, he spends several months recovering at the Bronx Veterans Administration hospital. The living conditions in the hospital are horrific; rats crawl freely on the floors, the staff is generally apathetic to their patient's needs, doctors visit infrequently, drug use is rampant and equipment is too old to be useful. He desperately tries to walk again on crutches despite warnings from his doctors. He has a nasty fall that causes a compound fracture of his thighbone. The injury nearly robs him of his leg and he fights viciously with the doctors who want to amputate.

Ron returns home, permanently bound to a wheelchair, with his leg intact. At home he begins to alienate his family and friends, grumbling about students staging anti-war rallies across the country and burning the American flag. Though he tries to maintain his dignity as a Marine, Ron, gradually begins to become disillusioned (the fate of many Vietnam Era veterans), realizing that his government has forgotten his sacrifice and service.

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