{"id":11748,"date":"2017-04-19T12:54:46","date_gmt":"2017-04-19T12:54:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ancnews.info\/?p=11748"},"modified":"2017-04-19T12:54:46","modified_gmt":"2017-04-19T12:54:46","slug":"the-promise-fulfills-vision-of-fresno-native-son-kirk-kerkorian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ancnews.info\/?p=11748","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The Promise\u2019 fulfills vision of Fresno native son Kirk Kerkorian"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Paul Jamushian<\/p>\n

(The Fresno Bee<\/a>) Fresno\u2019s native son turned billionaire Kirk Kerkorian<\/a> had a vision \u2013 to share the story of the Ottoman Turkish government\u2019s murder of over 2.5 million Armenians, Greeks and Assyrians from 1915-1923 in a sweeping epic film reminiscent of powerful period pieces like \u201cLawrence of Arabia\u201d and \u201cDr. Zhivago.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than anything, he wanted to take audiences on an inspiring journey of love, honor and survival, all the while shedding light on the suffering of his Armenian forebears.<\/p>\n

Nearly two years after his passing, Kerkorian\u2019s dream will become a reality Friday with \u201cThe Promise<\/a>,\u201d which opens in 2,100 theaters across the United States, including several here in the Valley. It is directed by Oscar winner Terry George<\/a> and stars Christian Bale<\/a>, Oscar Isaac<\/a> and Charlotte Le Bon<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But even with Kerkorian\u2019s vast financial resources<\/a>, it was not an easy road to the presentation of this movie.<\/p>\n

American film-goers were first introduced to the horrors of the Armenian genocide as it was still happening through Aurora Mardiganian\u2019s survival story, \u201cRavished Armenia<\/a>.\u201d Also titled \u201cAuction of Souls<\/a>,\u201d it was shown in U.S. theaters as part of a nationwide campaign to send life-saving humanitarian assistance to hundreds of thousands of desperate survivors of this tragedy.<\/p>\n

The congressionally mandated Near East Relief effort raised the equivalent of $2 billion from 1916 through 1930 in what would become the United States\u2019 first international humanitarian effort.<\/p>\n

In 1934, MGM sought to bring to the big screen Franz Werfel\u2019s critically acclaimed novel, \u201cThe 40 Days of Musa Dagh<\/a>.\u201d His work depicted the true story of the heroic defense of a small community of Armenians against an Ottoman Turkish onslaught.<\/p>\n

Werfel\u2019s story was particularly timely; it foreshadowed the Holocaust during Hitler\u2019s rise to power and would later serve as source of hope and inspiration during the Warsaw ghetto uprising in 1943.<\/p>\n

But a resurgent Turkey under Kemal Ataturk<\/a> would ramp up an international campaign of political and economic intimidation, colluding with the U.S. State Department to quash the film, and with it, delaying closer international scrutiny of this crime. Other international attempts would be made to bring the Armenian genocide to the big screen \u2013 many of them quality efforts. But the specter of Turkey\u2019s denial machine dampened prospects for widespread distribution.<\/p>\n

In 2012, Kerkorian set the stage to overcome Turkey\u2019s blackmail tactics, founding Survival Pictures with the leadership of Eric Esrailian, a young physician, originally from Northern California and himself the great-grandchild of Armenian genocide survivors. Kerkorian would put up the $100 million budget for the film himself, with Esrailian bringing aboard director Terry George and a host of acclaimed actors to the production.<\/p>\n

Even so, Turkey\u2019s denial machine continued to churn. Within hours of the Toronto Film Festival debut of \u201cThe Promise\u201d in October 2016, where less than 1,000 select film-goers and critics took a first look at the film, more than 50,000 \u201c1 out of 10\u201d ratings were registered on the influential IMDB movie website for the film. This was part of an orchestrated campaign later identified as emanating from Turkey.<\/p>\n

In March 2017, less than a month before The Promise debut, a Turkish-funded film \u2013 \u201cThe Ottoman Lieutenant,\u201d starring Ben Kingsley and Josh Hartnett \u2013 hit some 200 theaters to mediocre reviews and widespread condemnation for its message of genocide denial.<\/p>\n