RISE TO POWER AND VICE VERSA

A Reflection Paper on Citizen Kane

Jan Crezul C. Balodong 2010-36661 University of the Philippines-Diliman

I don't think there's one word that can describe a man's life - one of the searchers through the warehouse of treasures left behind by Charles Foster Kane

Citizen Kane was about a life of a young man turned billionaire. He was like, maybe, the Bill Gates of his time. He was positioned there not because he wanted to, or maybe he really wants to be there, but he was there primarily because of the choice he had no power to make, a choice her mother made. Like all human beings, we all long for greatness. He finds greatness as a newspaper publisher, establishing empires of newspaper publishing enterprises. Then, he tries politics after getting married to the nephew of the president. However, despite of all the things he achieved in life, he still longs for something that can fill the void in his heart, he tried to search for love beyond marriage. Again, he failed and before he just died, he realized what he was really searching in his heart, his childhood, the only time where everything is simple yet he is genuinely happy. It was a clash of the titans. William Randolph Hearst, the lord and ruler of San Simeon. And Orson Welles, the ambitious young man with a golden touch, who set out to dethrone him. It was a fight from which neither man ever fully recovered (pbs.org). Citizen Kane was a brutal portrayal of a newspaper industrialist named William Randolph Hearst. Orson Welles on he other hand was a young boy-genius who took aim at the old man Hearst and started to make a movie, a motion picture out of the old man's life (A table of comparison between Foster and Hearst made by Tim Dirks is shown at the Appendix). Hearst being a newspaper magnate used his power to prevent Citizen Kane from being viewed by the public. He used his newspapers and other edia outlets to pressure theatres to boycot the film and also threatened libel lawsuites. Indeed, Welles proved no match for the old man. Hearst threatened to expose long-buried Hollywood scandals his newspapers had suppressed at the request of the studios. His papers used Welles' private life against him, making blunt references to communism and questioning Welles' willingness to fight for his country. Major theater chains refused to carry Citizen Kane. Hearst's campaign to discredit Welles was ruthless, skillful, and much aided by Welles himself, who had never bothered to hide his contempt for Hollywood (pbs.org). Welle's and his film were mentioned at the 1942 Academy Awards but hey were not appreciated by the public. The film was only then resurfaced

at the end of the World War II where it gained popularity and much appreciation. The film started with the main character dying, Before Kane dies, he mentioned the word rosebud. Rosebud is the emblem of the security, hope and innocence of childhood, which a man can spend his life seeking to regain. It is the green light at the end of Gatsby's pier; the leopard atop Kilimanjaro, seeking nobody knows what. It is that yearning after transience that adults learn to suppress. Maybe Rosebud was something he couldn't get, or something he lost, says Thompson, the reporter assigned to the puzzle of Kane's dying word. Anyway, it wouldn't have explained anything. True, it explains nothing, but it is remarkably satisfactory as a demonstration that nothing can be explained (Ebert, R., 1998). Rosebud was for him, something he is longing for or maybe at least something he recognized what he was longing for before he breathed his last, something that should have been filled the void in his heart. We all have have specific-shaped void in our hearts and we do everything we can to fill that void but only few have found what that shape is. The greatest tragedy a man could ever get is when he died never really experienceing life itself. The film also showed how powerful media can be in destroying one's career. Well, technically you choose your own destiny but there will be times when you have done something unethical in the view of major public and the media will now overtake that destiny of yours. Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., remembers his father asking Hearst why he preferred concentrating on newspapers, with their limited, regional appeal, rather than spending more energy on motion pictures and their worldwide audience. Fairbanks recalls Hearst's reply: "I thought of it, but I decided against it. Because you can crush a man with journalism, and you can't with motion pictures." (pbs.org) Well, the Philippine journalism is flourishing in the aspect destruction of everyone's name. You may be the President of the Philippines or just a local vendor in the town. You see, most of jounalists (of tabloids) are just gossipers on the national level, an upgraded version of tsismosos and tsismosas. They do not really convey important news but trivial ideas and hearsays. Just like Hearst, the Philippine journalism has the power and maybe is using it to destroy uprising stars. A life full of wealth and power is a life full of complication if not used with wisdom and knowledge. You are the master of your own destiny, your future depends on what you will do today --one thing always leads to another.

References: 1. "Citizen Kane (1941)." Greatest Films - The Best Movies in Cinematic History. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 July 2013. <http://www.filmsite.org/citi.html>. 2. Editors, The. "Citizen Kane Movie Review & Film Summary (1941) | Roger Ebert." Movie Reviews and Ratings by Film Critic Roger Ebert | Roger Ebert. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 July 2013. <http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-citizen-kane-1941>. 3. "SparkNotes: Citizen Kane: Context." SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular Study Guides. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 July 2013. <http://www.sparknotes.com/film/citizenk

Appendix:
Similarities (and Some Differences) Between Kane and Hearst Kane Charles Foster Kane Hearst William Randolph Hearst Similarities with Jules Brulatour, millionaire head of distribution for Eastman Kodak and co-founder of Universal Pictures New York Inquirer Multi-millionaire newspaper publisher, and wielder of public opinion, called "Kubla Khan" San Francisco Examiner, New York Journal Same kind of press lord, "yellow journalist," and influential political figure

Political aspirant to Presidency by campaigning as Political aspirant to Presidency by becoming New York independent candidate for New York State's Governor, and State's Governor by marrying the President's niece, Emily Monroe Norton Extravagant, palatial Florida mansion, Xanadu filled with art objects Souring affair/marriage with talentless 'singer' Susan Alexander (the Hays Code wouldn't permit extra-marital affair) "The Ranch" palace at San Simeon, California, also with priceless art collection A beloved mistress - a young, and successful silent film actress Marion Davies

(Difference: No breakdown in Davies' unmarried (Difference: Susan Alexander suffers humiliating failure as relationship with Hearst) opera singer, attempts suicide, separates from Kane) Similarities between mistress/wife Ganna Walska of Chicago heir Harold Fowler McCormick who bought expensive voice lessons for her and promoted her for the lead role in the production of Zaza at the Chicago Opera in 1920 Kane bought Susan an opera house, and although Susan said that her ambition was to be a singer, this career goal was mostly her mother's idea Excessive patronage of Davies - Hearst bought Cosmopolitan Pictures - a film studio - to promote Davies' stardom as a serious actress, although she was better as a comedienne Similarities between Chicago Utilities tycoon Samuel Insull who built the Chicago Civic Opera House in 1929 for his daughter Character of Walter Parks Thatcher Character of Boss James 'Jim' W. Gettys Similarities with financier J.P. Morgan Similarities with Tammany Hall (NYC) Boss Charles F. Murphy

Table 1. Comparison between Charles Foster Kane and William Randolph Hearst (filmsite.org)