Ture or Not?
Does anyone know if the story of Joe Bonham is true or not? There’s not enough information about it on the internet.
shareit's not a true story.
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MovieChat Forums > Johnny Got His Gun (1971) Discussion > Ture or Not?
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No, it isn't true. Trumbo just wanted to delve into what it would be like to be a vegetable that can still think [contradictory, ain't it?]
I'm sure there have been many soldiers put in Bonham's situation, both past and present, that the government won't reveal or even tell families about.
The history is inspired in the locked-in sindrome, that really exists. It was discovered by a nurse that take cares of a man that suposedly was in coma, but really that man has a spinal lesion that disconnects the brain from the rest of the body,preserving the conscience, the hearing, and the eyes movements. The man could speak in morse code with his eyes.
shareHe was based on not one, but TWO unfortunate victims of WW1. The first was a British Colonel who lost all four limbs, had severe brain damage to the point of "a persistive vegetative state" (this was before EEG machines, remember), and was clearly "dead" in terms of cognitive function - his autonomous functions somehow survived the shock / trauma, and carried on - for 14 more years!!!
The true irony of this poor chap's continued existence is the fact that the doctors deliberately kept him alive, solely for "research purposes!" They listed him as "missing in action, presumed dead" for the relatives' sake, then secreted him in a London medical facility. They never would have been found out, if it hadn't been to the Colonel's nephew. In 1929, he was running for Parliament, and thus was given a tour of London's medical facilities, as a way to tout the progress made over the last 2 decades since the Great War.
Remembering his "lost" Uncle, he asked to see the critical care facilities that had also sprang up as a result of the War. And they took him directly to see the "mascot" of the whole project - the Colonel himself!!! "Kept alive for more than a decade, now!"
I'll leave it to your own imaginations to figure out what happened next!! :o Needless to say, heads rolled, and the Colonel finally expired in 1934, but not before pioneering what we now know as the "quality of life" question.
The second WW1 vet who inspired author Dalton Trumbo was an American Private who virtually mirrored Joe's wounds (no arms, legs, or face/ears). He lingered from 9/1918, until 4/1921 - but he (like the Colonel) never showed any signs of consciousness - the crucial distinction between them and Joe Bonham. And it's debateable whether or not anybody so injured ever could.
Consider if Abraham Lincoln's assasination had played out with today's medical knowledge / facilities. The President likely could have been kept alive, but the damage done to his brain by the bullet would have left him literally senseless, as well as paralyzed - counsciousness is highly doubtful; again, quality of life?
Intresting,how did you come across this information?
shareMan, where did you find all this stuff?
Plz, post some websites!
Does anyone know if this movie is released on dvd? Would mean a lot to me!
METAL TO THE MASSES! METALLICA RULES!
It would appear that the dvd is not commercially available in the US. If you really want it that badly you can get it from the UK at www.play.com. Just make sure you got a multi region dvd player. Its also kicking around on the net on torrents at the moment too. Good luck, its a great movie. I just finished watching it myself.
"If i wanted all that cgi sh*t,i'd go home and stick my dick in a nintendo"
Quentin Tarantino
I realize I'm responding to a ten year old post here. But I still have to question the story about the alleged two WW1 victims. I got really curious at first and I've been trying to research any sort of information about these cases but haven't been able to find anything. And the more I analyze the tales, especially that of the British Colonel, it just sounds suspiciously strange.
It wouldn't be very likely for a Colonel to be engaged in actual combat, or even be near the front. He'd probably be spending his days in a war room miles from the front. I suppose it's not entirely impossible for a WW1 Colonel to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and end up being blown to pieces. But it's not very likely or plausible.
It's even more implausible that a high ranking officer such as a British Colonel would be dismissed as MIA, presumed dead. It's kind of like reporting to the White House that the President is MIA. It wouldn't fly. Especially in that era when officers had a much higher social status. Since I don't know the full story I can only speculate of course. Who knows, maybe Generals and Colonels went MIA occationally during WW1. It still sounds strange and very unlikely.
And, because of a Colonel's social status in the UK at the time I'm pretty sure the Army would have been forced to come up with a better story than MIA even if that was the case. A missing Colonel would have been a severe embarrasment. They better find a dead body and give the good Colonel a proper burial. For all purposes, he would officially be killed in action with a heroic story attached to him.
But let's assume the Colonel in fact did suffer the horrible fate of being blown to pieces, and that he was identified in the hospital. It would be extremely unlikely that they would be keep him as a secret experiment. Again, that's almost like secretely keeping the President in a hospital for research while telling the first lady that he went MIA. Well, not really, but you get the picture. The American Private who also lost his arms and legs actually sounds more plausible in that aspect. Either way, it just sounds highly unlikely that a hospital would keep a Colonel hidden for medical research.
The nephew accidently finding the Colonel sounds a bit too good to be true. But hey, stuff like that can actually happen. But why would the nephew agree to keep the poor Colonel alive for another five long years?! He was more or less dead anyway as far as I understand. Laws and ethics aside, given the scandal they must have found a way to quickly end his misery to smooth things out. Especially with a parliament candidate going bonkers on them.
Plus, this allegedly happened during the 1920s. I'm certainly not a doctor but I find it extremely implausible that medical science back then was capable of keeping a patient of that state alive for more than ten years. And I can't think of any research purpose of doing so either. They had no means of monitoring his brain activity. They already knew the basic functions of a human body. I'm not sure what they could have learned from keeping a comatose patient without any meaningful research equipment.
There are less details to the story of the American private who suffered the same fate. Maybe there were entirely different circumstances. Maybe the family asked the doctors to keep him alive for as long as possible. There are less spectacular details to question. But if that story came from the same source as the Colonel story I'm leaning towards not believing it.
I realize I'm responding to a ten year old post here.
Good points.... and a very interesting post!
Just a guy in Texas who loves movies. share
It's even more implausible that a high ranking officer such as a British Colonel would be dismissed as MIA, presumed dead. It's kind of like reporting to the White House that the President is MIA. It wouldn't fly. Especially in that era when officers had a much higher social status. Since I don't know the full story I can only speculate of course. Who knows, maybe Generals and Colonels went MIA occationally during WW1. It still sounds strange and very unlikely.
As a Student of 20th Century Warfare since the 1960's the above rang foul. A quick google search says Britain has 1252 Generals in WW 1, 78 were KIA or otherwise dead due to active service. 22 of those we're killed by small arms fire(front lines), 34 killed by shell or trench mortar(front line or just behind). 146 were taken prisoner. So I would imagine Colonels would have faired worse. World War 1was a whole new experience for everyone.
Thanks. share