Free The Army tour
Encyclopedia
The FTA Tour a play on the troop expression "Fuck The Army", which in turn was a play on the army slogan "Fun, Travel and Adventure") was an anti-Vietnam War road show designed as a response to Bob Hope
's USO
tour.
It was first organized in April 1970 by activist Fred Gardner, and actors Jane Fonda
and Donald Sutherland
.
The tour, referred to as "political vaudeville
" by Fonda, visited military towns along the West Coast
, with the goal of establishing a dialogue with soldiers about their upcoming deployments to Vietnam
. Barbara Garson
was also a contributor to the show.
The resulting dialogue was turned into a film called F.T.A.
, directed by Francine Parker
, and released into theaters in 1972. Footage and discussion of the FTA Tour is included in the 2005 documentary film Sir! No Sir!
.
Since then, the director of Sir! No Sir!, David Zeiger
, has been involved in resurrecting the original documentary film F.T.A.. It was shown publicly in Los Angeles in early 2009 at the American Cinematheque with a panel that included two of the original performers in the show. F.T.A. also had its broadcast premiere on the Sundance Channel on February 23, 2009. The DVD of F.T.A. is now sold on the Sir! No Sir! website.
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
's USO
United Service Organizations
The United Service Organizations Inc. is a private, nonprofit organization that provides morale and recreational services to members of the U.S. military, with programs in 160 centers worldwide. Since 1941, it has worked in partnership with the Department of Defense , and has provided support and...
tour.
It was first organized in April 1970 by activist Fred Gardner, and actors Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as Barbarella and Cat Ballou. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an...
and Donald Sutherland
Donald Sutherland
Donald McNichol Sutherland, OC is a Canadian actor with a film career spanning nearly 50 years. Some of Sutherland's more notable movie roles included offbeat warriors in such war movies as The Dirty Dozen, , MASH , and Kelly's Heroes , as well as in such popular films as Klute, Invasion of the...
.
The tour, referred to as "political vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
" by Fonda, visited military towns along the West Coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
, with the goal of establishing a dialogue with soldiers about their upcoming deployments to Vietnam
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. Barbara Garson
Barbara Garson
Barbara Garson is an American playwright, author and social activist.Garson is best known for the play MacBird, a notorious 1966 counterculture drama/political parody of Macbeth that sold over half a million copies as a book and had over 90 productions world wide...
was also a contributor to the show.
The resulting dialogue was turned into a film called F.T.A.
F.T.A.
F.T.A. is a 1972 American documentary film starring Jane Fonda and Donald Sutherland and directed by Francine Parker.-Overview:Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland and a collection of performers and musicians put together a touring satirical revue to perform at coffeehouses and parks near American army...
, directed by Francine Parker
Francine Parker
Francine Parker was an American television and film director, who was one of the first female members of the Directors Guild of America. Parker was best known for her controversial documentary, FTA, which chronicled the antiwar entertainers tour, Free The Army tour , during the Vietnam War...
, and released into theaters in 1972. Footage and discussion of the FTA Tour is included in the 2005 documentary film Sir! No Sir!
Sir! No Sir!
Sir! No Sir! is a 2005 Displaced Films and BBC documentary film about the anti-war movement within the ranks of the United States Military during the Vietnam War....
.
Since then, the director of Sir! No Sir!, David Zeiger
David Zeiger
David Zeiger is an American film director and producer.Zeiger is best known for directing the documentary Sir! No Sir! and the PBS documentary series Senior Year, Displaced in the New South, which inspired The Indigo Girls song Shame on You, and The Band.-External links:...
, has been involved in resurrecting the original documentary film F.T.A.. It was shown publicly in Los Angeles in early 2009 at the American Cinematheque with a panel that included two of the original performers in the show. F.T.A. also had its broadcast premiere on the Sundance Channel on February 23, 2009. The DVD of F.T.A. is now sold on the Sir! No Sir! website.