God, Radio, and the Movies

Abstract

IN AUGUST, 1948, Cosmopolitan magazine published "The Next Voice You Hear," a short story by George Sumner Albee, which, said the editor, "we believe, sincerely, will be the most discussed short story of the year." The story never received this predicted acclaim, but Dore Schary, production executive at MGM, saw in it a powerful spiritual idea which, considering the troubled conditions of the present-day world, should have a deep appeal for the general public. Schary himself wrote a screenplay treatment and then produced a movie of intense religious and spiritual power. The picture, also entitled The Next Voice You Hear, and first released in New York's Radio City Music Hall theater, is not one that "just entertains," not one that is forgotten immediately upon leaving the theater. Few who see the picture can remain unaffected by it. Some have been sharply annoyed by the treatment of God and religion, and in England the picture was temporarily banned. But there are tens of thousands who are acclaiming the film as one of the greatest achievements of Hollywood. Many in the audience have felt pangs of conscience and wept; others have been inspired to support their churches with a new vigor; still others, with a somewhat more objective outlook, have suggested that Hollywood has atoned for some of its sins. It behooves us, therefore, to analyze the picture, to indicate what it suggests about God, religion, and the American way of life, and to discuss why it should have been produced. The basic story is as follows: A Voice is heard over the radio one evening which says, "This is God. I will be with you the next few