RYAN HAGEN
News Assistant
For many, World War II conjures the sounds of screaming bullets, barked orders and bursting bombs. Guy DeFazio would like to add jazz to that list.
“That music was a symbol of American freedom, innovation and hope in war-torn countries,” said DeFazio, president and founder of the Center for Jazz Arts, centered in Beverly Hills.
Many of the World War II veterans the Center for Jazz Arts interviewed for its American Stories project said jazz was their only connection to home.
DeFazio said he hopes to raise appreciation of this fact, and money to expand the project, at a screening of the World War I film “Flyboys” in Smothers Theatre. It will begin Sunday at 4 p.m.
The film is set in 1916, several years before the official beginning of the Jazz Age or the memories of most of the 13 veterans included in the American Stories project. DeFazio identified several connections between the eras, however.
“World War I was planting the seeds of jazz,” he said. He said the connection was clear to Director Tony Bill, who offered ato speak after the film because he wanted to support the project.
Before “Flyboys” is shown, a 12-minute clip will feature excerpts of veterans and their jazz-themed stories.
The veterans, who now all live locally, range from D-Day participants to soldiers who fought in North Africa and the South Pacific. Some stayed on bases in the United States, and one spent the war as a prisoner in an internment camp for Japanese-Americans.
“Bruce Kaji was put in Manzanar Internment Camp, and he put together a jazz band to lift the spirits of himself and others,” DeFazio said. “Soldiers formed bands to lift their spirits in Europe, in the South Pacific, in all these countries ravished by war. [Jazz] has an incredible history and legacy.”
The goal is to show that legacy, DeFazio said, and use it to educate people in American roles and values in the 1940s and today.
“The heart of this project is to educate people about the unifying and positive force of American culture,” he said. “You can’t turn on the television today without seeing a flag burning or a foreign leader commenting negatively on America.”
Local American Legion posts, which worked closely with the Center for Jazz Arts in this project, said they appreciated that goal.
“When Guy DeFazio spoke to our group, we really liked what he was doing,” said Louis Cozolino, commander of the Pacific Palisades post and father of the Pepperdine psychology professor of the same name. “It should be pretty interesting. A lot of members bought tickets already.”
DeFazio said he plans to eventually expand the project to include interviews from hundreds of veterans from across the United States, but is glad he started locally.
“These first interviews have really provided leadership on what will be a major, multi-year project,” he said. “Right now, we’re just coming out from under the radar.”
Taping began Dec. 26th, after eight months of planning. Before that, the Center for Jazz Arts, founded in January of 2004, focused primarily on providing information online and advocating for other countries to adopt jazz heritage ceremonies (like Jazz Appreciation month, April, in the United States).
DeFazio said the center, staffed entirely by around 30 volunteers, intends to continue its advocacy while including video clips from a growing number of interviews on its Web site.
The feelings jazz evoked in World War II are still relevant, he said. “The emotional connection that these veterans had is exactly the same that the military today has, the same kind of human connection to something that reminds you of home.”
Tickets are $15 for students, $25 for veterans or seniors, and $50 for others.
02-08-2007
