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Pearl Harbor

"Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a day which will live in infamy, the United States of America, was suddenly and deliberately attacked by Naval and Air Forces of the Empire of Japan," delivered by Franklin D. Roosevelt is regarded as one of the most important speeches given in US History to date. The speech was delivered to the State of the Union marking the United States' entrance into the Second World War against Japan and Germany.

The concept of the theatrical feature Pearl Harbor was to replicate the epic battle in 1941 for the 60th anniversary of the infamous event. The film was directed by Michael Bay and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, which stars Ben Affleck, Josh Hartnett, Kate Beckinsale, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Alec Baldwin. The film was released on May 25, 2001 and was shown at a premiere gala in Pearl Harbor, HI aboard the USS John C. Stennis.

Bay recalls during a behind the scenes interview, "I have no idea if we can do this movie. I don't want to do it unless we can do it right and create the world as real as possible." (2001) The producers and director wanted to create the most accurate account of this great travesty on American soil. They felt that this was an important event in history and that it should be recreated on the big screen so all of those who lived through it, and those who could learn from it would get a better appreciation of what happened that day. The Pentagon saw this film as a way to reflect credit to those who survived that day and to the over 1,100 sailors that perished in the waters of Pearl Harbor. The creators wanted this film to be one that would be remembered as one of the first military action films the encompassed the entire event and maintained it accuracy well.

The filmmakers knew that this was going to be a long and arduous process to create and maintain the full effect of actual events that occurred during the attack of Pearl Harbor. The creators recruited the help of over 70 Pearl Harbor survivors to...