{"id":488965,"date":"2022-08-26T15:00:35","date_gmt":"2022-08-26T12:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/"},"modified":"2022-08-26T15:00:35","modified_gmt":"2022-08-26T12:00:35","slug":"the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/","title":{"rendered":"#The Real Story Behind Good Morning, Vietnam"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3dd200defd4\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3dd200defd4\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/#%E2%80%9CThe_Real_Story_Behind_Good_Morning_Vietnam%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;The Real Story Behind Good Morning, Vietnam&#8221;<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/#A_Signature_Opening\" >A Signature Opening<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/#Off_to_Vietnam\" >Off to Vietnam<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/#A_radical\" >A radical?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/#Making_the_Film\" >Making the Film<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/#Later_Years\" >Later Years<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CThe_Real_Story_Behind_Good_Morning_Vietnam%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;The Real Story Behind Good Morning, Vietnam&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<pre><code>     &lt;span class=\"mx-1\"&gt;A real disc jockey inspired Robin Williams\u2019 classic character. &lt;\/span&gt;\n&lt;\/p&gt;&lt;div id=\"\"&gt;\n\n\n\n                &lt;figure class=\"sf-entry-featured-<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a> \"&gt;\n            &lt;img width=\"800\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/good-morning-vietnam-real-story.jpg\" class=\"articlethumb wp-post-image\" alt=\"Good Morning Vietnam Real Story\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/good-morning-vietnam-real-story.jpg 800w, https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/good-morning-vietnam-real-story-768x480.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\"\/&gt;                                    &lt;p&gt;\n                    &lt;span class=\"sf-entry-flag sf-entry-flag-creditline\"&gt;Buena Vista Pictures&lt;\/span&gt;\n\n                        &lt;\/figure&gt;\n\n    &lt;!-- START BYLINE --&gt;\n    &lt;div class=\"row align-items-center justify-content-center my-4 text-center medium dark-gray\"&gt;\n        By\u00a0Will DiGravio\u00a0\u00b7 Published on August 26th, 2022 \n        &lt;\/div&gt;\n    &lt;!-- END BYLINE --&gt;\n\n    &lt;em&gt;Real Stories is an ongoing column about the true stories behind <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">movies<\/a> and TV shows. It\u2019s that simple. This installment focuses on the real story behind Barry Levinson\u2019s 1987 film Good Morning, Vietnam.&lt;\/em&gt;\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<hr\/>\n<p>It is somewhat difficult to believe that <strong><em>Good Morning, Vietnam<\/em><\/strong>, the 1987 Vietnam War comedy directed by\u00a0<strong>Barry Levinson<\/strong>, takes its inspiration from a real disc jockey. After all, the part of <strong>Adrian Cronauer<\/strong> feels like the kind of role written for \u2014 and could only be played by \u2014\u00a0<strong>Robin Williams<\/strong>. But, there was, in fact, a real Cronauer, and he wrote the story that formed the basis of the film and <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">script<\/a>, written by <strong>Mitch Markowitz<\/strong>. Here is the real story.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"A_Signature_Opening\"><\/span>A Signature Opening<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Adrian Cronauer was born in 1935 to a steelworker and a teacher in Pittsburg. He was born to be a broadcaster. At age 12, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-us-canada-44897634\">according to the BBC<\/a>, he landed a \u201csemi-regular\u201d spot on the local children\u2019s television show. As a college student in the 1950s, he helped found a student radio station and worked with local and professional broadcasters in Pennsylvania and then Washington.<\/p>\n<p>He later enlisted in the United States Air Force. Cronauer trained in Texas and then received his first deployment to the island of Crete in Greece. While stationed at the Iraklion Air Station there, he developed what would become his signature opening. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mercurynews.com\/2018\/07\/20\/adrian-cronauer-dj-who-inspired-good-morning-vietnam-dies-at-79\/\">According to <em>The <\/em><em>Mercury News<\/em>:<\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cIt started out to be a calm, matter-of-fact, \u2018Good morning, Iraklion,\u2019 \u201d he told the Fayetteville (North Carolina) Observer in 2011. \u201cBut as the program developed, it got wilder and wilder: \u2018Goooooood morning, Iraklion!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Off_to_Vietnam\"><\/span>Off to Vietnam<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In 1965, Cronauer volunteered to go to Vietnam, citing his desire to <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/trip-and-travel\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"10\" title=\"Trip &amp; Travel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">travel<\/a>. The year marked the midpoint of the war, which lasted from 1955 to 1975. He first arrived as the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a> director of Armed Forces Radio. But on the first day, according to the BBC:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>After his morning presenter left, he took up the 06:00 Dawn Buster show mantle, greeting troops with an enthusiastic yell of: \u201cGOOOOOOOOD morning, Vietnam!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>He initially wondered whether such a greeting would be well received in Vietnam, where soldiers faced a far different situation than those in Greece. He later told CNN (via the\u00a0<em>New York Times<\/em>):<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cDo I want to do that?\u201d he said in reference to using the opening line. \u201cI said, \u2018Yeah, I do, because if there\u2019s a certain amount of irony there, and if they pick up on that, they\u2019ll know what I\u2019m really saying.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"A_radical\"><\/span>A radical?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In the film, the character played by Williams constantly battles with top brass over what and how he broadcasts on air. He takes risks, speaks the truth, and does not shy away from poking fun at important figures, including soon-to-be U.S. President Richard Nixon. In one of the film\u2019s most famous scenes, Williams\u2019 character reports that a bomb went off despite direct orders not to broadcast the information.<\/p>\n<p>Cronauer, by contrast, did not take such risks on the air. \u201dWilliams is the disc jockey I would have liked to be,\u201d Cronauer <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/news\/ct-xpm-1988-01-19-8803230431-story.html\">told<\/a> the <em>Chicago Tribune <\/em>at the time of the film\u2019s release. His\u00a0<em>Time\u00a0<\/em>obituary notes that Cronauer, who later became a lawyer and worked for Republicans, \u201cadmitted to some unease when he first saw the screen portrayal. But he got over it.\u201d In an interview with\u00a0<em>Rolling Stone<\/em> (via the BBC), Williams noted:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>In real life he never did anything outrageous. He did witness a bombing in Saigon. He wanted to report it \u2013 he was overruled. He didn\u2019t want to buck the system, because you can get court-martialled for that.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Like Williams\u2019 character, Cronauer also taught English while serving in Vietnam. But unlike Williams\u2019s character, who became a celebrity, Cronauer never reached a similar star status amongst the troops. But that does not mean he did not leave an impact. He played popular music, Rock &amp; Roll, and other tunes that gave a slice of home to the troops. Cronauer told the <em>Tribune<\/em>:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The crowning achievement for me was when I heard from some guys that when they tuned into \u2018Dawn Buster\u2019 for the first time, they assumed they had picked up some radio station from the States.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Making_the_Film\"><\/span>Making the Film<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In interviews, Cronauer always insisted that the film was meant to be entertainment, not a biography. According to the <em>Times,\u00a0<\/em>Cronauer saw the potential for a film or TV show loosely based on his life following the success of programs like <em>M*A*S*H<\/em>. He wrote a treatment and tried to pitch it as a television show. When that failed, he tried for a TV movie. But the script eventually made its way into Williams\u2019 hands, who immediately saw how the character and film could pair well with his existing work and persona. They got to work.<\/p>\n<p>While the character is very different from Cronauer, his commitment to finding ways to communicate to the soldiers on their own terms, and in their own vernacular, was genuine. Williams told <em>Rolling Stone\u00a0<\/em>(via the <em>Times<\/em>):<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>He says he learned whenever soldiers in the field heard his sign-on line, they\u2019d shout back at their radios.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Later_Years\"><\/span>Later Years<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Cronauer was able to put himself through law school with proceeds of the film. And, as previously mentioned, he worked for Republican political causes. In 1992, he recorded an ad for President George H.W. Bush, in which then-Governor Bill Clinton was labeled a draft dodger. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.stripes.com\/news\/good-morning-vietnam-dj-and-air-force-veteran-adrian-cronauer-dies-at-79-1.538398\">According to\u00a0<\/a><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.stripes.com\/news\/good-morning-vietnam-dj-and-air-force-veteran-adrian-cronauer-dies-at-79-1.538398\"><em>Stars and Stripes<\/em>,<\/a> Cronauer accuses Clinton of lying in the ad.<\/p>\n<p>In his later years, he continued to serve. Cronauer advised the Pentagon as part of the office dedicated to prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action. He received the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service. And after the release of the movie, he became a bit of a celebrity in his own right. Once, the BBC reports, Bette Midler asked him for his autograph. He died in 2016 at the age of 79.<\/p>\n<pre><code>    Related Topics: Real Stories\n    &lt;!-- AUTHOR BOX --&gt;\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<div class=\"gray-bg p-4 border small mb-5\">\n<div class=\"row align-items-center text-md-center\">\n<div class=\"col-md-2\">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/will.jpg\" class=\"circle img-fluid\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\"\/>\n        <\/div>\n<div class=\"col-md\">\n            Will DiGravio is a Brooklyn-based critic, researcher, and video essayist, who has been a contributor at Film School Rejects since 2018. Follow and\/or unfollow him on Twitter <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/willdigravio\">@willdigravio<\/a>.        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<pre><code>    &lt;!-- START RECOMMENDED READING 1 --&gt;\n                                &lt;section class=\"recommended py-5\"&gt;\n            &lt;h3&gt;Recommended Reading&lt;\/h3&gt;\n\n\n        &lt;\/section&gt;\n            &lt;!-- END RECOMMENDED READING --&gt;\n\n\n\n\n&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"&gt;&lt;\/script&gt;\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Social Media category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\/#utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=real-story-behind-good-morning-vietnam\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;The Real Story Behind Good Morning, Vietnam&#8221; &lt;span class=&#8221;mx-1&#8243;&gt;A real disc jockey inspired Robin Williams\u2019 classic character. &lt;\/span&gt; &lt;\/p&gt;&lt;div id=&#8221;&#8221;&gt; &lt;figure class=&#8221;sf-entry-featured-media &#8220;&gt; &lt;img width=&#8221;800&#8243; height=&#8221;500&#8243; src=&#8221;https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/good-morning-vietnam-real-story.jpg&#8221; class=&#8221;articlethumb wp-post-image&#8221; alt=&#8221;Good Morning Vietnam Real Story&#8221; srcset=&#8221;https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/good-morning-vietnam-real-story.jpg 800w, https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/good-morning-vietnam-real-story-768&#215;480.jpg 768w&#8221; sizes=&#8221;(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px&#8221;\/&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;span class=&#8221;sf-entry-flag sf-entry-flag-creditline&#8221;&gt;Buena Vista Pictures&lt;\/span&gt; &lt;\/figure&gt; &lt;!&#8211; START BYLINE &#8211;&gt; &lt;div class=&#8221;row&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":488966,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/good-morning-vietnam-real-story.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-488965","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-mediaa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/488965","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=488965"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/488965\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/488966"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=488965"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=488965"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=488965"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}