Despite unofficial protests from the United States, the British plan to exhibit the motion-picture version of Charles Dickens’ “Oliver Twist” to German audiences in Berlin as well as in their zone of Germany, it was learned here today. The British-produced film, which was withdrawn from exhibition in the United States following charges that the characterization of the villain Fagin was strongly anti-Semitic, will have its German-language premier here tomorrow.
The picture has not yet been cleared for a showing in the United States zone. Col. Gordon Textor, chief of the Information Services Division of the military government, said today that the British had not officially submitted the picture to his staff for approval. He added that an American decision on the subject would not be made until the film was submitted.
It is highly unlikely that “Oliver Twist” will receive U.S. approval. Protests received from Jewish civic groups in the United States have made Gen. Lucius D. Clay, American military commander, reluctant to sanction its showing in the American zone or the American sector of Berlin. Members of Col. Textor ‘s staff have also vigorously protested the British insistence on showing the picture to Germans.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
