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THREE WIN ON FINAL SUNDAY!Susie Reed, our first place, Sunday winner and resident of Princeton, West Virginia wins the official, autographed poster from Paramount. Congratulations, Susie! Our second place, Sunday winners are Ann Conley of Albia, Iowa, and Casey Barto, of Lisbon, Ohio. They both win Don Mullan's book 'Eyewitness Bloody Sunday: The Truth.' Congratulations, Ann! This week's Wednesday winner is John Cremins. John is our final Wednesday winner. Congratulations, John! This drawing brings to a close our eight-week Bloody Sunday promotion, which drew dozens of entrants and has resulted in the presentation of more than two dozen prizes. We would like to thank one and all for their participation and support of the film. WGT would like to make special mention of those who, through the luck of the draw, didn't win a prize. Please keep on reading! |
Our Special Thanks
WGT would like to offer a small consolation to those who didn't win anything. You were part of an enterprise whose express purpose was to promote an important film, produced to tell the unvarnished truth about the murder of 14 innocent civilians in Derry City by the British army on January 30, 1972. We are the voices of Bernard McGuigan, 
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| WGT Photo Don Mullan and WGT's Tom Madigan at the United Nations. |
There is still time to bring out the Irish here in America to support and view the film, Don suggested. He compared the performance of "Bloody Sunday" to the 1995 Neil Jordan film "Michael Collins," starring Liam Neeson, pointing out that the disappointing box office turnout for both “Michael Collins” and "Bloody Sunday" doesn't bode well for the Irish film industry, its relationship with Hollywood, and the ability to get Irish films to a broad market.
Don didn't assign full blame to Irish-America for the lukewarm reception of "Bloody Sunday" here. Even though it has been running in France for half the time as it has been in the United States, "Bloody Sunday" has grossed more than $1 million there, compared to the paltry $700,000, to date, here, he said.
He spoke forcefully about the anger of the families in Derry. They had expected much more support here in the United States. They had not wavered in their commitment to the truth that their loved ones were brutally murdered in cold blood, unarmed, as they marched the streets of Derry’s Bogside toward Guildhall, the local seat of political power. In a strange twist of irony, the marchers have finally made it, in spirit, if not in body, as this is where the current Saville Inquiry is being held. The inquiry, convened in 1998 by British Prime Minister Tony Blair, seeks to render a full and open accounting into the events of January 30, 1972.
Don spoke of a certain, natural 'disconnect' with a person's ancestral homeland, in this case Ireland, and described how this could explain the flat support by the Irish American community here. Although there are many Americans who claim Irish identity, who wear 'green' and eat corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's Day, he said there seems to be only a core handful of dedicated Irish here who support the cause back home and who would turn out in support of the film.
We can vastly increase that number and so the task is before us, Don suggested. We need to "get out the vote" so to speak, by contacting our local theaters, Irish groups, taverns, restaurants, churches, perhaps the local chapter of the Ancient Order of Hibernians and other fraternal and Irish social groups. There may be many hidden forces conspiring to limit the film's reach, and Don recognized that. Just the same, there is much we could do.
NOTE: We will publish Don's comments in a fuller article in late January, to help commemorate the 31st anniversary of the "Bloody Sunday" massacre.
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