Never the Twain Shall Mate

Diamond Head. Don't go away. They got race trouble in Hawaii too. But there, of course, the law is enlightened, and the position of the colored man is quite different. When he gets involved with a white woman, he is not condemned to death by a hostile society. Oh no. He is destroyed by God.

It does seem hard to believe, but that's what happens in this picture. Based on a bestselling novel by Peter Gilman, it tells about a Hawaiian boy (James Darren) and a Chinese cutie (France Nuyen) who get biologically involved with a couple of rich haoles (white folks) named Howland and live (but not very long) to regret it.

Darren finds it easy to possess the body of Sloan Rowland (Yvette Mimieux), the kid sister of "King" Howland (Charlton Heston), a fellow who owns the best part of Kauai--and that ain't Welfare Island. But winning her hand is quite another matter. Big Brother draws the color line, and when Darren tries to cross it, he just happens to fall on a knife that Heston just happens to be holding.

No kidding, it really is an accident, and the same can be said of what happens to Nuyen. She is the King's concubine, and he loves her soft yellow skin. He just doesn't want it on any child of his. When she gets pregnant, he orders her to abort. When she refuses, he moves out. When she gives birth to the baby, she dies. It's as simple as that, and no court costs.

Actually, of course, the picture means to deplore race prejudice, but the spectator is nevertheless left with a strong suspicion that the islands are ideal for only one color: Eastman Color.

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