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In the 1961 film adaptation of West Side Story, several lyrics were changed to satisfy censorship codes and structural alterations.
Major Censorship Changes:
"America" Changes:
The lyrics in the 1961 film version of West Side Story were changed primarily in the song "America" to tone down what was considered at the time to be overly harsh criticism of the United States.
The original stage lyrics (from the 1957 Broadway production) painted a much bleaker picture of the immigrant experience and had a sharper edge of despair.
The key changes were made to the lines sung by Rosalia (who usually represents the positive view of America) and Anita (who usually represents the critical view).
| Character | Original 1957 Stage Lyric | 1961 Film Lyric Change | Specific Detail of Censorship/Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anita | "Skyscrapers bloom in America!" | "Skyscrapers bloom in America." | The exchange was altered to make the initial criticism of America less explicit and more conversational, but the critical substance remained largely in Anita's subsequent lines. |
| Rosalia | "I like to be in America! / OK by me in America! / Everything free in America!" | "I like to be in America. / Everything free in America." | The change here is minor but streamlines the praise. More importantly, the following critical lines were heavily altered. |
| Anita (responding to "Everything free...") | "For a small fee in America!" | "For a small fee in America!" | This line was generally kept as it is a central rebuttal. |
| Rosalia (The most significant change) | "Immigrant goes to America, / Many hellos in America, / Good to be a Jew in America!" | "Buying on credit is smart. / Tra-la-la-la-la-la-la / In America." | This is the major censorship change. The stage lyric's specific mention of religious freedom ("Good to be a Jew in America!") was removed and replaced with a non-specific, upbeat line about consumerism ("Buying on credit is smart"). It is theorized this was done to avoid mentioning specific minority groups in a context that was otherwise focused on Puerto Rican immigration, or simply to keep the tone lighter and more commercial. |
| Anita (In response to Rosalia's despair) | "Puerto Rico, / You lovely island, / Island of tropical breezes. / Always the hurricanes blowing, / Always the population growing..." | The film removed Rosalia's despairing section, and the film's version of "America" keeps Anita much more dominant in her criticism, though often with less specific, sharp language about poverty than the stage version. The main structural change was removing the specific focus on religious freedom/hellos/immigrant woes, and instead focusing the song entirely on the rivalry between Rosalia's generic praise and Anita's specific, though less sharp, complaints about jobs and rent. |
Summary: The key specific change that fits the definition of censorship/toning down was the replacement of the lyric about religious tolerance and community ("Good to be a Jew in America!") with a fluffy line about consumerism ("Buying on credit is smart").
The summary missed the famous censorship change in 'The Jet Song' where 'Womb to tomb, sperm to worm' was changed to 'Womb to tomb, birth to earth'.
The summary missed changes in 'Gee, Officer Krupke', such as the removal of 'My father is a bastard, my ma's an S.O.B.'.
The summary failed to mention that 'America' was changed from a female duet to a male/female ensemble argument, which is the primary reason for the lyric rewrites.