Adaptations
The book was quickly made into a famed Hollywood movie of the same name directed by John Ford and starring Henry Fonda as Tom Joad. The first part of the film version follows the book fairly accurately. However, the second half and the ending in particular are significantly different from the book.
The Steppenwolf Theatre Company produced a stage version of the book, adapted by Frank Galati. Gary Sinise played Tom Joad for its entire run of 188 performances on Broadway in 1990. One of these performances was shown on PBS the following year.
It was revealed in the 2009 documentary American: The Bill Hicks Story that The Grapes of Wrath was the favorite novel of the comedian Bill Hicks, who was such a fan that he based his famous last words on Tom Joad's final speech: "I left in love, in laughter, and in truth, and wherever truth, love and laughter abide, I am there in spirit."
An opera based on the novel was co-produced by the Minnesota Opera and Utah Symphony and Opera, with music by Ricky Ian Gordon and libretto by Michael Korie. The world premiere performance of the opera was given in February 2007, to favorable local reviews.
American rock singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen named his eleventh studio album The Ghost of Tom Joad, after the character. The first track on the album is also called The Ghost of Tom Joad. The song – and to a lesser extent, the other songs on the album – draws comparisons between the Dust Bowl and modern times. The song was later covered by American metal band Rage Against the Machine.
Woody Guthrie's song The Ballad Of Tom Joad focuses mainly on the main character's life since he was paroled from "the old McAlester Pen" and follows the book quite closely.
On April 16, 2008, the television series South Park aired an episode entitled "Over Logging"." Written and directed by Trey Parker, this episode parodies Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath", as the Marsh family heads to California to find more internet.
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