where we're making a difference, we won't have to lock so many people up. >> sreenivasan: actor george takei is probably best known for his role as sulu on the original "star trek" tv series and movies. tomorrow night, at age 78, takei makes his debut on broadway in a musical he helped inspire. it's called "allegiance," and it's about the internment of japanese-americans during world war ii. for takei, this historic story is personal. the newshour's mori rothman has this preview. ♪ ♪ gotta get it, gotea get it >> reporter: george takei believes a musical is the perfect format to retell the history of the japanese-american internment during world war ii. >> music has the power to hit people right here in the heart, emotionally as well as intellectually. >> reporter: in early 1942, the u.s. ordered 110,000 japanese- americans living on the west coast to internment camps. five-year-old takei and his family were sent to camps in arkansas and utah for nearly four years. the musical, "allegiance," is loosely based on their experience. takei's family had lived in los angeles. his father, who emigra

. >> and actor george takei boldly goes where he hasn't gone before -- broadway. >> jukebox musicals are usually based on a hit songbook, but there's often a compelling personal story, as well. >> that is certainly the case with "on your feet!", which tells the tale of gloria and emilio estefan's journey from cuba to international stardom. >> come on, shake your body, baby, do the conga i know you can't control yourself any longer feel the rhythm of the music getting stronger don't you fight it till you tried it, do the conga beat >> it's a love story between somebody and their music. it's a love story between somebody and their culture. it's a celebration of that culture. it's a celebration of the traditions that make you who you are. get on your feet get up and make it happen there are concert moments and there are those moments of audience interaction. and it's amazing to kind of share that, 'cause it's never gonna be the same. it's always gonna be like a [ laughs ] >> and she kills those concert moments, by the way. i'm not lying to you. i will stand offstage, in the wings, and w

joining me now is actor and activist george takei. good to see you again. >> good to be with you.his play, for this musical. >> well, as you said, i spent four years of my childhood in three internment camps. one was the horse stalls of santa anita racetrack. and then from there, we were sent to the swamps of southeastern arkansas. a camp called roar. and there the loyalty questionnaire came down, a year after imprisonment, and my parents said they took our business, they took our home. they took our freedom. the one thing we're not going to give them is our dignity. we are not going to grovel before this government. and they answered no on that loyalty questionnaire. and for that, we were sent to a hard -- much more severe camp in northern california. >> walk this back a little bit. what happened was people's businesses were taken away, their property was confiscated. >> bank accounts were frozen. we were -- everything was taken from us. >> and so then the government comes to you and asks you what? asked your parents what? what's the loyalty oath? >> that came after we were in pr

george takei, what a story. thank you so much. we'll be right back.st tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue and neutralizes stomach acid at the source tum, tum, tum, tum smoothies! only from tums when a moment spontaneously turns romantic, why pause to take a pill? and why stop what you're doing to find a bathroom? cialis for daily use, is the only daily tablet approved to treat erectile dysfunction so you can be ready anytime the moment is right. plus cialis treats the frustrating urinary symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently, day or night. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in

. >> actor george takei spent four years in the internment camps and he released a blistering responsethe roanoke mayor's statement. "there never was any proven incident of espionage or sabotage from the suspected enemies then, just as there has been no act of terrorism from any of the 1,854 syrian refugees the u.s. has already accepted. we were judged based on who we looked like, and that is about as un-american as it gets." joining me now, democratic representative mike honda of california, who was sent to an internment camp when he was nine months old and lived there from 1942 to 1945. and representative jerry nadler, a democrat of new york. congressman honda, let me begin with you. what was your response when you saw this statement that was put out by the mayor of roanoke? >> well, i was very, very saddened by what he had said. and the things that he said was very inaccurate. first of all, he called the japanese-americans japanese foreign nationals. and we were actually u.s.-born citizens. 120,000 of us, 2/3 of us were natural-born citizens. and the rest of us could not become natu

in response, japanese-american actor george takei, best known for his role as hikaru sulu on the television series "star trek" wrote -- "my family and i spent 4 years in prison camps because we happened to look like the people who bombed pearl harbor. it is my life's mission to never let such a thing happen again in america." tens of thousands of students at dozens of universities across the united states protested wednesday against racism on campus in a day of action called #studentblackout. the campuses included yale university harvard university, , dixie state university in utah, the university of california berkeley, tufts university, and stanford where students held black balloons, which organizers said symbolize the weight and burden of being voiceless. the day of action was called for by the black liberation collective, which issued a series of demands ahead of the mobilizations, including reparations in the form of free tuition for black and indigenous students and school divestment , from for-profit prison companies. each university also issued a local set of demands, which range f