20th Century With Mike Wallace: Politics &
Presidents (Athena/Acorn DVD Set)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: B Episodes: A
When it
comes to politics, Mike Wallace delivers the goods. One of America’s best loved, most trusted
news voices, Wallace brings his unique narrative talents to the coverage of
20th Century politics, covering everything from the McCarthy witch-hunts of the
1950’s to the impeachment of President Clinton in the 1990’s in 20th Century with Mike Wallace. Across ten exhaustively researched and
thoroughly presented episodes this series will at once inform and
entertain.
Episodes
include:
1: Epidemic
of Fear--McCarthyism and 1950s Communism at home
2: JFK: A
New Look--The assassination and all too brief presidency of JFK take center
stage.
3: Assassination
and Chaos: The Death of RFK and the '68 Democratic Convention--The
assassinations of the two 1960’s icons are explored, and the disastrous Chicago
Democratic Convention gets a fresh look.
4: Presidents
in Crisis: Johnson Quits and Nixon Resigns--Johnson eschews a re-election bid,
and Nixon resigns from the presidency in disgrace.
5: Diplomacy
and Conspiracy: President Nixon’s Trip to China
and The Watergate Burglary--Tracks the incredible success of Nixon’s quest to
normalize relations with China,
and the terrible failures associated with Watergate and his eventual
resignation.
6: Ronald
Reagan and the Rise of the Right--Examines the “Reagan Revolution” of right
wing politics.
7: The
Impeachment of Clinton--The private life of a president collides with his
duties to a nation, resulting in accusations of perjury and impeachment.
8: First
Ladies--Focuses of the roles of Eleanor Roosevelt & Hillary Clinton, and
also touches on the accomplishments of some other first ladies.
9: Upstairs
at the White House--Explores the nature of being the president and trying to
still have some level of privacy.
10: Washington Scandals:
Sex, Money, Power--Discusses the relationship between the media and the figures
they cover, and how even the smallest details can become fodder for the news.
All ten
episodes are classroom worthy examinations of U.S. political history, but episode
one’s exploration into the nature of McCarthyism stands out as one of the
best. In it Wallace brilliantly lays out
all of the drama’s central characters, and we learn about some of the demons
that drove McCarthy to enact his witch hunt for “Communist sympathizers”. We also gain a new appreciation for the
courage of those few who rose up to stop him, some at the cost of their lives
and careers.
Episode
three’s detailed look inside the 1968 Democratic National Convention provides a
startling view into the callousness of the Chicago political machine, as host
city Mayor Daly and his thuggish police force strive to stymie restive protests
of burgeoning movement crying out for political change.
All of
these episodes are invested with a similar gravity, journalistic integrity, and
attention to detail that puts some 24 hour cable news networks to shame. Loaded with content, this set is a must have
for anyone interested in U.S.
political history.
- Scott Pyle
