‘FDR wouldn’t have much of political career today’
PBS announces Disney special, Navy SEALs docu
LOS ANGELES, July 23, (RTRS): Having exhaustively researched the life of Franklin D. Roosevelt for his upcoming PBS series “The Roosevelts: An Intimate History,” Ken Burns has come to a conclusion — FDR wouldn’t have much of a political career in these modern times.
Speaking at the Television Critics Association press tour on Tuesday, with his writing partner Geoffrey C. Ward, Burns reflected on the physical hurdles that Roosevelt, who suffered from polio, had to overcome. Discussing the depression that Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt suffered, as well as FDR’s physical impairment, Burns opined that none of them would likely achieve office under today’s social media microscope.
“In this culture where we’re constantly tweeting and observing and watching, the fact that Theodore and Franklin and Abraham Lincoln and Meriwether Lewis sort of couldn’t get elected dog catcher today.”
“My view is that probably none of these people, I’m not sure they could have been president now,” Ward concurred. “T.R. was very eccentric, and Franklin was helpless ... I think TV cameras would compete with each other to get the most helpless footage of FDR”
The irony, of course, is that Burns and Ward are about to unleash a sprawling, 14-hour exploration of the Roosevelt family that bills itself as intimate. The pair addressed that while responding to a question about Eleanor Roosevelt’s rumored bisexuality.
Ward, a historian, acknowledged that Roosevelt’s sexuality is “a debate in the field.” Saying that the First Lady surrounded herself with people that she felt she could help, Ward opined, “My belief is, she didn’t have sexual relations with any of them now there are people who differ, but in the film we presents the facts.
“Our era focuses on things like that far more deeply than anybody else has before,” Ward added. “We make all sorts of assumptions based on how some people behave now that things were the same then.”
Seeking to distinguish his upcoming exploration of the Roosevelt family from lurid speculation, Burns noted, “This is an intimate history, not a tabloid history.”
PBS will explore the life of entertainment giant Walt Disney and the work of the US Navy SEALs in its upcoming programming, the network said Tuesday.
Disney will be the subject of an installment of “The American Experience” that will premiere next fall. The four-hour, two night film will be directed by Sarah Colt (“JFK”). The film will feature rare archival footage from the Disney vaults, as well as interviews and clips from Disney’s classic films. “Navy SEALs: Their Untold Story,” meanwhile, will premiere on Nov.11 — Veterans Day — at 9 pm ET. The documentary will explore how the SEALS evolved in response to changing threats and how their abilities shaped US and world history.
Also among the offerings: The science series “The Brain With Dr David Eagleman.” The series, which has received an order for six hour-long episodes, will tell the story of the inner workings of the brain and take viewers on a visually spectacular journey into why they feel and think the things they do. Neuroscientist Dr David Eagleman hosts the series, which premieres next year.
In addition to the new offerings, the network also said Tuesday that PBS and BBC Worldwide North America have reached an agreement to bring the fourth season of the British series “Call the Midwife” to the United States, with a March 29, 2015 premiere date.
The network also said Tuesday that the 2014 PBS Arts Fall Festival will kick off Sept. 26 and feature 11 weekly programs focusing on Broadway hits, music from around the country and a theater performance by Nathan Lane. Kristin Chenoweth (“Pushing Daisies”) will make her debut as host of the annual festival, which is entering its fourth season.