Corporate funding for the production of The Roosevelts was provided by Bank of America.
Support for the production of The Roosevelts was provided by... and by the following... Ken Burns: IT'S FUNNY HOW MANY TIMES WE'VE PASSED BY THE ROOSEVELTS IN ONE FILM OR ANOTHER, WHETHER IT'S "NATIONAL PARKS" OR "THE DUST BOWL."
WE'D BEEN THINKING ABOUT DOING SOMETHING ON SPECIFICALLY FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT FOR A LONG TIME.
GEOFF WARD, WHO HAS BEEN MY LONGTIME COLLABORATOR, WRITING PARTNER, HE AND I HAD BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT, AND MORE RECENTLY, WE JUST DECIDED NOT ONLY WOULD WE DO HIM, WE'D DO ALL 3.
IT MATTERED TO US TO MAKE THIS AN INTERRELATED TALE, AND YOU KNOW, IT FELT LIKE "WHY HAVEN'T WE DONE THIS BEFORE?"
BUT I'M REALLY HAPPY WE WAITED THIS LONG.
I THINK WE NEEDED ALL THOSE OTHER FILMS WHERE WE GLANCED BY FDR GIVING HIS "DAY OF INFAMY" SPEECH FOR WORLD WAR II.
A STATE OF WAR.
Burns: WE GOT A LOOK AT TR IN "THE NATIONAL PARKS."
THIS WAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO IMBIBE 3 EXTRAORDINARY HUMAN BEINGS-- THEODORE, FRANKLIN, AND ELEANOR ROOSEVELT.
THERE IS NO OTHER FAMILY THAT'S HAD MORE INFLUENCE ON OTHER AMERICANS THAN THIS FAMILY, AND I THINK I WAS READY TO TACKLE IT.
IT'S REALLY INTERESTING-- THE ROOSEVELTS ARE BOLD-FACE NAMES IN AMERICAN POLITICAL HISTORY, AND EVEN TODAY, AND YET, BY MAKING "THE ROOSEVELTS: AN INTIMATE HISTORY" AND PERMITTING US TO SEE THE LARGER DRAMAS OF THE WORLD FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF THEIR INTERNAL PERSONAL DRAMAS, IT DOESN'T MAKE THEM MORE DIFFERENT THAN US, IT MAKES THEM VERY SIMILAR TO US.
IT'S SOMETHING I'VE BEEN TRYING TO GET AT IN LOTS OF FILMS.
YOU KNOW, WE'RE CURIOUS ABOUT ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND WE WANT TO KNOW NOT ONLY ABOUT HIS GREATNESS AS A PRESIDENT, WE WANT TO KNOW WHO HE IS, AND I THINK WITH "THE ROOSEVELTS," WE'VE GOTTEN FARTHER ALONG THAT QUESTION THAN IN ANY OTHER FILM.
Narrator: IN THE SUMMER OF 1874, THE UNITED STATES WAS IN THE SECOND YEAR OF A DEPRESSION.
FACTORIES WERE SHUTTERED.
BANKS HAD FAILED.
HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF WORKERS HAD LOST THEIR JOBS.
AND THOSE WHO CONTINUED TO WORK SAW THEIR WAGES CUT BY A QUARTER.
WORKERS BEGAN TO TALK MORE AND MORE OF FIGHTING BACK, OF ORGANIZING.
BUT NONE OF IT AFFECTED THEODORE ROOSEVELT, SENIOR.
HIS FORTUNE SHIELDED HIS 4 CHILDREN FROM ALL OF IT.
ANNA, KNOWN AS BAMIE, WAS 19, BUT SHE WAS OLD BEYOND HER YEARS.
SHE SUFFERED FROM A DEFORMATION OF THE SPINE AND WAS AN ADVISOR RATHER THAN A PLAYMATE TO HER YOUNGER SIBLINGS, WHO ALWAYS SAW HER AS ONE OF THE BIG PEOPLE.
ELLIOTT WAS 14, HANDSOME, ATHLETIC, AND CHARMING, THOUGHT BY MANY THE MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED.
AT 12, CORINNE WAS THE BABY OF THE FAMILY, WITTY, SENSITIVE, AND WORSHIPFUL OF HER OLDER BROTHERS.
BUT THE FOCUS OF EVERYONE'S ATTENTION WAS 15-YEAR-OLD THEODORE.
HE SEEMED INFATUATED WITH EVERYTHING, SO LONG AS IT PROVIDED HIM WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXCEL.
HE WAS IN ALMOST PERPETUAL MOTION, RIDING, SWIMMING, SHOOTING, COMPETING IN THE LONG JUMP AND 100-YARD DASH AGAINST HIS BROTHER AND HIS COUSINS.
HE RARELY WON, BUT HE ALWAYS TRIED.
AND IN BETWEEN, HE DEVOURED BOOKS AND LIKED TO RECITE POETRY BY THE HOUR TO HIS NEW YORK NEIGHBOR AND SOMETIME SWEETHEART EDITH CAROW.
"HIS ENERGY SEEMS SO SUPERABUNDANT," HIS FATHER WROTE, "THAT I FEEL IT MAY GET THE BETTER OF HIM IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER."
Woman: I THINK IF HE WERE A LITTLE BOY TODAY, HE MIGHT BE GIVEN RITALIN AND GROW UP TO BE A SALESMAN OF SOME SORT AND WE WOULD NEVER HAVE HEARD FROM HIM AGAIN.
LOOK AT PHOTOGRAPHS OF HIM.
WHENEVER HE'S SEATED, IF HE HAS A HAND ON A DESK OR A HAND ON HIS KNEE, IT'S ALWAYS IN A FIST.
THERE'S ALL THAT COILED ENERGY.
IT'S NOT--IT'S NOT ANGER, IT'S JUST ENERGY COILED, WAITING TO BE LET LOOSE.
Man as Theodore Roosevelt: GET ACTION.
DO THINGS.
BE SANE.
DON'T FRITTER AWAY YOUR TIME; CREATE, ACT, TAKE A PLACE WHEREVER YOU ARE AND BE SOMEBODY; GET ACTION.
GOVERNMENTS CAN ERR... Geoffrey Ward: KEN AND I HAD ALWAYS WANTED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE ROOSEVELTS.
I HAD WRITTEN BOOKS WHICH ARGUED THAT YOU COULDN'T HAVE FDR WITHOUT TR, THAT THEY WERE MEMBERS OF THE SAME FAMILY.
AND SO THIS IS A DREAM FOR ME.
GEOFF WARD'S INTEREST IN ROOSEVELT BEGINS WITH THE BEGINNING OF HIS LIFE.
HE WAS THE PRESIDENT WHEN HE WAS BORN.
GEOFF IS HIMSELF A POLIO VICTIM AND WOULD, OF COURSE, LOOK TO THE MAGNIFICENT, HEROIC EXAMPLE OF FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT FOR INSPIRATION.
I WAS 9 WHEN I GOT POLIO.
IT WAS INFANTILE PARALYSIS.
FDR WAS 39, AND IT'S A VERY DIFFERENT THING.
TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HOW HE DEALT WITH IT EVERY DAY HAS ALWAYS FASCINATED ME, AND IN THIS FILM, I HOPE WE'VE DONE JUSTICE TO THAT.
I THINK YOU REALLY WILL UNDERSTAND THE INCREDIBLE EFFORT IT TOOK FOR HIM JUST TO GET THROUGH HIS DAY, LET ALONE TO BE THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES 4 TIMES.
Narrator: ROOSEVELT'S DOCTORS SOUGHT TO MINIMIZE THE SERIOUSNESS OF HIS PARALYSIS IN ORDER TO KEEP HIS POLITICAL HOPES ALIVE, AND ALSO OUT OF CONCERN FOR FRANKLIN'S OWN PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING.
Man: HE HAS SUCH COURAGE, SUCH AMBITION, AND YET AT THE SAME TIME, SUCH AN EXTRAORDINARILY SENSITIVE EMOTIONAL MECHANISM THAT IT WILL TAKE ALL THE SKILL WE CAN MUSTER TO LEAD HIM SUCCESSFULLY TO A RECOGNITION OF WHAT HE REALLY FACES WITHOUT CRUSHING HIM.
DR. GEORGE DRAPER.
IT WAS 5 WEEKS BEFORE HIS DOCTORS DARED TRY TO SIT HIM UP.
WHEN THEY FINALLY ALLOWED HIM TO BE CARRIED THE 7 BLOCKS TO HIS HOME UNDER COVER OF DARKNESS IN LATE OCTOBER, HIS CHART STILL READ "NOT IMPROVING."
GEOFF'S ALSO BENEFITED FROM RECENT SCHOLARSHIP.
HE WAS THE BENEFICIARY OF ALL OF THE LETTERS OF DAISY SUCKLEY TO AND FROM FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT, WHICH PERMITTED US A NEW VIEW ON ROOSEVELT THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE BEFORE.
Ward: I MET DAISY SUCKLEY 2 OR 3 TIMES.
I ASKED HER ONCE IF SHE KEPT A DIARY AND SHE SAID, "WHAT WOULD MAKE YOU THINK I WOULD KEEP A DIARY?"
THAT WAS THE KIND OF MODESTY THAT SHE HAD.
Burns: AFTER SHE PASSED AWAY, THE FAMILY CONTACTED GEOFF AND SAID, YOU KNOW, "WE'VE GOT THIS TRUNK FULL OF LETTERS.
WOULD YOU BE INTERESTED?"
AND, YOU KNOW, HE SAID, "WOULD I?"
SO, HE WAS THE FIRST PERSON WHO HAD A CHANCE TO GO AND SIFT THROUGH THIS.
Ward: IF SHE REALLY HAD NOT WANTED IT REVEALED, SHE WOULD'VE BURNED IT.
SHE DIDN'T--SHE COULDN'T BEAR TO BURN IT.
AND SO, THERE ARE LETTERS FROM FDR AND ALL THOSE DIARIES.
FDR TALKED TO DAISY SUCKLEY REALLY THE WAY HE TALKED TO ALMOST NO ONE ELSE.
Man as Franklin: SEPTEMBER 23, 1935.
DEAR DAISY.
DO YOU KNOW THAT YOU ALONE HAVE KNOWN THAT I WAS A BIT CAST DOWN THESE PAST WEEKS?
I COULDN'T LET ANYONE ELSE KNOW IT.
BUT SOMEHOW, I SEEM TO TELL YOU ALL THOSE THINGS, AND WHAT I DON'T HAPPEN TO TELL YOU YOU SEEM TO KNOW ANYWAY.
Burns: CAN YOU IMAGINE TO SUDDENLY HAVE THIS NEW PERSPECTIVE TO SEE THE GREATEST PRESIDENT OF THE 20th CENTURY?
IT'S A TERRIFIC AND THRILLING THING, EVEN FOR THOSE OF US WHO ARE EXPERIENCING THE GOOD FORTUNE, THE BOON, AFTER THE FACT.
Ward: IT'S A FAMILY STORY.
THESE ARE 3 MEMBERS OF THE SAME FAMILY.
THEY ARE IN DIFFERENT PARTIES, BUT OTHERWISE, THEY HAD THE SAME KIND OF UPBRINGING AND THEY HAD THE SAME ROOSEVELTIAN VIEW OF THE WORLD, WHICH IS OPTIMISTIC AND ENTHUSIASTIC AND BOUNDLESS.
TO ME, THEY'RE INEXHAUSTIBLE TOPICS.
Burns: WE ARE ARCHIVAL FILMMAKERS.
WE MAKE OUR FILMS COME ALIVE WITH STILL PHOTOGRAPHS, AND PROBABLY "THE ROOSEVELTS" REPRESENTS ONE OF THE GREATEST ARCHIVAL DETECTIVE PIECES WE'VE EVER DONE.
MORE THAN 22,000 INDIVIDUAL IMAGES THAT WE CATALOGED AND CREATED A GIGANTIC DATABASE OUT OF PERHAPS THE 2,300, 2,400 THAT WE WOULD USE IN THE FINAL FILM.
SAME IS TRUE OF HOURS AND HOURS OF FOOTAGE THAT WE GATHERED.
BUT WE ALSO LIKE TO GROUND OUR FILMS WITH THE REALITY OF WHERE THESE LIVES WERE LIVED-- THE BIRTHPLACE OF THEODORE ROOSEVELT ON 20th STREET IN MANHATTAN.
MAY WE TURN THIS RIGHT-HAND VASE A LITTLE BIT?
Burns: UP AT CAMPOBELLO, WHICH WAS THE SUMMER RETREAT OF FRANKLIN AND ELEANOR AND HIS MOTHER.
AT HYDE PARK, FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT'S SUMMER PLACE ON THE HUDSON.
SAGAMORE HILL, THE GREAT HOUSE THAT THEODORE ROOSEVELT BUILT FOR HIS CLAN, A SORT OF MUSEUM, DAVID McCULLOUGH CALLS IT, WHERE HE SHOWS OFF HIS COLLECTIONS OF ANIMALS BUT ALSO HIS FAMILY, WHICH HE SEES AS PART OF HIS COLLECTION.
HE'S AWFULLY PROUD OF HIS FAMILY AND FAMILY MEANS EVERYTHING TO HIM.
THE REHABILITATION CENTER IN WARM SPRINGS THAT FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT TOOK OVER AND DEVELOPED WITH GREAT CARE AND METICULOUSNESS.
WE FELT IT WAS IMPORTANT TO GO AND KNOW AND VISIT AND BE AT ALL THESE PLACES AND COLLECT LIVE, MODERN CINEMATOGRAPHY.
[HORN HONKS] FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT DIED IN WARM SPRINGS, AND THE LITTLE WHITE HOUSE, AS IT WAS CALLED, THE LITTLE, TINY CABIN THAT HE PERISHED IN BECOMES ALL THE MORE GIGANTIC IN ITS IMPORTANCE BECAUSE OF THE INTIMACY OF THE SETTING WHEN YOU GO THERE AND SEE IT.
THAT'S HOW YOU STRAIN TO LISTEN TO THE GHOSTS AND ECHOES OF AN ALMOST INEXPRESSIBLY WISE PAST THAT PERMITS YOU A DIFFERENT KIND OF ADMISSION TO WHAT WENT BEFORE.
Narrator: FRANKLIN AND ELEANOR ROOSEVELT HAD HOUSES IN NEW YORK CITY AND WASHINGTON, D.C., AND ON CAMPOBELLO ISLAND.
BUT FOR THEIR 4 CHILDREN-- ANNA, JAMES, ELLIOTT, AND THE SECOND FRANKLIN JR.-- IT WAS THEIR GRANDMOTHER'S HOME AT HYDE PARK THAT REPRESENTED A SANCTUARY FROM THEIR PARENTS' INCREASINGLY TURBULENT WORLD.
IN 1915, SARA DELANO ROOSEVELT GREATLY EXPANDED SPRINGWOOD TO ACCOMMODATE THEM AND THE NURSES AND MAIDS THAT TRAVELED WITH THEM.
THE HOUSE NOW INCLUDED SO MANY BEDROOMS SHE SOMETIMES CALLED IT "OUR HOTEL."
THE RENOVATED FIRST FLOOR, MODELED AFTER THE COUNTRY HOUSES OF THE ROOSEVELTS' ARISTOCRATIC FRIENDS IN ENGLAND, WAS MEANT TO BE A SHOWCASE FOR HER SON AND HIS COLLECTIONS-- HIS STUFFED BIRDS; HIS NAVAL PRINTS AND BOOKS; AND ALBUMS FILLED WITH STAMPS.
WHEN HE WAS THERE, FRANKLIN ACTED JUST AS HIS OWN FATHER HAD: HE RODE WITH HIS CHILDREN, SWAM AND SLEDDED, AND TOOK THEM ICEBOATING ON THE HUDSON.
BUT HIS VISITS WITH THE FAMILY WERE ALWAYS BRIEF.
THIS IS VOICE 1.34, TAKE ONE.
DEAR MR. PRESIDENT.
Burns: I HAVE, SINCE THE BEGINNING OF MY PROFESSIONAL LIFE, FELT THAT I NEEDED TO COMPLEMENT THE TRADITIONAL VOICE OF GOD, THE THIRD-PERSON NARRATION TELLING YOU WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW, WITH A CHORUS OF FIRST-PERSON VOICES THAT BRING HISTORICAL MATERIAL, AUTHENTIC HISTORICAL MATERIAL, ALIVE-- DIARIES AND LOVE LETTERS.
NEWSPAPER REPORTS AND MILITARY DISPATCHES.
IT JUST HELPED SORT OF FIX A MOMENT.
IT HELPED MAKE THOSE OLD PHOTOGRAPHS COME ALIVE IF YOU COULD HEAR WHAT THE DAILY NEWSPAPER WAS SAYING.
AND SO, WE'VE DONE THAT IN MOST OF OUR FILMS.
AND WHEN THE TRAIN MOVED AWAY... Burns: WE'VE GOT AN AMAZING GROUP OF PEOPLE IN THIS, FROM JOHN LITHGOW TO ED HARRIS TO PATRICIA CLARKSON, WHO READS THE LETTERS OF DAISY SUCKLEY.
Clarkson as Suckley: DEAR F, DO YOU MIND IF I DO A LITTLE THINKING ALOUD?
Burns: AND THERE ARE 3 VOICES THAT WILL CHARACTERIZE 3 HUGELY IMPORTANT AND WELL-KNOWN PEOPLE, TWO OF WHOM, SOME VOICES WE ACTUALLY KNOW PRETTY WELL-- FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT'S AND ELEANOR ROOSEVELT'S.
WELL, YEAH, IT'LL BE INTERESTING BECAUSE I DON'T... Burns: WE WERE ABLE TO SECURE THE SERVICES OF ONE OF THE MOST TALENTED ACTORS--PAUL GIAMATTI-- TO READ THEODORE ROOSEVELT, AND HE DOES A WONDERFUL JOB OF BOTH THE BLUSTER AND THE INTENSITY OF THIS PERSON AND AT THE SAME TIME THE OVERARCHING INTELLIGENCE.
...INSTEAD OF THE STEERAGE OF A STEAMER IN THE 19th CENTURY.
Giamatti as Theodore: FROM THAT TIME, FOR THE NEXT 7 GENERATIONS, FROM FATHER TO SON, EVERY ONE OF US WAS BORN ON MANHATTAN ISLAND.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
Burns: WE GOT SO LUCKY TO GET EDWARD HERRMANN TO READ THE VOICE OF FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT.
THOSE PEOPLE WHO'VE WATCHED AMERICAN CULTURE FOR THE LAST SEVERAL DECADES KNOW THAT ED HERRMANN HAS INHABITED FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT ON THE STAGE AND ON THE SCREEN IN MANY DIFFERENT TIMES AND HAS THE, AS THEY CALL, THE HUDSON VALLEY LOCKJAW, AND CAN REALLY NAIL IT, AND IT'S HUGELY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE'RE SO FAMILIAR WITH FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT'S AUTHENTIC VOICE.
...OF A GOVERNMENT THAT LIVES IN A SPIRIT OF CHARITY.
Burns: AND HERE, WE HAD TO BRING ALIVE CERTAIN LETTERS AND CERTAIN DIARIES AND CERTAIN CORRESPONDENCE THAT MADE IT POSSIBLE FOR US TO LEARN A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT VERY DIFFICULT AND OPAQUE MAN CALLED FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT.
Herrmann as Franklin: DEAR DAISY, THE SITUATION IN EUROPE IS FULL OF WORLD DYNAMITE, AND I DON'T DARE BE OFF THE SCENE BECAUSE IT NEEDS HOURLY WATCHING.
[HITLER SPEAKING GERMAN ON RADIO] Herrmann as Franklin: DID YOU HEAR HITLER ON THE RADIO TODAY?
HIS SHRIEKS, HIS HISTRIONICS, AND THE EFFECT ON THE HUGE AUDIENCE.
THEY DID NOT APPLAUD.
THEY MADE NOISES LIKE ANIMALS.
Burns: AND I THINK MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE, WE WERE FORTUNATE TO GET THIS LITTLE-KNOWN ACTOR NAMED MERYL STREEP TO READ THE PART OF ELEANOR ROOSEVELT.
SHE IS, I THINK, UNARGUABLY THE GREATEST ACTOR OF OUR GENERATION, PERHAPS OF ANY GENERATION.
Streep as Eleanor: I WOULDN'T DISCUSS THE PRESIDENT'S HEALTH WITH HIM BECAUSE I HATED THE IDEA AND HE KNEW I HATED IT.
EITHER HE FELT HE OUGHT TO SERVE A FOURTH TERM AND WANTED IT, OR HE DIDN'T.
THAT WAS UP TO THE MAN HIMSELF TO DECIDE, AND NO ONE ELSE.
IT'S AN AMAZING PROCESS.
I LOVE IT.
IT'S A TIME WHERE MY HEART NEVER STOPS POUNDING OUT OF ITS CHEST, WHERE I FEEL SO INADEQUATE TO THE SITUATION, AND YET EVERYBODY SO FAR HAS BEEN INCREDIBLY KIND AND GENEROUS IN WHAT THEY'VE DONE FOR US.
Burns: OUR FILM TELLS THE STORY OF ESSENTIALLY THESE TWO BRANCHES OF THIS VERY OLD AMERICAN FAMILY, SO, THEY'VE BEEN HERE SINCE THE 1600s.
THEY'RE DUTCH.
THAT WAS THE FIRST MANIFESTATION OF MANHATTAN.
WE HAVE THE 3 MAIN CHARACTERS AND WE INTERACT WITH MANY, MANY OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS.
WELL, THAT FAMILY HAS CONTINUED TO GROW AND TO MULTIPLY, AND THEY'RE VERY INTERESTED IN THEIR FAMOUS RELATIVES.
MOST RECENTLY, THAT I WAS ABLE TO BE A VISITOR, THEY WENT TO WARM SPRINGS, AND IT WAS A REALLY WELL-ATTENDED REUNION.
THIS WAS GOING TO BE AN INITIAL TEST.
WE WERE GONNA SHOW THEM A GOOD HOUR-PLUS SET OF 7 OR 8 CLIPS AND ASK PROBABLY OUR TOUGHEST AUDIENCE TO GIVE US THEIR THOUGHTS ABOUT IT.
THIS PROJECT HAS BEEN INCUBATING IN MY HEART AND MY MIND FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS... WE'RE ALSO THERE AT THIS HUGELY IMPORTANT PLACE, A PLACE THAT'S STILL A REHABILITATION CENTER.
IT'S STILL A MUSEUM.
IT'S STILL THE PLACE THAT HAS THE LITTLE WHITE HOUSE.
THIS IS A FAMILY REUNION, WHICH WE HAVE EVERY NOW AND THEN.
WONDERFUL EVENT.
WE LOVE TO GET TOGETHER.
TYPICAL ROOSEVELT REUNION.
EVERYBODY TALKS, NOBODY LISTENS.
Streep as Eleanor: I TRY TO REMEMBER ALWAYS WHAT AN OLD FRIEND OF MY GRANDMOTHER'S USED TO SAY-- "ENJOY EVERY MINUTE YOU HAVE WITH THOSE YOU LOVE, FOR NO ONE CAN TAKE JOY THAT IS PASSED AWAY FROM YOU."
Woman: WHEN I HEARD MERYL STREEP, I THOUGHT, "WOW."
AND WHEN I SEE CLIPS OF MY GRANDMOTHER, I DO, I GET TEARY, BECAUSE I ADORED MY GRANDMOTHER.
I SPENT A LOT OF TIME HANGING OUT AT HER HOUSE AND, YOU KNOW, SNEAKING INTO THE BASEMENT TO EAT ICE CREAM BECAUSE SHE HAD BIG TUBS OF ICE CREAM DOWN THERE.
BUT SHE WAS MY GRANDMOTHER.
SHE WASN'T A FAMOUS LADY TO ME.
FRANKLY, I LEARNED MORE FROM THE FILM ABOUT ELEANOR'S NEEDING TO OVERCOME ADVERSITY THAN I KNEW BEFOREHAND, SO, I'M ALREADY GRATEFUL FOR MR. BURNS FOR TEACHING ME STUFF ABOUT MY FAMILY I DIDN'T KNOW.
SO, HERE YOU HAVE A CONFLUENCE OF 3 PEOPLE, AND I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I LOVE ABOUT THIS FILM IS THE COMMON THREAD OF VALUES AND PRINCIPLES AND THEIR CARE OF THEIR FELLOW HUMANITY IN ALL 3 PEOPLE, AND HOW IT DROVE SO MANY OF THEIR POLICIES.
Burns: I FELT HONORED TO BE ASKED TO BE AN HONORARY PART OF THE ROOSEVELT CLAN FOR JUST A FEW MINUTES.
A WOMAN WALKS BY YOU WHO LOOKS LIKE ELEANOR, AND SOMEONE ELSE LOOKS LIKE TR, AND YOU HEAR IN THE VOICE OR YOU SEE IN THE ASPECT OF A GAIT OR YOU HEAR IN THE FORCEFULNESS OF A QUESTION-- THEY'RE HERE.
THEY'RE STILL WITH US, AND THIS FAMILY THAT HAS HAD MORE INFLUENCE, AS WE SUGGEST IN THE FILM, THAN ANY OTHER FAMILY IN AMERICAN HISTORY IS STILL AROUND AND CURIOUS AND, THANKFULLY, GAVE US A PASSING GRADE ON OUR FILM AND WE FELT KIND OF--WHEW-- RELIEVED ABOUT IT.
[CAMERA'S SHUTTER CLICKS] Burns: THE HALF-LIFE OF THE ROOSEVELTS, BOTH OF THEM BUT PARTICULARLY FRANKLIN, IS ENDLESS, IT'S ENDLESS.
THEY COMPLETELY RESHAPED WHAT THE PRESIDENCY IS, AND NO MATTER HOW CONSERVATIVE AND SMALL GOVERNMENT A PRESIDENT YOU ARE, YOU ARE LIVING IN AN OFFICE THAT'S ALREADY BIG BECAUSE OF THESE ROOSEVELTS.
Narrator: 6 DAYS BEFORE JAMES AND SARA'S BABY FRANKLIN WAS BORN, THEODORE ROOSEVELT MADE HIS FIRST HEADLINES-- AS THE BRAND-NEW REPUBLICAN ASSEMBLYMAN FROM MANHATTAN'S 21st DISTRICT AND THE YOUNGEST MAN EVER ELECTED TO THE ASSEMBLY.
HE WAS JUST 23 YEARS OLD, AND ALBANY HAD NEVER SEEN ANYONE QUITE LIKE HIM.
HE HAD DROPPED PLANS TO BECOME A SCIENTIST WHILE STILL AT HARVARD, THEN DROPPED OUT OF COLUMBIA LAW SCHOOL, REFUSED TO GO INTO THE FAMILY BUSINESS, AND FINALLY SURPRISED EVERYONE BY DECIDING TO TRY HIS HAND AT REPUBLICAN POLITICS AND RUN FOR THE ASSEMBLY.
SOME OF HIS FRIENDS HAD ADVISED HIM AGAINST IT.
POLITICS IN EITHER PARTY WAS NO PLACE FOR A GENTLEMAN, THEY TOLD HIM.
IT WAS A "LOW" BUSINESS, RUN BY "SALOON-KEEPERS, HORSE-CAR CONDUCTORS, AND THE LIKE."
"THAT MERELY MEANS THAT THE PEOPLE I KNOW DO NOT BELONG TO THE GOVERNING CLASS," HE ANSWERED, "AND I INTEND TO BE ONE OF THE GOVERNING CLASS."
Giamatti as Theodore Roosevelt: I MEAN TO ACT UP HERE IN ALBANY ON ALL QUESTIONS AS NEARLY AS POSSIBLE AS I THINK FATHER WOULD HAVE DONE.
I THOROUGHLY BELIEVE IN THE REPUBLICAN PARTY WHEN IT ACTS UP TO ITS PRINCIPLES-- BUT IF I CAN PREVENT IT I SHALL NEVER LET PARTY ZEAL OBSCURE MY SENSE OF RIGHT AND DECENCY.
AND THE INTERNAL DRAMAS, THE PERSONAL WOUNDINGS AND THE HURTS AND THE THINGS EACH HAD TO OVERCOME MAKES A DYNAMIC THAT'S LIKE AN AMERICAN "DOWNTON ABBEY."
I MEAN, IT REALLY IS, AND IT HAS TWO EXTRA VIRTUES.
ONE, IT'S ALL TRUE, AND, TWO, IT'S MADE IN AMERICA.
Narrator: LUCY MERCER HAD BEEN PART OF THE ROOSEVELT HOUSEHOLD FOR 3 YEARS.
THE CHILDREN LIKED HER.
SO DID SARA.
"SHE IS SO SWEET AND ATTRACTIVE," SHE WROTE, "AND SHE LOVES YOU, ELEANOR."
BUT SHE ALSO CAME TO LOVE FRANKLIN-- "HIS RINGING LAUGH," LUCY REMEMBERED, "ALL THE RIDICULOUS THINGS HE USED TO SAY... HIS EXTRAORDINARILY BEAUTIFUL HEAD."
Ward: LUCY MERCER WAS A BEAUTIFUL, SWEET-NATURED, NICE WOMAN WHO ADORED THE HUSBAND OF HER EMPLOYER.
SHE ADORED FRANKLIN.
AND HE HAD A DEEP NEED TO FIND SUBSTITUTES FOR THE KIND OF UNQUESTIONING ADORATION THAT HIS MOTHER HAD GIVEN HIM.
AND LUCY MERCER WAS THAT PERSON.
SHE WAS YOUNGER THAN HE.
SHE THOUGHT EVERYTHING HE DID WAS MARVELOUS.
UH, HE WAS SWEET TO HER.
AND, UH, SHE FELL IN LOVE WITH HIM AND HE FELL IN LOVE WITH HER.
Narrator: WHEN ELEANOR AND THE CHILDREN WERE AWAY AT CAMPOBELLO, LUCY AND FRANKLIN HAD SPENT TIME TOGETHER, DINING AT THE HOMES OF DISCREET FRIENDS, SAILING AND PICNICKING ALONG THE POTOMAC.
ALICE ROOSEVELT LONGWORTH, THEODORE ROOSEVELT'S OLDEST DAUGHTER, HAD SEEN THEM DRIVING AROUND WASHINGTON TOGETHER AND TEASED FRANKLIN ABOUT MISS MERCER.
"ISN'T SHE LOVELY?"
WAS ALL HE WOULD SAY.
Ward: I THINK THAT AMERICA SHOULD REMEMBER THE ROOSEVELTS AS PEOPLE WHO THOUGHT WE COULD DO ANYTHING WE PUT OUR MINDS TO.
THEY HAD THIS ABSOLUTELY BOUNDLESS OPTIMISM ABOUT WHAT THE UNITED STATES COULD BECOME.
THEY WERE NEVER SATISFIED, THEY ALWAYS THOUGHT MORE COULD BE DONE.
I THINK THAT'S THEIR BIGGEST LEGACY.
William Leuchtenburg: IF YOU WERE TO COME TO THIS COUNTRY AND YOU WERE AT LaGUARDIA AIRPORT, YOU WOULD BE AT AN AIRPORT THAT ROOSEVELT AND THE NEW DEAL HAD BUILT, AND THAT IF YOU WENT OVER THE TRIBOROUGH BRIDGE AND THEN THROUGH THE LINCOLN TUNNEL AND CONTINUED WEST ACROSS THE COUNTRY ON THE BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY, ON THE SKYLINE DRIVE, TOOK CHICAGO'S SUBWAY, WENT ALL THE WAY ACROSS TO THE GREAT DAMS OF BONNEVILLE AND GRAND COOLEY, ALL OF THIS WAS DONE UNDER ROOSEVELT AND THE NEW DEAL, AND THAT'S OUR LEGACY IN AMERICA TODAY.
Doris Kearns Goodwin: I THINK WHAT FDR WAS ABLE TO DO SOMEHOW WAS TO MAKE THE GOVERNMENT, WHICH IS ALL OF US-- I MEAN, WE THINK OF THE GOVERNMENT AS SOMETHING OUT THERE, BUT HE SAW IT AS THE COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PEOPLE TO PEOPLE IN NEED.
HE CHANGED THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GOVERNMENT, BUSINESS, AND LABOR FOREVER, BUT THOSE WORDS ARE JUST SO ABSTRACT.
WHAT HE DID IN THOSE PROGRAMS WAS TO BRING THE FORCE OF THE COLLECTIVE POWER OF THE COUNTRY TO BEAR ON HELPING PEOPLE TO GET THROUGH THEIR DAILY LIVES.
Narrator: BEFORE FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT, THERE HAD BEEN NO UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION OR SOCIAL SECURITY, NO REGULATION OF THE STOCK MARKET, NO FEDERAL GUARANTEE OF BANK DEPOSITS OR LABOR'S RIGHT TO BARGAIN, NO NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE OR MAXIMUM HOURS, NO FEDERAL COMMITMENT TO HIGH EMPLOYMENT, AND NO PRICE SUPPORTS FOR FARMERS OR FEDERAL FUNDS FOR ELECTRIC POWER WITH WHICH TO LIGHT THEIR HOMES.
Burns: THEY BRING UP EXTRAORDINARY QUESTIONS ABOUT THINGS THAT WE TALK ABOUT TODAY ALL THE TIME.
WHAT IS THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT?
WHAT CAN A CITIZEN EXPECT OF ITS GOVERNMENT?
WHAT IS THE NATURE OF LEADERSHIP?
Ward: I HOPE VIEWERS WILL GET A SENSE OF WHAT AMERICAN LEADERSHIP CAN BE AND NOT SETTLE FOR LESS.
Burns: TO AMELIORATE THE GRIEF OF HAVING TO ABANDON THE ROOSEVELTS, WE OF COURSE HAVE KEPT OURSELVES NOT JUST BUSY BUT SUPERBUSY, SO THERE ARE OTHER PROJECTS THAT I KNOW OF THAT ARE HAPPENING.
["TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALLGAME" PLAYING] ONE IS OUR TWO-PART BIOGRAPHY OF JACKIE ROBINSON, WHO WAS A CENTRAL FIGURE IN OUR "BASEBALL" SERIES BUT DESERVES A FULLER SORT OF STAND-ALONE TREATMENT.
Man: ROBINSON WITH A GOOD LEAD.
THERE HE GOES!
HE HITS THE DIRT, AND HE'S SAFE!
Burns: WE'VE BEEN AIDED QUITE WONDERFULLY BY HIS WIDOW RACHEL, WHO'S BEEN AFTER ME FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS TO DO SOMETHING THAT ALSO UNDERSTANDS HOW HE GOT TO THE GAME, MORE OF THE GAME, AND IN SOME WAYS AS IMPORTANTLY WHAT HE DID AFTER THE GAME.
Rachel Robinson: HE KNEW THAT IF HE FAILED THAT SOMETHING IMPORTANT IN TERMS OF THE SOCIAL PROGRESS IN AMERICA WAS GOING TO GET SET BACK, AND HE FELT THE WEIGHT OF BLACK PEOPLE ON HIS SHOULDERS, AND WHEN THEY CAME TO THE BALL PARKS AND THE STANDS GOT FILLED WITH BLACK PEOPLE, WHO HAD TO SIT ON THE GROUND SOMETIMES BECAUSE THEY NEVER GAVE THEM ENOUGH SPACE, BUT THEIR ROOTING, AND THEIR BEING THERE ALREADY PROUD, VERY PROUD OF HIM-- HE HAD A GOOD SENSE OF THE WEIGHT.
THERE IS NOT ONE NEGRO, NOT ONE THAT I KNOW IN THIS COUNTRY THAT HAS IT MADE UNTIL THE MOST UNDERPRIVILEGED NEGRO IN ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA, HAS IT MADE.
[APPLAUSE] Burns: WHEN YOU GET TO BE A HERO, SOMETIMES YOU'RE JUST A STATUE, AND WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS MAKE THIS HUMAN BEING HUMAN.
WE ARE ALSO WORKING ON A FILM ABOUT THE WAR IN VIETNAM.
Ward: THAT'S A STORY WHICH I THOUGHT I KNEW BECAUSE IT HAPPENED DURING MY LIFETIME, BUT I'M NOW REALIZING HOW VERY MUCH NEW MATERIAL THERE IS AND HOW THINGS HAVE TO BE REVISED AND THOUGHT OVER AGAIN AND THOUGHT THROUGH, AND IT'S A REAL CHALLENGE, BUT IT'S VERY INTERESTING.
Burns: WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON IT FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS.
WE'VE HAD UNUSUAL ACCESS TO VIETNAM ITSELF, NOT JUST THE COUNTRYSIDE AND ITS ARCHIVES, BUT ITS PEOPLE, WHO ARE NO LONGER MOUTHING A KIND OF PARTY LINE.
IT GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO SEE DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES OF THAT WAR.
MOSTLY IT'S THE STORY OF AMERICAN SOLDIERS AND AMERICANS AT HOME.
WE TAKE A WAR, WHICH A LOT OF PEOPLE THINK THEY KNOW ABOUT AND KNOW ALMOST NOTHING, AND TRY TO TELL A STORY TO MAKE IT AS FAMILIAR AS THE SECOND WORLD WAR AND THE CIVIL WAR ARE TO US NOW.
[COUNTRY MUSIC PLAYING] WE ARE JOYFULLY SORT OF ERASING THE DIFFICULT MEMORIES OF WAR BY SPENDING A GREAT DEAL OF TIME IN NASHVILLE, WHERE WE'RE WORKING ON A MAMMOTH HISTORY OF COUNTRY MUSIC, WHICH WE HOPE WILL COMPLEMENT OUR SERIES ON JAZZ AND GET AT THE HEART OF THIS SPECTACULAR AMERICAN ART FORM, ABOUT AS OMNIVOROUS AN ART FORM AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, JUST HUNGRY FOR DIFFERENT STYLES, AND ITS HISTORY IS AS FASCINATING AND AS INTERESTING AND AS FILLED WITH INTERESTING PEOPLE AND STORIES AS ANYTHING WE HAVE EVER TOLD.
ALL THE BARS WERE CLOSED ON SUNDAY MORNING.
THERE WASN'T ANYTHING TO DO, AND I CAN REMEMBER WALKING DOWN THE STREET THERE, AND IT WAS JUST LIKE I WAS DESCRIBING WHAT I WAS GOING THROUGH AT THE TIME, AND FORTUNATELY, IT RANG A BELL WITH A LOT OF PEOPLE.
§ I WOKE UP SUNDAY MORNING § § WITH NO WAY TO HOLD MY HEAD THAT DIDN'T HURT § § AND THE BEER I HAD FOR BREAKFAST WASN'T BAD § § SO I HAD ONE MORE FOR DESSERT § AND THAT WAS TRUE, TOO.
MEL TILLIS DROVE THE CAR.
BACK THEN, WE DIDN'T HAVE BUSES.
WE ALL WERE IN STATION WAGONS OR CARS OR WHATEVER, AND WE ALL WENT TOGETHER, AND IT WAS SO FUN, AND I GOT TO BE FRIENDS WITH PATSY, AND PATSY, I THINK, WAS 13 YEARS OLDER THAN I WAS.
SO SHE WAS KIND OF LIKE A BIG OLD SISTER TO ME, AND SHE--AS I LIKE TO SAY IN THE KINDEST SENSE OF THE WORD-- SHE WAS A GREAT BROAD.
Burns: AND THEN FINALLY, WE'VE ALREADY STARTED ON A BIOGRAPHY THAT WON'T BE OUT TILL 2019 OR 2020, A TWO-PART BIOGRAPHY OF THE AMERICAN WRITER ERNEST HEMINGWAY.
THERE ARE ENOUGH FOLKS WHO KNEW HIM AND REMEMBERED HIM, SONS AND COMPANIONS AND FRIENDS WHO ARE GETTING UP IN AGE THAT'S FORCED US OUT TO FILM A LITTLE BIT EARLY, BUT WE'RE MAKING CLIPPINGS AND READING BOOKS AND GOING BACK OVER THE NOVELS AND READING LITERARY CRITICISM.
THE ONLY THING I CAN DO IS SAY STAY TUNED.
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