Winchell (1998) (TV)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Paul Mazursky

Writers (WGA):

Herman Klurfeld (book)
Scott Abbott (teleplay)

Release Date:

21 November 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | History | News

Plot:

The true story of the influential and controversial columnist, Walter Winchell.

Plot Keywords:

Columnist | 1950s | Radio | Ghost Writer | Writer

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 5 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Stanley Tucci	...	Walter Winchell
Glenne Headly	...	Dallas Wayne
Paul Giamatti	...	Herman Kurfeld
Christopher Plummer	...	Franklin D. Roosevelt
Xander Berkeley	...	Gavreau
Kevin Tighe	...	William Randolph Hearst
Frank Medrano	...	Melvin Diamond
Vic Polizos	...	Sam Hague
John F. O'Donohue	...	Harry the Doorman (as John O'Donohue)
Michael Greene	...	Bellamy
Rod McCary	...	Emcee
Victoria Gabrielle Platt	...	Josephine Baker
Rabbi Jonathan Aaron	...	Rabbi
Pat Asanti	...	Vaudeville Magician
Sean Michael Allen	...	Mirror Reporter (as Sean Barnes)

MPAA:

Rated R for language and a scene of strong sexuality.

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Iceland:12 | Germany:6 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Fried Films

Goofs:

Anachronisms: When Winchell does a Las Vegas nightclub act in 1958, a sign can be seen advertising a show starring Seigfried and Roy -- who didn't become headliners until years after Winchell's death.

Quotes:

Herman Klurfeld: But he's HITLER! You're only Walter Winchell.
Walter Winchell: That's where you're wrong. I'm Walter Winchell, he's only Hitler.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 56th Annual Golden Globe Awards (1999) (TV)

Soundtrack:

School Days

Good Movie, But Hollywood Lets It's Bias Hang Out

Winchell is rightly portrayed as a hero for his stand against Hitler and Nationalist Socialism in the nineteen thirties when the left (yes, the left) still had hopes that this vile Communist offshoot (yes, it was an offshoot of Communism) would be the milder alternative to it's parent ideology.

William Randolph Hearst is portrayed one minute bemoaning the fact that the "liberal bastard", Roosevelt wasn't shot and the next he's praising Hitler. This feeds the lie that Hitler was some sort of conservative, when in reality (not the media's reality) he was a racist, homicidal, left wing, radical that managed to gain control of a country! Why not balance the Hearst quotes by stating the fact that the Roosevelt Administration originally had a favorable opinion of the Nationalist Socialists and used some of it's domestic programs as inspiration for some of the New Deal policies!

When Winchell turns his ire towards Communists (who caused more deaths than Hitler) the hero portion of the program ends and he's suddenly transformed into a dastardly villain.

The movie portrays Senator Joseph McCarthy as having no support and dragging Winchell down with him. McCarthy never had the support of the media that once covered up Hitler's crimes but his level of support amongst the American people of that era was and still continues to be covered up. I think the decline in Winchell's popularity was probably due more to the 1950's proliferation of similar columnists and publications.

Walter Winchell may have been an SOB but he was a great patriot!