Founding-Father TV

adams children john

In John Adams, Benjamin Franklin steals the show.
posted March 14, 2008
A new Web show with Coolio and a new season of Top Chef.
posted March 12, 2008
Two new reality shows about high school.
posted March 7, 2008
And other election coverage highlights.
posted March 5, 2008
The talk-show host casts her lavender wand over reality TV.
If John Adams (HBO, Sundays at 8 p.m. ET) doesn’t clean up at the Emmys, then I don’t know what could. This has nothing to do with the seven-part miniseries being marked by any overwhelming excellence—in fact, it is frequently merely decent and occasionally plain dull—but because it has all the hallmarks of a prestige project, and the television industry is never more craven than when grasping for the mantle of Culture.
Admire, as if by the glow of a Waterford candelabra, the series’ literary pedigree (with the screenplay based on David McCollough’s biography), its classy stars (with Paul Giamatti in the lead and Laura Linney as his bride), its stately art direction and rich costumes (with many marvelous tricorns and wainscoting to die for). Further, for the Hollywood elite to deny prizes to a project with these themes—the birth of the nation, the work of a patriot, the strength of a marriage—would be as unthinkable as a Democrat trying to look soft on crime. So, congratulations, HBO, on your great success. Just don’t take it as a license to produce a 12-hour drama about the Stamp Act.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, March 16th, 2008 at 10:00 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

12 Responses to “Founding-Father TV”

  1. Gaenor says on March 17th, 2008 at 6:27 am :

    So is that as bad-ass as Paul gets eh?

  2. Rhetta says on March 17th, 2008 at 7:17 am :

    Ron Paul vs. Mike Huckabee is going to be the Republican main event heading into Super Tuesday. I’m just about sure of it.

  3. Gray says on March 17th, 2008 at 8:08 am :

    Just to keep things in perspective, the latest USA Today/Gallup poll has Ron Paul cruising along at 3% nation wide. The man is a juggernaut.

  4. Sarra says on March 17th, 2008 at 8:59 am :

    I don’t think there was Pope that predated Peter, but then again, I don’t think Peter was a Pope.

  5. Alysa says on March 17th, 2008 at 9:49 am :

    Lordy. Where to even begin? I’m a lapsed Catholic, and I have major problems with the church, and donation pressure is one of them, but this story is either bullshit or a complete abberation.

  6. Maximillian says on March 17th, 2008 at 10:40 am :

    Doocey is always condesending to everyone - he thinks he’s a stand up comic, and started out as the local weather guy, if you have watched him you can tell that he still wishes he could have been one of the color commentary guys on ESPN.

  7. Avaline says on March 17th, 2008 at 11:30 am :

    just out of curiosity have you ever gone into a confessional and taken part in the sacrament of reconciliation? I don’t mean to offend you- but since I have been a Catholic I have never had a priest with hold forgiveness. And the priest is not acting in place of Christ, only acting as a mediator between the two. It would be easy to sit in a room all by yourself and confess away all day long, but still not be sorry. When there is a human face in front of you it is a completely different experience. When I confess to my priest I am not apologizing for my wrongs to him “personally”. It is me acknowledging my wrongs to another human being.

  8. Jessica says on March 17th, 2008 at 12:21 pm :

    Many are now scared because their way of thinking is now questeioned. But once politicians are disarmed from using religion as a political tool, then what else do they have to run on? Their actions, so there is no reason to be afraid.And look at all the debate that has happened in only a few hours time, if what RP said had no truth in it, this wouldn’t be an issue and few would discuss this. Instead many are having an awakening and going through cognitive dissonance. once dissonance reaches a level that overcomes the resistance of one of the cognitions involved, that cognition will be changed or eliminated, and dissonance will be reduced.So we can be thankful for RP changing so many minds.

  9. Sybilla says on March 17th, 2008 at 1:11 pm :

    That is the beauty of this. Donations to support the campaign are virtually unlimited when you can fund individual grassroots effort like the blimp.Is the Ron Paul campaign on the cutting edge here? Have we yet to see how far this could go?

  10. Clemency says on March 17th, 2008 at 2:02 pm :

    I was under the impression that the purpose of confession is to provide healing for the soul as well as to regain the grace of God, lost by sin. Since those without the grace of god do not go to heaven, and men who commit sins have lost the grace of god until they confess and are forgive with a priest acting in place of Jesus, then it would follow that a priest can withhold entry into heaven.

  11. Sharona says on March 17th, 2008 at 2:53 pm :

    Wow, Ron looking tired .. :-/