Re: Thirteen Days

On Friday, April 9, 2021 at 7:21:44 PM UTC-4, Steve M. Galbraith wrote:
> On Thursday, April 8, 2021 at 10:02:56 AM UTC-4, John Corbett wrote:=20
> > On Wednesday, April 7, 2021 at 9:10:49 PM UTC-4, Steve M. Galbraith wro=
te:=20
> > > On Tuesday, April 6, 2021 at 11:03:22 PM UTC-4, John Corbett wrote:=
=20
> > > > On Tuesday, April 6, 2021 at 3:40:23 PM UTC-4, Pamela Brown wrote:=
=20
> > > > > On Monday, April 5, 2021 at 6:39:08 PM UTC-5, John Corbett wrote:=
=20
> > > > > > Thirteen Days was the title of a book written by (or ghost writ=
ten for)=20
> > > > > > RFK about the Cuban Missile Crisis. It was a source material fo=
r the made=20
> > > > > > for TV program The Missiles of October which was essentially a =
televised=20
> > > > > > stage play. Several decades later it was made into a major moti=
on picture=20
> > > > > > of the same name as the book. However there was something curio=
us about=20
> > > > > > the movie which I still don't understand. Kenny O'Donnell was b=
arely=20
> > > > > > mentioned in the book and had only one scene in the Missiles of=
 October.=20
> > > > > > In the movie Thirteen Days, he was made the central character p=
layed by=20
> > > > > > Kevin Costner. Essentially the crisis played out through his ey=
es. I've=20
> > > > > > always wondered why the producers chose to go in that direction=
 when it=20
> > > > > > seemed from RFK's book that he was barely involved in the manag=
ement of=20
> > > > > > the crisis. Was there other source material that indicated O'Do=
nnell's=20
> > > > > > involvement was much greater than what it appeared in the book?=
 If anyone=20
> > > > > > has an information as to why the movie expanded O'Donnell's rol=
e beyond=20
> > > > > > what the book indicated, I would appreciate it.=20
> > > > > https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-jan-22-ca-15450-stor=
y.html=20
> > > > Unfortunately this article requires an LA Times subscription which =
I don't=20
> > > > have but gave me the idea to search for other old newspaper article=
s on=20
> > > > the subject and I found this one from the guardian.=20
> > > >=20
> > > > https://groups.google.com/g/alt.assassination.jfk/c/OxC4lcyr5E0=20
> > > >=20
> > > > There seems to be a difference of opinion about Kenny O'Donnell's r=
ole in=20
> > > > managing the crisis but these might be the most intriguing paragrap=
hs"=20
> > > >=20
> > > > "Not only has the film perplexed historians by elevating O'Donnell,=
=20
> > > > hitherto seen as no more than a backroom White House fixer, to the =
status=20
> > > > of key player- "it's like making Rosencrantz or Guildenstern the le=
ad in=20
> > > > Hamlet", one joked - but it has angered the American military by=20
> > > > suggesting they tried to corral the Kennedys into all-out war.=20
> > > >=20
> > > > The furor has also raised awkward questions about the role O'Donnel=
l's=20
> > > > family played behind the scenes. His son Kevin, an internet tycoon,=
 helped=20
> > > > bankroll a buyout of Beacon Entertainment, which made the movie, an=
d=20
> > > > appears to have been the partial inspiration for promoting his fath=
er -=20
> > > > played by Kevin Costner - to the role of the "ordinary Joe" hero au=
diences=20
> > > > identify with."=20
> > > >=20
> > > > There is no doubt Kenny O'Donnell was close with the Kennedys,=20
> > > > particularly Bobby since they were teammates on the Harvard footbal=
l team,=20
> > > > O'Donnell being the quarterback while Bobby played end. For that re=
ason,=20
> > > > I think if O'Donnell had played as major a role in the crisis as th=
e movie=20
> > > > indicates, his friend Bobby would have given him more than just a p=
assing=20
> > > > mention in his book.=20
> > > I'm sure you saw this quote from McNamara when he asked which "lead r=
ole"=20
> > > Costner was playing.=20
> > >=20
> > > "What character is he playing?" He said, "Kenny O=E2=80=99Donnell." I=
=20
> > > said, "For God=E2=80=99s sakes, Kenny O=E2=80=99Donnell didn=E2=80=99=
t=20
> > > have any role whatsoever in the missile crisis; he was a political=20
> > > appointment secretary to the President; that=E2=80=99s absurd. So I=
=20
> > > won=E2=80=99t see it," I said. "=20
> > Actually I did not see the quote but I am not surprised by it. A pretty=
=20
> > clear picture is emerging that the movie greatly embellished O'Donnell'=
s=20
> > role. This is a pet peeve of mine. I understand that a certain amount o=
f=20
> > artistic license is taken when making historical films. Things like=20
> > composite characters and crafting scenes and dialog that nobody was pri=
vy=20
> > to are understandable. However an effort should be made to get the=20
> > fundamental facts right and it seems that was not done with this movie.
> Max Holland's views on the "Hollywoodization" of history makes the same=
=20
> points.=20
>=20
> Here's the first paragraph in his piece:=20
>=20
> "I used to have this annual argument at Christmas with my brother-in-law,=
=20
> a well-regarded film editor in Hollywood. I would arrive brimming with=20
> complaints about a movie like Argo, said to be =E2=80=9Cbased on actual=
=20
> events=E2=80=9D but with an entirely fictitious Keystone Kops-like airpor=
t=20
> chase scene. I would rail about the disservice to history and the=20
> misleading effects as an increasing number of Americans learn their=20
> history from Hollywood features. He would defend dramatic license.=20
> I=E2=80=99d respond by saying a driver=E2=80=99s license doesn=E2=80=99t=
=20
> give one the right to do anything one wants on the road. Round and round=
=20
> we=E2=80=99d go, until we reached his final redoubt: =E2=80=9CIt=E2=80=99=
s=20
> only a movie.=E2=80=9D=20
>=20
> He also mentions how RFK's "Thirteen Days" was not accurate either becaus=
e=20
> it presented RFK as a dove when the evidence is that at the start of the=
=20
> crisis he was quite hawkish. As the tapes indicate.=20
>=20
> Rest here: https://www.maxholland.info/2017/10/the-white-rat.html

Just a couple more examples of Hollywood rewriting history, both in movies 
I thought were entertaining.

Quiz Show - the story of the game show scandal which revealed the games 
were rigged to keep popular contestants winning for the sake of ratings. 
The story was true. The presentation of it was not. The key figures were 
Charles Van Doren, a Columbia professor who made a record run on the game 
show Twenty-One and Dick Goodwin, a Harvard lawyer working for a 
Congressional committee investigating the game shows. The movie depicts 
Goodwin getting involved in the case and becoming acquainted with Van 
Doren. In reality Goodwin was still in law school when Van Doren had his 
run on Twenty-One. The scandal didn't break until two years later when 
Goodwin was fresh out of Harvard Law having graduated first in his 
class.

Goodwin went on to become a speech writer and adviser to both JFK and RFK. 
His first wife who was portrayed in the film died in 1970 and he married 
Delores Kearns-Goodwin who is a frequent TV guest political commentator as 
well as in several Ken Burns documentary series, Baseball and The 
Roosevelts. Dick Goodwin died within the past few years.

Secretariat - the story of what many believe was the greatest racehorse of 
all time. The story line gave the impression that Secretariat saved the 
financially troubled horse farm which Penny Chenery took over from her 
ailing father by winning the Triple Crown. The reality is the horse that 
saved the Chenery farm was Riva Ridge who the year before won two legs of 
the Triple Crown. Secretariat's Triple Crown win no doubt was a financial 
boon but Riva Ridge had already put the farm on firm financial footing. 
To satisfy a tax lien against the farm, she syndicated the breeding rights 
to both Secretariat and Riva Ridge for $6 million and $5 million 
respectively. Riva Ridge wasn't even mentioned in the movie. Several years 
after the movie came out, Chenery admitted to having an affair with 
trainer Lucien Lauren who was played by John Malkovich in the movie. It 
was a Disney movie. They couldn't have put that in anyway.