That's the press, baby
The passing of Paul Newman drummed up memories of his slap at the newspaper business, "Absence of Malice," in which he played the maligned target of irresponsible reporter Sally Field. It also got me thinking about the greatest newspaper movies of all time. My list:
5. "The Paper" (Michael Keaton as the overly caffeinated city editor: "Sometimes you can just smell a horrendously s---ty day on the way, can't you?")
4. "The Front Page" (1931) (Star reporter Pat O'Brien making a promise he can't keep to his gal pal: "If I'm not telling you the absolute truth, may I fall dead. I'm going to New York tonight with you, if you give me one last chance. I'm going to cut out drinking and swearing and everything connected with the crazy newspaper business! Honey, I'll never even read a newspaper.")
3. "All the President's Men" (Jason Robards' Ben Bradlee to his Watergate reporting team: "Nothing's riding on this except the, uh, first amendment to the Constitution, freedom of the press, and maybe the future of the country. Not that any of that matters, but if you guys (expletive) up again, I'm going to get mad. Goodnight."
2. "Citizen Kane" (New publisher Orson Wells on his deep pockets: "You're right, I did lose a million dollars last year. I expect to lose a million dollars this year. I expect to lose a million dollars next year. You know, Mr. Thatcher, at the rate of a million dollars a year, I'll have to close this place in ... 60 years.")
1. "Dateline - USA" (Crusading editor Humphrey Bogart to an unhappy gangster: "That's the press, baby. The press! And there's nothing you can do about it. Nothing!")
My favorite Newman movies? Split decision between "The Verdict" and "Cool Hand Luke."
Comments
Great actor who gave so much to so many without anyone knowing. He will be missed by all!
Posted by: Reader Bob | October 1, 2008 9:55 AM
Kudos to Steve Lambert for his stand on blogs and the public's right to know and voice opinion on issues we believe are important. Isn't that why we call it the United States? Freedom of speech is fundamental to democracy. Special kudos to George Watson for his work on the Sharon Gilbert/Mark Uffer saga. Well done, George! As a county employee (and a county taxpayer), I am apalled at Mr. Uffer's behavior. Shame on you, Mark. You are the highest ranking (and highest paid) employee in the food chain; can't you find a more dignified way to conduct yourself on taxpayer's time than to impersonate bloggers on Sharon's web site, and threaten her with disciplinary suspension? I'd say Uffer is the one who needs a suspension. A permanent one.
Posted by: troubled times | October 1, 2008 7:13 PM