yeah...as long as it's not another "Great Communicator" political hagiography. A critical view would be interesting, if done well.
> Hi Gary, > > Thanks for your response. I am thinking though, that because this film > offers up a much more critical stance on who Reagan was as a president and > a person (in line with your P.S. comment below) that libraries would want > to acquire this type of media that looks at him from this alternative (and > frankly more accurate) viewpoint? > > Thanks, > > Kristin > > -- > Kristin Cooney > [email protected] > ro*co films educational > 80 Liberty Ship Way, Suite 5 > Sausalito, CA 94965 > (415) 332-6471 x203 > (415) 332-6798 fax > www.rocoeducational.com > > > > > > > On 2/16/11 2:54 PM, "[email protected]" > <[email protected]> wrote: > >>Uh...we have the 1998 American Experience piece on Reagan is probably >> more >>than enough for any red-blooded American. >> >> >>Gary Handman >> >> >>PS: I'm still trying to forget Ronnie, myself (the guy who famously >>offered as a justification for unrestricted logging of California old >>growth, that "If you've seen one redwood, you've seen them all." Also >> the >>guy who, in dealing with student protesters, stated, "If there's going to >>be a bloodbath, let it happen." Also the guy who suggested selling off >>the Bancroft Library to make money for the state) >> >> >> >>> Hello there, >>> >>> I have been asked by one of our clients to assess the interest level in >>> the >>> educational market for the new documentary about Ronald Reagan. The >>> film >>> just premiered at Sundance and has been getting wonderful press (NY >>>Times, >>> Colbert Report, etc) and reviews. More information about the film is >>> listed >>> below. I am wondering how interested you all would be in acquiring this >>> film >>> for your libraries? It seems that this film uncovers footage and a side >>>of >>> the president that hasn't been seen before�but I wonder �� is the >>> educational >>> market just too saturated with films related to Reagan? >>> >>> I appreciate any thoughts you have about this! Thank you for your time. >>> >>> EUGENE JARECKI��S REAGAN, DEBUTING FEB. 7 ON HBO, EXPLORES AN ICONIC >>> AMERICAN >>> PRESIDENT >>> A glamorous leading man with the common touch, a dedicated ��Cold >>>Warrior�� >>> who helped negotiate the most sweeping accords in history with the >>>Soviet >>> Union and a staunch proponent of smaller government, Ronald Reagan >>>remains >>> an enigma even to many of his closest advisors. >>> A fresh examination of the fascinating paradoxes surrounding the man, >>>the >>> myth and his legacy, Eugene Jarecki��s insightful documentary REAGAN >>> follows >>> the 40th president��s rise from small-town lifeguard to revered >>> architect >>> of >>> the modern world. This textured study investigates how Reagan��s >>>homespun >>> political vision fueled a seismic career, one whose reverberations >>> still >>> shape American life. >>> Balancing the conflicting versions presented by colleagues, historians, >>> supporters and family, while combining archival footage, >>>never-before-seen >>> interviews and the words of Reagan himself, Jarecki assembles a rich >>> portrait of a contradictory figure who spun his movie stardom into >>> political >>> gold and became the leader of the free world. >>> Tracing his subject from small-town boyhood to heady Hollywood days, >>> Jarecki >>> discovers a man whose offhand amiability masked a steely resolve. When >>> his >>> acting career faltered after World War II, Reagan reinvented himself, >>> first >>> as president of the Screen Actors Guild, then as a pitchman for >>> products >>> ranging from cigarettes to laundry soap. He eventually landed the role >>> that >>> would send him down another path, as official television and corporate >>> spokesperson for General Electric. Reagan��s travel on behalf of the >>> company >>> to small towns around the nation provided him with a unique political >>> education as he gave speeches and mingled with GE��s workers. The >>>one-time >>> FDR enthusiast and supporter of the New Deal gradually abandoned his >>> liberal >>> roots for more conservative pastures. >>> By the 1960s, his transformation was complete. Standing beside >>> archconservative Barry Goldwater, the 1964 Republican nominee for >>> president, >>> Reagan became a charismatic voice for conservatism in America. As the >>> civil >>> unrest of the era exploded nationwide, Reagan rode the white, >>> working-class >>> backlash all the way to Sacramento and two terms as governor of >>> California. >>> Reagan��s willingness to allow the National Guard to confront >>>demonstrating >>> students with tear gas and attack dogs earned him a reputation as a >>>tough >>> traditionalist. The support and admiration of the so-called ��silent >>> majority�� buoyed his unsuccessful campaigns for the presidential >>> nomination >>> in 1968 and 1976, and in 1980, he topped the GOP field to run against >>>and >>> beat incumbent Democratic President Jimmy Carter. >>> Once in office, Reagan proved more pragmatic than dogmatic. After >>> campaigning for lower taxes, his administration raised taxes in six of >>>the >>> eight years of his presidency. Regardless, his charm and affability >>> won >>> the >>> hearts of the American public, which overwhelmingly reelected him in >>>1984. >>> He denounced the U.S.S.R. as an ��Evil Empire,�� demanded that the Soviets >>> ��tear down the [Berlin] Wall�� and authorized the ambitious Star Wars >>> Initiative to keep America militarily dominant. But at the same time, >>> Reagan was engaged in negotiations with Mikhail Gorbachev that resulted >>>in >>> a >>> sweeping agreement to reduce their nuclear arsenals. >>> His administration was rocked by the Iran-Contra affair after it >>> emerged >>> that arms had been sold in exchange for hostages and then, against the >>> will >>> of Congress, the proceeds had funded Nicaraguan ��freedom fighters.�� >>> REAGAN >>> takes an in-depth look at the scandal, which almost derailed his >>> presidency, >>> offering details on the president��s role and Secretary of Defense >>> Caspar >>> Weinberger��s refusal to turn over cabinet meeting notes. >>> Jarecki also explores how Reagan��s personal beliefs aligned with his >>> public >>> policies and finds that this stalwart symbol of conservative family >>>values >>> was also quietly open-minded on social issues. >>> Since Reagan left office in 1989, his name has become a mantra for >>> Republican politicians seeking credibility, symbolizing a return to >>> traditional values and a strong stand in the culture wars against >>>liberal >>> ��elites.�� But the truth, as Jarecki reveals, is far more complex. >>> Others featured in the documentary include former White House chief of >>> staff >>> James A. Baker; former White House senior advisor Pat Buchanan; former >>> White >>> House speechwriter Peter Robinson; Arthur Laffer, economist and >>>architect >>> of >>> trickle-down economics; former CIA operative Frank Snepp; Ronald Reagan >>> Legacy Project founder Grover Norquist; son Michael Reagan, who works >>> to >>> keep the legacy alive; Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Frances >>> Fitzgerald >>> (��Way Out There in the Blue: Reagan, Star Wars and the End of the Cold >>> War��); official biographer Edmund Morris; Annelise Anderson and Martin >>> Anderson, co-authors of two best-selling books about Reagan; author >>> Will >>> Bunch (��Tear Down This Myth��); author Lou Cannon (��Reagan��); author >>>Thomas >>> Frank (��What��s the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart >>> of >>> America��) and journalist Dan Rather. >>> -- >>> Kristin Cooney >>> [email protected] >>> ro*co films educational >>> 80 Liberty Ship Way, Suite 5 >>> Sausalito, CA 94965 >>> (415) 332-6471 x203 >>> (415) 332-6798 fax >>> www.rocoeducational.com >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of >>> issues relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic >>> control, preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in >>> libraries and related institutions. It is hoped that the list will >>> serve >>> as an effective working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel >>>of >>> communication between libraries,educational institutions, and video >>> producers and distributors. >>> >> >> >>Gary Handman >>Director >>Media Resources Center >>Moffitt Library >>UC Berkeley >> >>510-643-8566 >>[email protected] >>http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC >> >>"I have always preferred the reflection of life to life itself." >>--Francois Truffaut >> >> >>VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of >>issues relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic >>control, preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in >>libraries and related institutions. It is hoped that the list will serve >>as an effective working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel >>of communication between libraries,educational institutions, and video >>producers and distributors. > > > > VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of > issues relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic > control, preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in > libraries and related institutions. It is hoped that the list will serve > as an effective working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel of > communication between libraries,educational institutions, and video > producers and distributors. > Gary Handman Director Media Resources Center Moffitt Library UC Berkeley 510-643-8566 [email protected] http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC "I have always preferred the reflection of life to life itself." --Francois Truffaut VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of issues relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic control, preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in libraries and related institutions. It is hoped that the list will serve as an effective working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel of communication between libraries,educational institutions, and video producers and distributors.
