I wrote a couple of days ago about a special screening event for ANDREW JACKSON: GOOD, EVIL AND THE PRESIDENCY and promised I’d have more info. Well here it is:
Join us on Saturday, December 8, 2007 at 1:00 p.m. at the Downtown Nashville Public Library when NPT presents a sneak peek of the new PBS documentary ANDREW JACKSON: GOOD, EVIL AND THE PRESIDENCY. The afternoon event is free and open to the public and will include clips from the documentary and commentary from executive producer and writer Carl Byker; academic advisor Dan Feller, University of Tennessee professor of history and editor/director of The Papers of Andrew Jackson; and Richard Cowart, board president of The Hermitage, Jackson’s historic home in Nashville. A light reception will follow.
This is going to be a great afternoon event for anyone interested in Andrew Jackson, politics and/or history (especially presidential history).
Here’s a little more about the film:
With re-enactments, lithographs, letters and the insights of distinguished scholars, ANDREW JACKSON: GOOD, EVIL AND THE PRESIDENCY transports viewers into the world of America’s seventh president, who, in one of the boldest political strokes in history, founded the Democratic Party — yet was viewed by his enemies as an American Napoleon. Narrated by Emmy® Award-winning actor Martin Sheen, it tells a story with startling relevance to the modern presidency by bringing to life one of the most remarkable, yet divisive presidents in United States history. ANDREW JACKSON: GOOD, EVIL AND THE PRESIDENCY comes to NPT and PBS stations nationwide on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 8:00 p.m. CT.
The first president with a nickname, “Old Hickory” was born in a log cabin to poor Scotch-Irish immigrants in 1767 near Camden, South Carolina. He was an orphan by age 13, but rose to become a major general in the United States Army and the seventh president of the United States. He earned his law degree in 1787, and by the following year was the Western District public prosecutor in Nashville, Tennessee, thus beginning a long relationship with the state with which he will forever be associated.
Jackson had strong opinions and equally strong opposition during his eight years as president. That he even made it to the White House surprised and shocked many politicians. His campaign style and tenure as president were turning points in American politics. He was the first president to open the doors of the White House to blue-collar Americans, and he shook up the glossy world of Washington, DC, with his “common-man” methods and ideals, but also oversaw one of the most controversial events in American history: the forced removal of Indian tribes, including the Cherokees, from their homes.
“Is he a president we should celebrate or a president we should apologize for?” asks Carl Byker, the film’s producer, writer and co-director. “Of all the presidents whom Americans have had conflicting feelings about, the one who’s been simultaneously adored and reviled with the most intensity is Andrew Jackson.”
This documentary reveals that Jackson fought in the Revolutionary War when he was 13 years old and used the skills learned in battle to kill a man over a gambling debt; that Jackson led the American Army to the most surprising victory in its history in the Battle of New Orleans, but also launched an unauthorized invasion of Florida; that Jackson was the first great champion of the common white man and owned more than a hundred black Americans; and that Jackson dramatically expanded the United States and did so by brutally wresting vast regions of the South from Native Americans.
“Despite his pivotal role in American history, few television productions have focused on the life of President Jackson,” says Joyce Campbell, presenting station KCET vice president of education and station production executive. “This is one of the first films focused on the complexity of Jackson as a leader. The timing on this is perfect and so relevant in January with so many primaries happening across the United States.”
11 Comments
http://olehickory.home.comcast.net My Regards to Carl Ill be looking forward to the premire Jan 2nd Dave McArdle
I was Margaret Bayard Smith in the film and am so sad I won’t be able to attend the screening. When and where can I purchaes a DVD and will there be another screening before it airs on January 2?
Thanks,
Sarah Roberts
Hi Sarah,
It’s so good to hear from you and I’m sorry you won’t be able to make the screening. Unfortunately, we won’t be doing another event before the premiere on January 2. I’m pretty sure DVDs will be available from the PBS.org site for the program once it’s up (it’s not yet) after the premiere. It’s a fantastic documentary.
Joe Pagetta
Media Relations Manager
Nashville Public Television
Hey Guys,
Just saw the sneak pre; Job well done! It’s gonna start some S***! We have to remember, those people back then thought they were doing “God’s Work” when they removed the Indians. I hope the discussion site for the students will include something about how God fearin’ people owned slaves and looked down on the ” poor Indian who see’s God in the clouds and hears his voice in the wind”
You obviously went to a lot of trouble to be period correct in a lot of the scenes and photography…throw me in with the nit-pickers from UT; the paint brushes the painter is using throughout the feature are Modern and are not period correct – They show up several times… I think only us painters will notice…
i’m watching the show now. it’s pretty much an embarrasment. very PC–as to be expected.
very disappointed. big history buff, but hate when guilt surpasses history.
PBS needs to stick to cooking shows.
I have read much about Jackson can vouch for the veracity of this point of view. Our blind nationalism accounts for the increasing odium from the rest of the world, and the contempt from among many of our own citizens who chafe at the unwillingness of our own nation to account for the atrocities that fill our past; sheer arrogance.
I must agree with Lee. This is a dissappointment.
WEll if Mr Jackson wheathers the critic ,and im sure he will people will realize –he was not quite as powerful as we would have imagined . The Congress wrote the Removal papers ,am i correct??? why are they not blamed ?? why single out jackson He simply signed the papers. And the Hermitage for years said Mr.Jackson was a kindly Benevolent slave holder why do they sell him out now as an abuser when Many of his people stayed on the farm after being freed ??? and had fire arms the whole time they worked for Jackson?? so lies are being made up no doubt to make him look guilty ,He Is not ,and the cherokee have no one to blame but themselves for hiding till winter when they froze on the trail of tears ! reality and fiction are two differat things face reality it was thier choice to go rather than join . They got five millon dollars to klleave in may they renaged and where forced in winter. Who,s fault is that John ross chief
I think the alledged Hermitage Scholars? should get real .They have shot themselves in the foot and will shortley feel the uneasy conscequences in people not bothering to go there .Go by all means if you are interested in slavery and the negitive aspect of harsh facts of uncontrolable yesterday.But dont fool the public into thinking they are going to get a bamg for thier buck hearing the story of Andrew Jackson and get LECTURED AND COACHED BY AN AUDIO TAPE TO {JUDGE ANDREW JACKSON.:eave the moral conotations to the preachers if i wanna be preached to ill go to church.
In response to a recent article by Carl Byker regarding slavery, I would like to post the following comments.
As we saw in 2002, the issue of reparations for slavery is a volatile one with several practical difficulties. As slavery has ended approximately 135 years ago, there is difficulty in accurately determining exactly what damages occurred, who should be liable for payment of damages, how to accurately determine the amount of damages, and to whom damages should be paid.
That discussion did not address those issues with specific details. In fact, almost all discussions I have heard start with the assumption of liability on the part of all current non-black American citizens with no mention of exemption from liability for those descendants of slaves, recent immigrants, or many thousands of people who died in a war to free slaves. Should the descendants of people who paid the ultimate price be an exempt class of citizens also exempt from liability? How does one accurately trace ancestry for purposes of this proposed class-action lawsuit or do we sue society in general and pay anyone looking to cash in?
Is there an issue regarding any statute of limitations or do we plan to legislate all past historical wrongs? There are many historical examples of civil wars, revolutions, and genocide in which a general amnesty was issued due to numerous practical limitations as well as the practical realization that not all earthly issues will be resolved fairly. Sometimes we just have to do like Nelson Mandela and get on with life.
Is there any specific information regarding what damages occurred or do we use a general knowledge created by watching b-grade movies to create a blanket indictment of all Americans?
At the end of the Civil War, should all foreign-born slaves have been deported rather than granted automatic citizenship? While that may seem a preposterous idea, if you’re going to deal with the issue seriously from a legal standpoint rather than from an emotional standpoint based on sympathy or racial hostility, then all issues need to be considered.
While anybody with a sense of justice realizes slaves were due legal damages and compensation, the tens of thousands of people who paid a higher price as well as the nation in general considered the issue resolved over 100 years ago.
Hopefully this brief response demonstrates the practical as well as legal limitations in trying to right all the world’s past wrongs in addition to the possibility of committing another wrong in the process.
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