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DVD Eleanor & Franklin - The Early Years
The second and concluding part of the 1976 miniseries focuses on Franklin D. Roosevelt's early career and the major role his wife played in overcoming profound difficulties in their marriage. Told mostly in flashback, the film features Edward Herrmann and Jane Alexander, whose performances in the title roles are uncanny. During World War I, the Roosevelts moved to Washington, D.C., where young Franklin, while serving in the Wilson administration, began having an affair with Lucy Mercer, his wife Eleanor's social secretary. Deeply wounded when she discovers his betrayal, Eleanor nonetheless stays with Franklin. And she would be at his side when, during a summer vacation with their five children, he was stricken with polio and paralyzed. Urged to take a more public role during his recuperation in the early 1920s, Eleanor touchingly admits, "I'll never be any good at public speaking." In a scene in which Eleanor drives a roadster down a country road while rehearsing the speech she's on her way to give in rural New York State, Alexander beautifully captures Eleanor's determination to overcome her own shyness and become a champion of progressive politics. This miniseries, which met critical acclaim when it was first aired, has aged very well. It's a great love story as well as a great political story, an engaging drama made all the better by its historical resonance. --Robert J. McNamara
Review(s): DVD Eleanor & Franklin - The Early Years
Finally!!!
With so much junk produced today on DVD, it is refreshing that this wonderful miniseries was finally put out on DVD. Let me begin by saying that once again Amazon got the description wrong- This is not the concluding part of the miniseries, but the first miniseries from 1976. The description talks about the second half produced in 1977! These types of mistakes can be very misleading to anyone purchasing this DVD. But, beyond that this is one of the great miniseries of the 70's. There were many great and timeless classics made during those years and this has always been at the top of my list. Jane Alexander is the perfect Eleanor and Edward Herrmann playing FDR is only second to Ralph Belamy's portrayal, but also great and very effective. What I really liked about this miniseries is that they didn't gloss over the affair between Lucy Mercer and FDR, but it was handled very honestly. All of the supporting cast makes this a must see!
Truly Amazing Performances !!!
I have been waiting for this on DVD for years! I first saw this on the history channel during a re-broadcast in the 90's. I really enjoyed that broadcast because it included an interview with an historian/biographer of Eleanor Roosevelt. I remember that she had confirmed that this mini-series was very good history (in other words, historically accurate and true to known facts).
I appreciated knowing that as I watched the show, because it seems to me to be pointless to put together a production based on actual people if the most fundamental story line is fiction or "fictionalized" (i.e., "A Beautiful Mind", "Pearl Harbor", not to mention practically every World War II movie other than "Tora Tora Tora", which take far too many liberties with the facts).
With that little bit of information tucked away, I was able to enjoy the performances in Eleanor & Franklin even more, for they really took me back into time. Words escape me as I try to express just how much an impact this had on me. It gave me a new appreciation for the humanity of Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt (both tragic and triumphant), that just isn't captured in the brief accounts in the history books of our schools.
I highly recommend this mini-series. I just ordered the DVD a few moments ago, so I can not yet speak as to the quality of this particular release. I am not even sure if it is the complete "Early Years" (starting with eleanor's childhood) - I certainly hope that it is.
I would also like to thank the reviewer who mentioned "Backstairs of the White House". I haven't seen that mini-series since it was originally aired. I remember that it was extraordinary. I certainly plan to purchase that on DVD when it is released.
And finally, let me add my voice to those calling for the release of "The White House Years" on DVD ASAP! Although I thought that TWHY was a bit "rushed", loosing some of the attention to detail that was present in TEY, (And although I was disappointed with the casting change of the Louie Howell(sp) character), I still give it my highest ratings!
Eleanor and Franklin:The White House Years
WHERE OH WHERE is the White House Years on DVD??? I simply am at a loss to understand why the 1977 follow-up is not as yet
on DVD...slightly Coo-Coo!
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