TR, The Story of Theodore Roosevelt
TR, The Story of Theodore Roosevelt (1996)This is a full-bodied, four-hour American Experience symphony on the most accomplished, complex person ever to occupy the presidency. David McCullough, who wrote a book on TR's early years, eloquently describes the psyche of the young TR. The ‘black care’ theme links the depressions and compulsions that are hallmarks of TR’s vigorous life. Author of books that today earn historians’ plaudits as well as a first-rate ornithologist, his compulsiveness was matched by attempts to override his dark moods. Clearly the death of his mother and wife within twenty-four hours was a dramatic ‘black care,’ which he addressed by never again mentioning his first wife and fleeing to the West for months of macho living.
This documentary captures the many moods of TR, including his mastery of PR spin. Whether in Cuba with Richard Harding Davis, or providing news 24/7 as president, TR knew how to capture the headlines. As the British ambassador once commented, “Remember that Roosevelt is a boy of six (or twelve, depending upon the source).” Apropos was the comment that Roosevelt wished to be the corpse at every funnel and the bride at every wedding.
Though Roosevelt is remember as the great reformer during the Progressive Era, the facts show that he was far more pragmatic and, indeed, there was less to his bug business trust busting than met the eye. This documentary catches the sadness of TR. Once he impulsively stated that he wouldn’t run for election following his 1904 triumph, he became a lame duck president. During his final year his relationship with a conservative Senate was irreparably fractured.
After a well-publicized hunting African safari, TR hobnobbed with European royalty, then was triumphantly received upon his homecoming. It seemed inevitable that he would clash with President Taft and, as a third-party candidate, permit Democrat Woodrow Wilson to win the White House.
Subsequently TR became a tragic figure, stridently attacking newcomers who were not ‘real Americans’ and castigating Wilson for not being manly and enter World War I. A touching pathos was when TR realized that he was, in part, responsible for Quenton’s, his favorite son, death while fighting with the British in France. TR’s Brazilian exploration journey, where he almost died, was a fitting conclusion to his Don Quixotic life.
While I applaud this American Experience documentary, personally I prefer The Indomitable Teddy Roosevelt (1983) an earlier, shorter, low-budget telling of the TR story. For me, this was a brilliant sonata that touches more of the peaks than the valleys of TR’s eventful life. Star Spangled Banner and Onward Christian Soldiers reflect the upbeat tone of this documentary. Nonetheless, historically Theodore Strauss’s text would withstand the scrutiny of professorial nitpickers.
Engle’s documentary was made during the first term of another Great Communicator. TR and Reagan both preached simple virtues and practiced bold leadership. Personally, I find TITR as relevant today as it was when first viewed on ABC a generation ago.
