Today’s movie is a biographical drama with a scene that
happens on January 14. Watch it tonight and enjoy.
GEORGE WALLACE
In 1972 Governor George Wallace
of Alabama, who’s running for the Democratic presidential nomination travels to
Laurel, Maryland and is paralyzed in an assassination attempt. Back in 1955
Wallace was “Big” Jim Folsom’s successful gubernatorial campaign manager.
Folsom is a liberal on race matters and Wallace is his political heir. In 1958 Wallace runs an economically
progressive campaign, but the KKK supports the other more racist candidate and
he loses and to top it off his wife, Lurleen, wants to leave him. We flash
forward to Wallace’s inauguration as governor on January 14, 1963 where he
says, “Segregation Today, Segregation Tomorrow, Segregation Forever”. [1:01:17
to 1:14:20] Wallace became the pro-segregation candidate and convinced his wife
to stay. He calls out state troopers against demonstrations led by Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. in Birmingham. Wallace tells the US Attorney General “Bobbie”
Kennedy that he will oppose the integration of the University of Alabama and makes
his infamous ‘stand in the doorway’.
His speech at Harvard University causes a riot. Wallace thinks the Sixth
St. church bombing was caused by civil rights agitators, not the KKK. He calls
out the troopers to stop marchers at the Raymond Pettus Bridge. His wife gets
cancer. Wallace asks for a constitutional amendment so he can run again, but
this is refused, so his wife runs for governor and wins, but dies in office. In
1970 he meets Cornelia Spivey whom he marries and Wallace is elected governor
again. After he is paralyzed Wallace and his wife argue and later divorce.
However, being shot causes him to have a change of heart and revert back to his
earlier views on race. Wallace tries to apologize to “Big” Jim Folsom, whom he
had spurned, but is refused. He does go to the Dexter Avenue Baptist
Church, the biggest African-American
church in Montgomery, and apologizes.
A good although somewhat
sanitized biopic of this controversial figure.
Carry Me Home by Diane
McWhorter (Simon & Schuster, New York, 2001) at page 311 gives the date of
his inauguration.
Awards - The film won the
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie (Sinise), Outstanding
Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie (Winningham) and Outstanding
Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special (Frankenheimer) Emmys.
It was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie
(Jolie), Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries or a Movie, Outstanding
Cinematography for a Miniseries or a Movie, Outstanding Makeup for a
Miniseries, Movie or a Special and Outstanding Miniseries at the 50th
Primetime Emmy Awards.
Producers - John Frankenheimer and Julian Krainin
Director - John Frankenheimer
Running Time – 2 hours 58 minutes
Released - August 24, 1997
Cast -
Gary Sinise as George Wallace
Angelina Jolie as Cornelia Wallace
Mare Winningham as Lurleen Wallace
Joe Don Baker as “Big’ Jim Folsom
Copyright by Ivan Walters in 2015.
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