The Best Man (or Person)

I saw a discussion of the 1964 film about the selection of the president, The Best Man, starring Henry Fonda (principled egghead) and Cliff Robertson (McCarthy type). Do not know if I ever saw it though vaguely recall watching at least a few minutes. 

Penny Singleton, better known as Blondie and the voice of Jane Jetson, reportedly was in it but the footage was cut. The two main candidates want the endorsement of a former president, a practical sort who argues there are no principles, just how you play the game. He notes at one point:

We have had some bad old customs in this country. And one of them was that a Jew or a Negro or a Catholic, couldn't get to be President. Well, a Catholic can now be elected President. And someday we're going to have a Jewish President and we're going to have Negro President. Then, when all the minorities have been heard from, we're going to do something for the downtrodden majority of this country - and I mean the ladies!

Well, we have a Jewish Second Gentlemen, and hopefully -- now that we already had an African American president -- we will have a woman. 

If so, if we somehow manage to retain the Senate, Chuck Schumer says there is a good chance the filibuster will be broken to pass some major legislation, including related to abortion and voting rights. It might be time for democracy to win.

The old crusty ex-president doesn't think Henry Fonda has guts. He doesn't like Cliff Robertson but is willing to endorse him. However,  Robertson is not a good judge of character, including not even catching it when the ex-president said he's dying. 

At the end of the day, Henry decides to step down from the campaign, throwing his support to some nonentity. He argues that nonentities are often good choices to win (true enough) and that they can step up to the responsibilities of the job (more unclear).

Gore Vidal wrote the play that the film was based on. The film has a mixture of realpolitik and old-fashioned principles. It's well-acted and feels realistic. The opening montage includes images of all of the presidents from Washington to LBJ.  

How we select presidents changed. OTOH, there still is room for some drama and surprise. Would a film based on what happened this time be seen as unrealistic? You have some of the cliches in there.

The film ends with the choice of the nominee. We do not know if the candidate will win. Let's hope the "best person" will win in November.