Hardball examines the Kennedy legacy in a new documentary
Posted: Monday, August 17, 2009 10:43 AM by Cathy Finkler
MSNBC will premiere its latest documentary,
The Kennedy Brothers: A Hardball Documentary, reported by Hardball’s Chris Matthews, on Thursday, August 27th, at 7 P.M. ET.
Before John F. Kennedy entered the political scene, no politician had ever seemed so comfortable—so himself—in front of television cameras. While politicians of the past were forever frozen in black and white photos, the Kennedy brothers were a crisp color image. They brought to Washington a level of glamour previously seen only in Hollywood movies. But even the finest Hollywood director could never have cast such dashing leading men, nor could the finest screenwriter have conceived their tragic storyline.
The MSNBC original documentary The Kennedy Brothers deconstructs the myth and legend surrounding this quintessential American family. The documentary is reported by Chris Matthews, whose opportunity to work with and report on the Kennedys since the 1970s gives him a unique insight into their story. Matthews is also the author of the book, Kennedy and Nixon: The Rivalry That Shaped Postwar America.
Matthews sits down with key Kennedy insiders, including Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Frank Mankiewicz, biographer Peter Canellos, and presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, to gain priviledged access to their opinions on this enigmatic family.
The Kennedy Brothers documentary delves deeply into the family’s saga and seeks to discover why we as a nation not only embrace the family legend, but seem to have a desire to make their story our story. It takes viewers behind the Kennedy legacy, exposing the family’s scandals, personal recklessness, and dashed hopes. The program’s insider access helps us come to terms with what this family has meant for American history—and what its absence will mean for America's future.
As a supplement to the film, Hardball.msnbc.com will post interviews not shown in the documentary, as well as exclusive archived footage of Kennedy speeches and appearances that have not been aired in their entirety for nearly 40 years.
Watch a preview of the documentary -- how JFK used the power of television in his presidential campaign below.
