Original subtitles

lwoman| \nirby seconds.

[man] All right, ready, VIA. One, you have the audience to pan,

Two, you have the window to pull.

(Goturied] My experience in television started

when | was representing United! Artists Television.

| Was tNelr production vice presicent, and | was in charge of the shows

tia were being produced tor our company.

| sulosequenily, iin television-- | joined the Ed Sullivan company.

And my joo was to develop new shows, specials

in all ditierent facets of television entertainment,

Interestingly enough, | met Paddy Chayettsky

while | was working ror Ec! Sullivans

So= As a matter of tact, we created a fascinating hour satire,

OUR Ik WAS a Ie too Strong for television att tat time.

But we Used to spend days just walling around the city talking about scripts

and ideas that he had for things.

And lhe was just a fascinating guy to be with

and obviously lorilliant and talented.

‘SO When Wwe got together, ultimately, to make films,

nt WAS a Great exchement on My part!

| can tum that show into the biggest smash on television.

What do you mean you want that show? ts a news show.

its HOt your depariment,

Now, who the hell is running this network? You or some conglomerate called CCA?

[Gottiried|] What happened was, there was a big story

aloout a major worldwide corporation

the American Broadcasting Company.

They had started negotiations to buy the whole broadcasting company.

Ane wnat immeciately came to Paddy's mine was that, like any other corporation,

trey would look tor where they could make the most profits.

Ihe division producing the lowest rate of retum has been the news division.

(Gottirical] Prior to this happening,

tie News ana the news area nad always been considered

an area Where the Networks UNCEerstood they would lose money.

Ano wnat Padely realized was that once one of these multinational corporations

KOOK OVEF A Major Networlk,

Key would immediately try to make the news area into a profit center.

And iin the process of doing that, they would obviously be willing

to bastarcize the news and to male iit into 2 total entertainment situation,

Ladies and gentlemen, ine Network News Four

wir Siloyl the Sooiisayer!

-[cramatic music plays] -japplause]

(Gottiried!] (But Ae would discuss alll of his ideas,

and we were together practically every day for tares or four hours.

Wheat would happen ts we'd sit in his office very frequently

pDecause we had Offices nearoy, and as we talked,

ned oe typing away or writing on a yellow pad.

And trequently, we'd talk and I'd come up with something in return,

and hed come up with something far better, obviously.

But | Guess... TING greatest value, | guess, that | could bring to it

Was NOt SO MUGA COMING UP win the ideas but assessing them and evaluating them.

And it was the bouncing-oir of ideas that kind of energized him into doing more.

BU It LOOK him aloout a yealr to complete the script.

Bun tat was more than 2 first drat

When we handed it in, it was, you Know, a finn dratt because, you know,

Wwe Kept Working ON these things until we both felt, particularly Paddy,

Kina it was reallly what he wanted to get out of ft.

And once we handed tt tn, dere were very minor changes, very minor.

TV is Showolz, Max:

All| | Know is this violates every canon of respectable broadcasting.

(Goturied] We didnt have a deal on it. We did it on what they call “spec.”

And we made a deal then with United Artists,

and we were aloout ready to move forward.

Ane Artnur rin, wino was tinen tne head or Unitied Artists

and a guy wino loved Network, actually,

NS wanted US to mest with his executive vice president of business atiairs.

SO we thouglat he wanted! to talk about some deal points.

And we go into his ofice, and he says:

“| Aave a problem wit the Howard Beale character.”

‘SO Paddy looks att him [chuckles] and says:

“YOu have a proolem wite the Howard Beale character?”

And lhe said, “Yes, | cdo."

Padealy got up, lett the room, left the building,

anc went loack to lis office!

Its hot that Paddy was not willing KORCISCUSSEAES ERO

OU tO CISCUSS It with the Executive vice president of business atiairs,

not that he doesnt have any notions that are perhaps worthwhile,

out ints not what tis Is gloouu

| mean, you've got enough proslems making a film,

and ir everyoody's gonna start coming In wit cinrerent ideas aloout characters...

Anyhow, subsequently, | met with Arthur Krim,

and Arthur said, “Jeez, iat was unfortunate, what happened,”

"Theyre gonna hold up moving forward.”

SO we contacted Paddy's lawyer, wino called them

and said, “LOOK, if you dont wanna move forward, just release the project."

And they cid release Mt

But word Got around that they released tt; and we got aloout a half dozen calls

rom Gitverent stucios!

Ane eventually, we were gonna make a deal with MGM.

But United Artists were the distrioutors for MGM,

and they got in toucn with MGM and said, MMIC ASCHCIMUSHOCMIMOMEORAISO

as Paricipants, you Know, in financing it and in the protits, etc."

‘SO they came lack into the picture.

But ONS Of the misconceptions that a lot of people have about Paddy

is that he was very Gitricult with his own works

and it was very ditticult to get him to change things

or to listen to other people's Opinions.

Nina's Hot true at alll]

Paddy was always Open to ideas, and he was willing to work with the people

Wwino were involved in tie production!

a hands-on producer of the film.

Not only was Ine the writer;

lout In Order to protect iis words,

Ne kept procucorial... HOt just the creat

OuK tne actual activity:

‘SO he was on the set every day.

rie would come to dailies every night.

And! Ae waticned actors to make sure they could get what he was saying,

say what he was writing, actually.

(Gottiriec|] Paddy's great love was the theater,

and he wrote aloout six or eight plays,

many oF which were on Broadway:

And in the theater, it is the writer who is king.

SO wien @ play is procluced, it's “by Tennessee Williams,"

“oy Paddy Chayetsky,” “oy Arthur Miller,” you name it.

SO it always was “by Paddy Chayetsky. \

Not “sereenplay loy” or “story loy” or anything like that.

“By Paddy Chayetsky.|

SO tine idea of Paddy's creciit was essentially how he felt

aloout lls MOVIC SCFipt, Which Was exacily how he telt aloout his theater scripts.

As IS Mass macness!

in Good at My WOrK:

(Gottiriec|] We lhad called Sidney because Paddy had worked with him on television.

[Lumet] | elevision was where | began directing, actually:

| had a dear triend then, Yul Brynner, wio--

ThAis is betore lhe cid King and I

and he began working at CBS, and he called me one day and he said:

[Russian accent] "Sidney, they're crazy down here.

Nobody knows whet they're doing, Come along.”

lin normal voice] And | went down, and a wonderful guy

by the name or Crarile Underinill was in charge of hiring for CBS then,

and | was lhired like that anc became Yul's assistant.

And then wren Yul leit to do King and I; | took over his show,

a Silly melodrama put a pretty good show, called Danger.

And when | was doing Danger, Paddy Chayetsky did his first script.

ils tirst television script he sole] was on Danger.

Bul we Saw eacn other Over the years, you know, just around

and always liked eacn oer.

rie Was one of the funniest men who ever lived,

é kind of wondertul, otter, wild humor albout him.

And two and a halt years before we did the movie,

he called me and ine said, “Sidney, do you wanna do a movie about television?”

| said, “Paddy, the day you're ready, call me."

And he dic, and it was that simple.

When we made our ceal with Sicihey Lumet, he certainly is a powerful enough

and Important enough cirector to have the final Cutt

But we didnt give lim the tinal cut, and he didnt want it,

ne realized that this was a partnership.

You know, it was Paddy's loaloy; and it was= Fle was directing.

But Sidney dicin’t have ditiicultty working with Paddy as a writer.

You know, we had cditrerences of opinion, but like everything else,

we cl resolve them,

Say something, tor God's sake.

What we're going to see now is something really sensational.

I'm gonna blow my brains out right on the air.

RIGIAt in the miciclle or the 7:00 news:

You'll get a hell or a rating, lll guaranties you that.

Paddy and || always used to saly that, "No, it’s not a satire.

It's sneer reportage. |lauglis]

And it turned Out to le alosolutely true.

(rienrixsen] Look at the realliiy shows iat are on Dow,

| mean, he talked aloout that, you know: “Tur that sihitioox off"

that was his whole thing.

And tine reality shows, ine had talked aloout them before they ever arrived.

An, hell, why limit ourselves’?

EXECUTION OF the week!

ll errorist or the week!

| Jove fi.

It was basically a very serious movie told in comedic terms.

The thing that some people coniuse is that it’s not just about television.

Paddy was 4 visionary about what was going on in the world.

| mean, he precicted in Network the globalization of the world.

(Jonsen] One vast and ecumenical holding company

ror whom alll men will work to serve a common profit,

in which alll recA will hole a share of stock,

all necessities provided, all anxieties tranquilized:

A\nd that's wnat's been happening more anc more

in our whole culture, alll over tie world.

Oloviously, it's not just America:

But the beauty of what Paddy did

Is that Ae Understood winat tis business was aloout,

i's an entertainment that we gotta co.

No matter what we want to say, no matter how we want to say it,

Ir you con't entertain, you're Not gonna be successful,

ANG NODOEY'S GONNA GO to Seq what it is that you have to say.

And he was increciiole thet way:

| mean, let's tace It, Network is a hilarious movie in many ways.

(Floware]] im going to blow my brains out right on this program a week from today.

-(PA] Ten seconds to commercial =S0 tune in next Tuesday.

hat Should give ine public-relations people a week to promote the show.

(Gottiriec!]| Untortunately, Paddy nassed away when he was 58 years old.

rie was a relatively young man and very much ready to continue writing

and would have unquestionaloly writien some fantastic material,

Ane God knows, what's been happening since his death,

iere Was @ lot or room for is writing.

But ls ContiriloutION to flim ISPUSMEMONMOUSS

SO dont have any illusions alooutt who's running this network from now on

Youre tired!

You're dressed like tie tule. You eat like the tule,

You raise your children like thie tuloe,

And Aeré are a tew scenes OMMNOVOCKESES NONE

[Lumet] Network had a very tough casting problem

because, first of alll, | needled rilliant actors,

And tien, also, | neecied aciors

that, you know, could oe tunny without having to be funny.

Who uncerstood the nature of comedy,

Wihiicn Is that it has to look like it’s periectly natural,

out it's not perfectly natural.

I's a very tough, hard line to tollow:

The light is impending! | bear witness to the light!

Lumet] Also, there was another consiceration

loecause United Artists was very nervous about the script.

You know, there were no pies tying in this comedy.

‘SO one of the things we talked albout was

now we could get as good a group of names together.

(Gottiriec!]| Well, the casting was something that, again,

Paddy was very, very involved wit,

and SO was, Oloviously, Sidney Lumet, the director.

And as a matter of fact, INVASHIMNVOMECEOON

Ihe three of us would discuss the casting and particularly the lead,

Fioward Beale, needing the qualities that are not so common in many actors.

And we spent 2 lot of time on that part,

In tact, we had to just put oi production to get somebody we were happy with.

‘SO if you want thie truth, go to God,

jo to your gurus,

GO to yourselves,

DOecause that’s the only place you're ever going to find any real truth.

Lumet] Padoy came up with lim.

it was Paddy's idea. And! | loved lls worik! | knew his work very well.

| had seen lhim in London on the stage as well as movies,

lout | was atraid of the accent, you know, because he was British.

‘So we had made an inquiry to his agent.

Ihe agent knew that t was a great part, Fle read the script.

And one day Peter Finch callled and he said, if we would be good enough

to send him a tape of Walter Cronkite or John Chancsllior

or any One OF the evening ancnors,

ne would send us back a tape in two weeks with a periect accent.

That's exactly what we cid. The tape arrived, and we lhired him.

Well, I'll tell you what happened: [ just ran out of bullshit.

PAN] Fight, cut hin off. Leave im on.

Lumet] Bill IFrlolden always, to me, Nac 2 real sense of sacness iin the face.

And we have a saying among ourselves that you cast for the third act.

YOu cast tor what the character finally winds up as being.

And tie third act or Bill's character is a guy who's lost.

| reel lousy aloout the pain that I've caused my wie and my kids.

| reel Quilty ane cConscience-siricken and all of those things

Kat you think sentimental

Ou WhIGA my generation callls simple human decency.

Lumet] There were a lot of actors who could have played it,

Out We were Siting around one day, all of a sudden, “How aloout Bill Holden?”

Pes

=nol Of discussion!

You know, the script went off

and tine response was immediate.

[Gottiricd|| We wanted somebody, you know,

wito could have an aiiair with Faye Dunaway

ane you would loelieve tt and yet had the size and the gravitas,

SO to speak, Of SOMEONE WhO would lbs a network official in charge of news.

| arn NOt putting lrlowared back on the ail.

It's Hot your show anymore, Mian. I's mine.

[Lumet] he tirst thing aloout that character that Faye Dunaway plays

is that she had to joe loeaurtiul

Very limporiant. She's this seductress, ater alll.

Secondly, tt had to be an actress who didnt want to be loved,

who didnt get up on the screen and want to pe loved,

A\nd it was interesting because Faye is the only one | wanted to talk to

oeiore we lnired her, because | just wanted to Make sure aloout that.

| cldint know her personally.

But | knew trom her work that she was very seliless and devoted,

and sae had read the Script, gotten back to us immediately:

Yes, she wanted to do tt.

Dunaway] TAls was sometning iat was around,

It was something that It was such an original piece of material

tat, you know, the powers that loe didn’t quite know what to make of itt.

And | never will torget looking at the pages,

and there were speecnes like that, and everyoody was very nervous aloout this,

Lumet] | went up to her aparument. She was living on Central Park West:

A\nd tie elevator opened into the apariment.

And as | was coming out of tie elevator,

She Was shting there looking so beautiful,

and lberore sie saic| a word, || saids

“Paye, | Know tine tirst question youre going to ask me.

Youre going to ask me, Where's her vulnerability?’

And Ina telling you here and now, she bas none.

And if you try to sneak itt in, ll cut it out in the cutting room."

Fie cleln’t tall into that trap where we say, “Oh, here’s this character.

Now let's try to explain her, anc say:

‘Well, tits is way she's like she ts, you know.”

You dont co tinat. iis Is wao sie Is]

And then it's up to me and the writer LORSOMMEMOWECTSANEESOMNCRMNOMNE INE

somewnere in there that you have a sense of what she's paying for.

But that's the most one should ever cdo, | think.

You know, you cant explain a character!

-You have a favorite restaurant? -| eat anything.

[Dunaway] It was something that wasn't casy to say yes to,

and | was advised loy alll my triends

and people wno cared aloout me not to do It,

because, you know, she didn't have a soul.

She was 2 TV baby,

Which meant that there was a kind OMVACAMINESSHOS MINORNOSERE CSE

And people were atrraicl that | would be thought of in that way.

BU it was something tat | couldn't not do, because | thought:

“iit | Can intuse the perrormance with some sense

or wnat she's paying Tor this lire,

or what kine! Of POIgnaNncy... |

Ano | tink | digi

| think there was something there that you felt...

You couldn't put your tinger on It, mayoe, but you felt for this character.

i's probally in the writing:

| seem to be Inept at everyting except my work.

Were talking aloout putting a maniiestly irresponsible man on national television.

(Gottiricd|]| Duvall was a last-minute iciea.

We just never relt right aloout it with anyone else.

Lumet] That was my crazy idea. | didnt know why | thought of him for it

Because you con't think or Rooert Duvall in. 2 character that wears 2 tuxedo,

Ano! Padaly thought tor a moment.

rie said, “Yealn, ae could be Soutihiem,*

pecause, you know, Bol still has a lite bit of that in his soeech.

And again, an immeciate response

And! loy the way, what's tascinating eloout Duvall’s periormance is how funny he is.

(So down to the mailroom,

As of this minute, over 14,000 telegrams, The response is sensational.

Fiero tell nim. riero’s phone hasn't stopped ringing.

every goddamned...

Dunaway] e's the guy | gotta get past, and he’s the one lve gotta talk=

I've got these brilliant ideas, you know? We're two of a kind, | think.

re understands exactly what I'm saying,

and | know exactly what to saly to lhim that will make him go for the idea.

And l'n tirmly convinced, | know,

dia these ideas are going to have a 50 share

and 2... [rattles off gilbloerish]... You know?

Oh, tor God's sakes, Diana, are YOU Suggesting we put that lunatic

pack on the air, yelling bullshit?

(Diana Yes. | think we snAould put Beale back on the air tonight

and Keep lnm On.

Dic] you see the news this moming? Did you see The Times?

[Dunaway] They were tun Scenes

lpecause Bold Is SO unique as @ performer and an actor.

You know, he's just so genuine, and he never lies,

ewe moicrones)

is always happening to him:

Its not happening to the Characier. rie never uses third person, you know.

(Iaughs] Irie's always: “Tl! 1." You know, which is right.

I'S Got to be so personal:

So ne was 2 lot or un to..J

Because he's also very smart, so he got it,

ane you could see his mind kind or working it out as Diana was laying it out to him.

rll Get back to you, Diana!

| sold sewing machines and automobile parts,

nairorushnes and electronic equipment.

‘They say | can sell anytning.

|Gottiriec|] The Ned Beatty part was cast with somebody else originally.

And when Sidney was rehearsing...

We had two weeks of rehearsal oerTore we started to shoot.

ocalt OOCAMS ODVIOUS that the person that we had cast just couldn't carry It.

SO because tie scene wasn't going to le shot till later on,

we just started a lhunt tor that character.

Ane we couldn't come up with somelocly who we elt could fill the role,

And we were just having luncn one day, and Bob Altman was there,

and we were alll talking aloout the ditiiculty in that character,

anc Boo Altman said, "| got the guy for you.

Its Ned Beatty."

[Lumet] Ihe poor main,

No actor should have to work under those circumstances.

Fie flew in, Stuclying the seript as he came, leaming the lines:

| met with him on a Sunday, did the first work with him,

and loegan shooting with him the following Monday,

DSCAUSS WE did Not have a large budget for this movie,

and so every day's Shooting mattered!

Ana Ned, laless (hin, Came on Se Set So Nervous

DeCAUSE the pressure on him to= First of all, just to memorize fit.

rie had a four-page speecan.

| think somebody may have mentioned that I'd had a lot of theatrical background

and had done some Shakespeare, because, quite frankly,

when | got down to Working on it, this was more like doing a speech

irom Shakespeare than it was anything else I'd ever done in a film, certainly.

ere are ho nations, here are NO peoples,

Knere are No Russians, there are no Aralos.

There are no third worlds. ‘Tiaere is no West

here is only one holistic sysiem of systems,

One vast and immane, interwoven, interacting, multivariate,

multinational dominion of collars,

|Gottiriec!] Fie was a great joys

And he got an Academy Award nomination for that part.

And it's just one big scene, reallly.

You willl atone!

Am | getting through to you, Mr. Beale?

[Gottiricd|| And interestingly enough, too,

us SCENE aloout the loreakup of the marriage,

that was tine only scene that Beatrice Straight had,

aside trom a Couple of just pass-throughs.

Don't keep telling me that you're obsessed,

that you're infatuated. Say that you're in love with her.

Ane sae won tie Academy Aware jor that scene.

And sie was up against some very well-known

and very terrific actresses.

But site worked for one week, and she got the Academy Award:

she could break your heart in that scene.

And tf you can't Work Up a winter passion tor me,

wie least | require is respect and allegiance:

[Lumet] It was important that he walk away from something,

hina Ine leaves something very valualole.

And | could think or nothing more valualle than Beatrice Straight.

Shed... SAS Was an incredibly beautiful woman.

And |e! been working with Beatrice Straight on and off

in live television for years!

Creat soul.

Youre in tor some dreaciiul grier, Mlen

(Giirord] Fucking fascist]

Did you see tne tlm we mace of the San Marino jail oreakoutt

demonstrating the FISINg UP OF 4 seminal orisoner-class intrastructure?

WY OU CAIN.

[Katty] | played Mary Ann Gitrore in the movie,

enc it was kine of modeled airer

the Patty riearst “heiress kidnapped oy the Symbionese Liberation Army.”

Only in this case, it was the Ecumenical Lilberation Army,

an incredible opportunity for me

DSecaUuse | was JUS Staring out as an aciress,

directed by Sidney Lumet

ano written loy Paddy Chayersky;

even though it was quite a small part,

was phenomenal.

(Flerron] That's the Great Almed Kalan. Hie’s their leader.

|Goturied] The Great Anmed Kalin was a fun bit of casting,

loecause | hac a small office,

and this huge mountain of a guy comes in; and he was angry. [laughs]

| mean, Ae kine or wanted to show us that he’s right for ft.

And he started out real vicious-like, and he was screaming at us and everything.

In any event, of all the people we saw,

we felt he would be the most efrective guy ror that role.

Lets get back to page 22, 5a, subsidiary rights.

[Kathy] Arthur Surgharet, wio played the Great Ahmed Kahn, was a vegetarian.

Ane Of course, we had take ater take with him eating this tried chicken.

Ane not only was he a vegetarian, but he was very healt conscious

even loack tien, in tne “70s.

‘SO he had a bucket sitting down at the side of the talole.

A\nd then as soon as they'd saly “cult, " he'd... Spit it down into the bucket

and Wipe his MOUKA Out, you Know.

Then hAe'a have to do kt again. Fle was like, "Ugh."

IK was hormiole to im!

All of these actors were king of woncdertul actors.

They dicin’ hole! up the set. They didnt have problems. They=

You know, we alll worlked together as a kind of professional.

Lumet] What was thrilling was that we never got a turncdown.

Whoever we seni tine script to said yes.

Usually, somewnere down tne line, you've got second, third, fourth choices,

and then finally some compromised choices. Not on Network

EVveryoody there was the first Choice, and they knew it.

Yesterday, | ANNHOUNCEE ON this program that | was going to commit public suicide.

Adlmitecly an act of madness.

Well, I'll tell you what happened: [ just ran out of bullshit.

|Gotturied] Ihe part or Peter Fincn

was complicated loy the tact inet tere is a madness in hina

Ane! writing that part and keeping it real, we really pushed it.

And that, incidentally, was Obviously also part of the reason

that casting that part was so diticullt,

DeCAUSS the reality has to loe there.

| mean, if the guy is completely mad, you lose that sense of reality.

A\nd tae scene where le does shout “lr mad as hell,”

here Is loth the reality or his passion, which you have to feel

because he cid feel that deeply, tne Howard Beale character.

We sit in the house, and slowly the world we're living in is getting smaller.

And! alll we saly Is, “Please, att least leave us alone in our living rooms.

Let me have my toaster and my IV and my steeHoelted racials

and | wont say anyitning.

Just leave us alone.” Well, ia not going to leave you alone.

| want you to get mac!

[thunder crashes, tien rumioles|

| want alll or you tO Get UP oUt of your chairs.

| want you to get Up Fight now and go to the window,

Open It, and stick your head out and yell:

"lm as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore!”

[Dunaway] Finca, he Is just so nutty

and so dignitied within that kine of machness that he went to,

And, yOu know, ne created an indelible character,

with those people opening tie windows and shouting “I'm mad as hell,

and I'm not gonna take hk anymore.” | mean, you know, it’s great.

Wiaen Peter Finch clic

Kine “mad as hell” soliloquy,

de tirst take was alosolutely magniticent.

And | said] to the crew, "Don't cut. Peter, sit down again.

| wanna go trom the beginning without a break,”

lpecause | reallly wanted lnim in such 2 siais of madness

that where he left off is where | wanted him to begin.

And he was very thrown by that

pecause lhe hac poured everything AS coule Into the take.

And! ne-= Burt he went back, he started again,

and he got halhway through again, and then he stopped and he said:

“Sidney, | can't anymore.” Fle said, “I'm so exhausted, | can't.”

| sald, “Peter, no problem. The first take was loriiiiant.”

And So that’s what's in the movie, ine first haly of tae second take...

its like everything everywhere is going crazy,

SO WE Clon t GO OU anymore.

[Lumet] ...and the second hall Of the Tirst take.

YOu Ve gotta say “I am as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore!”

I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it anymore}

I'm mad as hell! I'm not gonna take kt anymore}

Lumet] Ihat was In the seript, out it wasn't detailed,

What Paddy wrote, as | remember, was “And alll over the city,

WIncows are Opening and people are joining in” and so on,

(Gottiried|] Sicihey originally thought that it might be fun to do itt

with people screaming Out their cars and people walking down the street

and just every ditrerent kind of way.

And Paddy insisted that he reallly telkt it should be just numbers of people

GoINg to their windows, just leaving their homes, and just

“lm mad as hell. I'm not gonna take kt anymore.”

Whicn Sidney ultimately telt was the best waly to do it also,

I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take itt

[Lumet] And loecause of loucget, | shot that whole sequence in one night,

and it was part or the regular schedule,

DeCaUSe WEN you have to do night shooting,

generally you save it tor Fricay night in case you have to go very late

SO that you dont have to work on Saturday.

[Rosenberg] It started at the Aptiorpe when Holden's daughter goes to the window.

Ane tien it siatits to various locations and ends up in that building

on Sixta Avenue in the 50s that was empty

Kinat we had dressed into a complete... probably hundreds of apartments.

It was a luilding that was going to be torn down. It was an abancioned building.

So it made it much more citiculk for my crew lbecause every single room,

every aparmeni, had to have equipment in it, had to have lights in it

and elecirichy run to it because there was No electricity in the louilding:

And so it was a monumental rigging task for my electrical crew.

And then the staging ror the assistant cirectors

to get alll tne extras tO GO UP into those rooms

ANd stick their Aeads Out thie wincow at the right time and yell,

anc then for us to cover them,

We covered hen trom all_ over!

We covered them trom the ground, we covered them from a balcony

across the street, all ditrerent angles:

A\nd also, we had to use lightning macnines and rain effects, and it was huge.

it was 2 monstrous undertaking.

Normally, a second unit would shoot something like that,

out we did It ourselves!

Stiek your head out and keep yelling, and yell:

Tin as mad as hell! im not gonna take this anymore!”

[[Katiny] Now it's the power or tae Intemet.

Then it was the power of television.

-lwoman] Where are you going’? -| wanna see if anybody's yelling:

[Kaitiny] But that scene and the power of the people

was a very powerrul Image

and something that, as, you know, | was still pretty rebellious

and that whole kine of youtiniul charge ot; you know:

YOU Te taking OUP Country and wrecking it.

I'm not gonna sit here Tor It," was very powerful,

and it gave me a2 Sense ot;

you know, if enough people get mad enough, things will change.

Ihe catchphrase was “lm mad as hell, and | won't take it anymore.”

| remember at the time the Movie opened, there were J-shirts all over town

and various products had them on bags and oni...

And so the picture lbenertited A great deal in publicity by that.

Paday wrote the line, and Sidney figured out a way

tO Get tne whole worle screaming,

and it became a phrase you still hear today.

[Lumet] At the time | reac the script, it just seemed like a wonderfully funny,

Kerritic SPeeGn:

| never had any idea tat tt would become the-- Part of the language.

But I'll tell you when | did get an idea that it might become

that kind of mad expression that everybody would connect with:

ne Tirst time | saw the picture with an aucionce.

[in unison] We're mad as hell, and we're not gonna take it anymore!

Lumet] There was not only enormous laughter happening

aS tne scene louilt,

lout people in the audience were starting to call out

"lm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it anymore!”

Calling, yelling back at the screen.

And then Paday and | were siting together, and we looked at each other,

and we just hac smiles like that On Our face

DSCauUSS We knew we were onto something special.

[Beatty] | would like to channel lee Marvin.

I'd say, “I'm mad as inelll, and I'm not gonna take it anymore.”

I'd lke to Go it calmly like that. But that’s not really who | am.

Who | am is: “I'm mad as hell. I'm not gonna take kt anymore!”

I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore.

-its gonna make me Giggle. This is so funny,

tO just le sitting here out of context,

I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it anymore.

lexnales)

I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it anymore}

I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore.

I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore.

laughs and mumbles}

| want angry shows:

im going to blow my brains out right on this program.

ne Desi Four.

[static Crackling]

Lumet] | rehearsed with the cast for two weeks,

and ik was a wonderul rehearsal period.

Bill Holden acl never reacarsec! loeore,

rie had never rehearsed a movie. And found himself so grateful for it.

Faye, Of course, had had a lot of theater experience, as had Peter,

and thererore, it was, in a way;

they were almost showing olden how to use rehearsals,

oecause lhe didn’t know quite what to do with itt.

But It Was a Very rich and exciting rehearsal time.

Fie would map out the world that he was gonna have you work in,

and then he would renearse it to give the actors a sense of continuity

and where this Is going ano what Ae wanis tron tiem.

And lhe had this increciiole way of coming up to you and saying:

"Yes, baby.” You know? “Baloy, baloy, baby.”

You know that thing he does? It's a wonderful thing.

But he made you Teel conticent in what you'd been doing all along:

[Dunaway] TINS floor was tajoed out just like the rooms that we'd be in.

TASS WAS A GAANGS to reallly exolore

and get to know tie People you're working with,

ANd Nobody Goss ins, literally nobody, except Sidney Lumet.

And it's something that has always situck me as insane not to do,

And what it does as a perormer Is, when you get on that stage,

you can then say, “You know, | was thinking, what if instead of going

to thie bookcase here, | went over here?”

But you have that treedom lbecause you've got to that point in your development.

Whereas ir you come on a soundstage and there's tine set there

iat you've never seen loetore, [chuckles]

you cant make very profound choices, right?

You know, you can, and! Or course you do do your best and try to,

lout I'S JUSt SO MUCHA beter

to have layered already SOMERS CMSCROMM CHOC MONmanees

And, you Know, if you have @ cratit, you can certainly People say,

‘Well, you won't oe impulsive enough,” or "You won't be fresh enough.”

cS NONSSeNSe.

[Kathy] Paddy Chayetsky was on te set 2 lot

anc was fantastic!

Whet a guy.

You know, he was just... Fle was great.

BUC WIS Is Just a really embarrassing story:

| had one line, basically, anc twas 2 moutiniul,

And | was so nalve and so young and...

That | asked! Pacey Chayeisky if Ae could change that line.

And Ae was so kind, and he was kind of saying:

“Well, ho, you know, you can tind a way to say iit.”

Did you see tne tlm we mace of the San Marino jail oreakoutt

demonstrating the FISINg UP OF 4 seminal orisoner-class intrastructure?

[Dunaway] | tain | tried to tallk him into giving me

A couple of naturalistic moments, I'm sure. flaughs]

Can't | have one moment where you see how she's feeling?

“NO, AO, NO.°

Lumet] Ire began writing Network

two and a halir years losiore he sent it to me!

rie did tell me ine had talked to John Chancellor a lot,

you know, the anchor tor NBC

The rest of it, he knew. Hie knew trom his own experience,

| think the collaboration with Chayeisky was one of the most thrilling things

I've ever Nadi, pecause we had our own area of expertise.

Paddy himselt hac very little visual sense.

rie only knew i it was right or wrong, US Of NOt IrUS.

Where | needed him clesperatiely was making sure

that | got the laughter out of the seript that was necessary.

Because le knew So much more about comedy than |.

‘There's a scene where lrioward Beale is walking along the street

and he's in his pajamas and a raincoat, and it's pouring rain,

ANG AC COMES Into the studio all soaking wet,

Into the lodoy, and there's a2 guard, a security guard, at the coor.

Opens the door for him.

And | sai! to the actor, “When he comes, ‘Sure thing, Mr. Beale.”

And he goes In.

Paddy rushed up to me. Hie said, "No, no, no, Sidney,

He Mmusint even notice that he's wet.

rie musint notice that he's crazy. rie lives in a crazy world, this guy.

This Is normal to him.” And of course, he was albsolutely right:

| would have killed the laugin ir Ae had done the line the way | wanted him to.

It would not have oeen Tunny,

-Fiow co you co, Mr. Beale? -(Flowarel] | must make my witness,

‘Sure thing, Mr. Beale.

[Lumet] What kind of tring, Paddy was lrreplacealole on.

But it wasn't dificult at alll to find the level of craziness in him,

Decause tinat cepends totallly on the actor who's playing the part.

Some, you cain only go this tar pecause they can't push it any farther.

Peter Fincl was Such a ricn vehicle, it could have gone God knows where:

| pushed him as tar as fhe could go:

And you will not take me oir the air for now or for any other soaceless time.

[Maxx] Oln, boy.

All we knew and all Sidney, | think, tried to get us to do

was to play it alosolutely ror reall, Absolutely.

You know, llire-anc-cleawi reall.

And that's wnat made it tunny, pecause what they were talking about

was kind of crazy stutr’

| want a show developed loased on the activities of a terrorist group.

Lumet] But things like the relationship oetween Holden's character

and Dunaway's cnaracter was so solidly grounded.

Paddy Set UP SO easily 2 man in a miclive crisis

and a young, boeautiirul, amloitious Girl,

SO that, bang, 2S SOON as the two meet, you know it’s almost inevitable.

Is your wite In town’?

Ves]

Well, then we letter go to my place

NBC is Ofrering 3.25 mil per package of tive James Bono movies.

And Inn gonna stick ihe Mao Tse-Tung Hour in at 8

pecause we're having a lot or trouble selling The Mao Tse-Tung hlour.

And Walter says welll all wind up in federal prison.

Dunaway] Tnat’s who she Is. ‘That's what turns her on, her work:

Ane the tact that it was merged with this sexual experience

with the man she actually did kind of love was just beautiful writing.

It was just So funny!

ne New York limes and the Washington Post

will be writing two editorials a week On US,

We'll be tront page ror montis. Weill have more press than Watergate.

Dunaway] It was a hare scene aS an AGiress

thought well of to do. [chuckles]

But it was, | Wlnlk, very important for the character.

You know, it wasn't a naturalistic piece at alll.

It was a lolack comedctys

NBC's got a lock on dayume:

Loves their game shows,

[Dunaway] Thnere was only one naturalistic scene in the whole thing,

and that was with Beatrice Straight woen Bill Holden lek her.

| thought t was a transient thing, ic plow over in a week.

| still pray to God! it's just a menopausal infatuation.

Lumet] | knew that she had to get past 4 certain point

or reallly almost exhaustion before she'd hit it right.

And the only way you clo that ts oy shooting and shooting and shooting:

And || rememioer it was very charming because arter albout the third take

and she was getting bigger and bigger and chewing the scenery,

and Paddy came over and le sald) “Sidney, that's much too much.”

| said, “Paday, you know aloout comedy. | know aloout divorce.

So sit down. It'll be alll right."

Because | knew exacily what | was going for.

| just let her, like a racehorse

where you just want her to get that first burst of speed out of her system.

Is that what's lett tor me? Is that my share?

She gets the winter passion and | get the dotage?

What am | supposed to do? Am | supposed to...

Lumet] And then loy aloout take sb take seven,

it began to have a shape.

And= Because | didnt wanna break it up:

| knew | wanted an emotional through line on it

lout with 2 Shape to It, and the shape had to be,

Just as It would loe in those real circumstances,

that you start with a lourst out then you're drained slowly,

it all runs Out, and you just wind up so simply

because there was nothing ler in her anymore, no more feeling, no more tears.

It was alll spent,

| wont give you up easily, Mexx!

[Lumet] Sle was so taloulous, and | love how sympathetic she ts to him,

| think perhaps It Is beter if you move out.

Lumet] As hurt as sine Is,

ner heart is sull going out to him because she loves him.

[Louise] Does she love you, Max?

(leim] Stutr thet makes sense in the script often changes,

and certainly that's what happened here.

The scene with Beatrice Straight used no Come loeiore the scene at the leach

he ditrerence being thet when you saw the scene with Faye Dunaway

aiier the power or the scene with his wite,

you said to yourselt, "Well, this guy's crazy."

rere Ine Is In tals tormented relationship where he’s not even enjoying the sex.

lt made lAinn Out to be a clown. SOMVEMMOMECRINEENVORSCOMe SHAOUINGE

Wit Or without you,

i'm going to take over your network news show,

and | figured | might as well start tonight.

Lumet] In a way, Faye had the most difficult part,

pecause all of her natural warnth

anc alll of her natural emotion

nad to be channeled into one specitic place

and wasn't allowed to have any other expression.

DO you wanna figure out die revenues of a strip show

iat Sells tor 100,000 bucks a minute?

One show like that could pull this whole network right out of the hole

it's being handed to us on a plate,

Lets not plow ft

[Lumet] But | think one of the best moments of acting

Kinat Faye has in the movie

is when he's leaving her

and he's got that long, wondertul speech to her:

And le says, “You're a television baloy. You think lite was created by Bugs Bunny."

You even shatter the sensations of time and space

Into split seconds and instant replays,

[Lumet] When | snot a reaction, inere was 2 look of confusion on ler face,

Youre madness, Diana,

Lumet] She cidnt know what tne hell he was talking about,

lout she knew he was Figini

| think at one point | hac a line there, is what is in my mind.

It May Or may not loe true,

out | remember starting to say something and hearing “Cut!” [laughs] I'm thinking:

“Why cid you cut there’? Why did=? What happened?”

And ne said, “Because you looked at iim like he was from Mars,

anc that’s all we need.” You know?

And | think for me, It's that moment when lhe looks at me and says:

| Just wanAt you to love me.”

| Just want you to love me, orimal doubts and alll.

[Dunaway] Ane! | think that's the moment iat devined the character,

That SAS just doesnt know wnio someone Is who needs that stu.

| don’t Know ow to clo ting

[Dunaway] And tt was just So poignant and so painful and so tragic

that there's this person Wino so Cidnt have that

inet she doesn even Know wiiat It Is:

Lumet] For aye, the proolem of not being able to play the feelings

tat SAS would normally have must have been terribly difficult,

Most acwesses would have wanted to let just a litde tear come

Into the edge of the eye, you Know.

No, sie knew loeitter,

TAS IS HOt a Script, Diana.

Where's some reall, actual litte going on here.

Lumet] And | noticed that waenever we did the scene iin rehearsal,

inant Bill Flolden woulc: never look into her eyes.

ried look here, he'd look aloove, he'd look there, he'd look...

Ane! OF course, alll of a sucden, it was quite clear to me why,

which Is that lhe was atiraicl of what was going on inside of hin

anc Cidnt want it to come out

Ane! SO the day that we shot the scene,

| sald] just one thing to him:

| said, “Bill, WASCA you start thls, look at ner anc con't loreal tiie look,

JUSt Stay Eye to eye.” And this world welled up within him.

| mean, it's one of the best pieces of acting he has in the movie.

| reel lousy aloout the pain that I've caused my wie and my kids.

| reel Quilty ane cConscience-siricken and all of those things

Kat you think sentimental

Ou WhIGA my generation callls simple human decency.

[Lumet] What's the Kind or thing you can only find out in rehearsal,

because you need tine continual exposure

tO the same thing happening again and again

to give you an inkling of “An-aln, there's something interesting here.”

Weill tell you any shit you want to hear.

ere is no Americal

Youre Hot the worst fuck I’ve ever had!

I'm Diana Caristensen, 2 racist lackey of the imperialist ruling circles.

I'm Laureen loobs, a badass commie nigga.

Sounds like the basis of a firm friendship.

Lumet] leverythning that happenee was grist tor Paddy's mill,

and everyining to him was funny.

Not necessarily “na-a.- rile was a very wise man.

Fie knows that a lot of what we live through is temporary.

‘Iheretore, lhe teels quite tree to make fun of it

(Laureen] I'm gonna make a TV star out of you.

Just like Arce Bunker,

Lumet] Ihe whole revolutionary movement was just grist tor his mill.

What the fuck are you talking albout’?

riave we settled that sublicensing thing?

[Gottiried|] With all the posing ance with alll the so-called concern for truth,

the one thing iat these people were interested in,

just like anyone else, Was the proritt.

ihe Communist Party's not gonna see a nickel out of this goddamn show

until we Go Into syndication.

(Gottiriec|] No matter wnat your politics were and how they moved you,

kt was we ultimate buck that everybody was interested in,

SO Stop the double-talk and the bullshit and let's get down to it.

I'm not knocking down my goddamn distriloution charges.

Man, give ler tine tucking overnead clause.

Lumet] "ll tell you, | miss Paddy Chayetsky every day,

pecause is take on te roliculousness|

Of some of the things that we live through Is...

I've never known anyone to have any sense of that

Ko the degree that Pacily did.

What was So much Tun was, | got the feeling from Sidney

drat | couldn't go over tine top,

Now, when | watch it, | teel like | was way over the top, way over the top.

| mean, he said, “Are you a Presbyterian?”

| said, “No, | grew up in a different church,

lout | used to go to a Presbyterian church."

And Ae said, "Do you remember the preacher there?”

| said, “Derinitely. It was a triend! [| used to sing in a choir.”

rie said, “What kind of preacner was this guy?”

| said, “lt was Interesting. He was a sweet man,

our WheN AS Got Going, man, it was like, ohwoo, you know... [mumbles quickly]

nile was like this. And he wore, you know, a robe

And ne would try to stay at the, you know, at the lectern, ut lhe couldn't.

ried walk and he'd move, and, you know... And he said, “It was very theatrical?"

| said, “Yealn, Ae was pretty theatrical.”

rie said, “Okay, that's the guy l want you to do.” flaughing]

‘SO | said, “Okay.”

And wien he came into that room on Monday and saw ne’s at this end of the room

anc lrlowara |Beale’s at that, they re 35 feet apart,

and Ine became aware of how tar | wanted to go in performance,

mine tension for him was enormous,

And | said! to Alm, | remember saying to him, “Ned, use it.

Your whole litte depends on this man.

Now get througii to him."

You have medalled with the primal torces of nature, Mr. Beale,

ano | wont pave fi

[Lumet] And wien | printed the first take,

ne knew that hed gotten i!

Ile worid is a lousiness, Mr. Beale,

[Beatty] Peter Finch was alosolutely wonderiul off-camera.

rie was always there, always looking at me.

IEVery Ones In a while, | would co something really weird, and he'd go...

KS tals Or SometHING.

SO at the end, | got to do his ot-camera, and he’s sitting there listening to me,

and at ONS POINit, | jumped up on the table.

| could have loeen arrested at that moment,

DSCAUSS that Was ithe reall table that goes in that real room,

whicn is where the Rocketellers and all the people sat who were people

in the New Yorlk Pulolic Library system,

And | got up there and | started l was doing the speech,

and | was acwally coing the gorilla thing.

| was loeating on my Gnest like this and trying to get him to laugh, you know?

But he wouldn't laug|h. rie just went... like that.

[Jensen] Good moming, Mr. Beale:

-I hey tell me youre a macman. -Only desultorily.

[Beatty] | met tewer or the principals than anybody else.

Robert Duvall, | Got to spend a Ite fort of time with, but | was really=

l was a day player. You know, | was a= That was a one-day shot there

| actually got two days’ WOFK Out OF It, lout wet was luGK.

It Was 2 ONG-day Part, WAIGH |

ror a long ime, | used to dine out on reminding people:

Never turn down a daly joo, you know. You never know.

So, what do we do aloourt this Beale son of a loittch?

Suppose we'll have to kill him.

(Gottiriec!] Paddy always telt tniat at the end of the movie,

we would kill oii ine Howard Beale character.

Ane so they sat down in that scene, incidentally,

waticn | think is one of thre lorilliant scenes that Paddy came up with,

ane they had a business discussion,

Killing him became a business decision.

And it is the AR department's carefully considered judgment and mine

that ir we get rid or Beale, Wwe shoulc be glole to maintain

a very respecialole share in the high 20s, possibly 30.

The final scene was just my tav= One of my favorite scenes in the world.

BECAUSS Ow CaN you not wanna play a scene like that

where people tallk alooutt, you know, an assassination

as if it's going out shopping?

[Flackett] Well, tine issue Is, shall we kill Howarc Beale or not’?

I'd like to hear some more opinions on that.

here was a certain kine of mind belhind tg that was so much fun to get involved with.

| dont see we have any option, Irrank. Let's kill the son of 2 fitch.

[narrator] it was a perrectly admissible argument that hloward Beale advanced)

In tne Gays that rollowed.

lt WAS, NOWEVEF, also a very depressing one.

Noboaly particularly cared to hear his life was utterly valueless.

[Lumet] Ihe Lee Richardson narration is 2 great part of the style of the piece.

And what it closes, what that narration does, is two things.

First of all, it Pulls it out of “real” reall!

YOU are In a Movie as soon as that happens,

it Gives you permission to laugh:

Because Paddy's gonna get into some very dicey areas,

and It's important tor an audience to know that it's okay to laugh,

including wnen a guy is having an apoplectic fit,

as lioward Beale keeps having.

luploeat news theme playing]

[Fleiml | like the idea of the narration very much, apart from the fact

diat In a tilm with ho transitions, it helped a great deal.

| mean, tine film has no dissolves. it's all straight cuts.

Everything in the film is straight cut, so that gives you an energy immediately

Wwihicn Keeps YOU MOVING.

And that was tne idea, just keeping that film moving.

Newyork News ancnornman..J

Lumet] And the person wAao put thie last sequence together for me,

ner name was Lynn Klugman, anc she acted in te movie.

She played the seriot oirl

Flowared just said he was going to blow his brains out next Tuesday.

Lumet] She worked in television. She was 2 script girl,

and then also, she was 2 ite designer.

So she showed me what she wanted to work with,

and tien she put theni up On monitors!

ISA we just pnotographec the four monitors.

,--S0t to death tonight in a rusillade of automatic mile fire.

Lumet] And the last narration is the bracket

tO PUt the whole thing back Into the place that Paddy wanted that piece,

Wwihicn Is this sarconic laughter.

[narrator] Ils Was ine story of Floward Beale,

ine first Known instance of a man who was killed because he had lousy ratings:

loveriapping cnater on IVs)

[Lumet] But the television communtty kept saying

that we lott the hana that was feeding us, [chuckles]

made Paddy and | laugh even more

OSCAUSS WE Galve them Many Good years and a lot of good work,

and the whole icea Is So Silly.

| mean, loyalty to wnat? To an advertising agency?

A network executive who isn't even there the next year?

You know, thie revolving coor that television lire is.

SO that dic] come up 2 lot.

But | con't think it aiirected either of us very much.

Ihe response Is sensational: Hero, tell him.

Son of a bitch, we struck the mother lode!

I'm gonna make 2 lot of noise aloout this:

[Gottiried|] | don't think the success of the movie, quite honestly,

Was a SUFprISe to any Of us.

From the moment that we started to preview it to audiences,

Kinney responced very well.

And when we tinallly opened tthe movie, die critics were very, very complimentary.

Most of them were. You always get some who arent, obviously.

But fits Hot your typical movie

from thie point of view of a commercial motion picture.

BU I Clic] welll:

it didnt do extraordinarily well

irom the point of view of box Office,

our it mace alll tts money back and made orotits tor the company and all of that.

But we also received ten nominations by the Academy for Oscars.

Almost everyoody who had any important participation in the movie was nominated.

And we received tour Oscars,

But | was crushed that we didnt win the Academy Award for the movie.

Quite candidly, | was.

[Dunaway] You know, I'd been nominated twice,

and usually you have to le nominated a few times

betrore the Academy reallly seriously considers giving it to you:

‘SO when my name was announced, I...

It was reallly... That's a very intense thing.

Less now as I'm older, you Know,

OU IS JUSt, tO Me, k was, anyway, very, very emotionally powerful.

| mean, | wasnt sure || could wailk up there, but of course, you do, but...

TAS nerves run very lhigin

Lumet] And so we had the nominations, but the voting hadn't taken place yet,

and we had gone out to Calittornia,

| went out there, Peter went out there, and Paddy went out there,

and we were hAuswing, you KNOW.

We were doing radio shows

and newspaper interviews and so on as part of the Academy campaign.

A\nd | was Going to go to a raclo station with Peter that morming.

And | came down the steps of the Beverly Hills Hotel.

rie was seated on a round seating area,

and as | came cown onto tie main tiloor, Ae just tell off...

onto tie Tloor:

And | rushed over to him and took him in my arms,

and | knew something was reallly up pecause fie was not good about falling.

| mean, Ic create alll kinds Of safeties for Aim

winenever he would have |his apoplectic tit,

But this one was so gracerul, | knew that something very serious was up.

But= And that was the first time | knew that he'd hac 2 load heart

was 4 lneart attack)

I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore!

-Are they yelling in Atanta’? -Are they yelling in Atlanta, Ted?

(Gottiriec|] Network was clone aloout 28 years ago, and to this very day,

people, in writing ednorials in newspapers, will quote from Network

and discuss What's Going on today in connection with what Network had to say

aloout tie world and wnat was happening.

Ane! to have that happen, | mean, it's just almost unbelievable.

| mean, this isnt Shakespeare, you know’? And it doesn't pretend to be.

BU tne VISION that the movie displayed so eloquently is alive today.

Dunaway] It's Interesting that you say it's less funny now

Dpecause We've been there and done that. [chuckles]

You know, the reason it was so Tunny was because it was So outrageous as well,

and you're thinking, “Come on, no one's ever gonna kill somebody

on television, are they?"

Ane now we sort of think, "Veal, we think so."

What would you tellas saly tO an assassination?

| think | can get the Mao Ise-lung people LON BSACROMUS

Aas one of their shows.

The tilms of tthe “70s, you know, people do say,

nad a kind Of Sense of story and originality

Ktiat certainly isnt true in Studio films now.

You know, it's all romantic comedies or, you know, hardware movies.

‘SO | think the uniqueness of the vision of the piece was really quite special,

and | don't know that they're making them like that anymore.

| was lucky to be a part or It

Lumet] | dont know where you could go with it if you began trying to do a story

aloout television today, lDecause its become its own satire.

Its SO rire with tear anc urgency

and imporance and unimportance.

TAS tact that the ratings are sometimes on the front page of The New York Times,

die Tact that actors Go on strike

DoecaUuse they can't get a million dollars 2 show,

| mean, Now are you going to sattirize that?

You know’? lrlow are you going to even make 2 comment aloour it?

Its Got tts Own buUIt-In comment.

Lumet] Because Paddy Chayersky was just, | think,

one of the magnificent American writers,

everyining he touched went way beyond thie specitic of what he was writing aloout,

And thats true or Network!

i's aloout television, lout it's aloout, really, in a much broader sense,

aloout tthe Inaloility or people to keep faith with themselves, reallly.

Everyone, ONS way Or anotnier, gets corrupted over the body of the movie,

And it Was Interesting now that atfiected the visual side of it,

loecause | remember talking to Owen Roizman,

winO Shot it, and || said:

“Owen, watt I'd like to do is corrupt the camera.”

-(Car engines rumioling] -[homs honking]

Lumet] We start very pure, very simple.

Not mucn light, not mucn aritiricial light, Just try to use what's there.

im gonna kill myself.

Lumet] And then by ithe last scene, | want iit to look like a Ford commercial.

Ane Owen Roizman Understood exactly what | meant

and siaried that whole transition into the corrupted camera

Into that first scene between Faye Dunaway and Bill Flolden,

into his office late at night;

ain alll of a sudden, tt Stars to take on 4 new look:

And tnat keeps getting more and more extreme as it goes On.

[man 1 on screen] It was heavy, baby.

Lumet] And then one of the rules that Chaplin had created, reallly,

was tinat with comedy,

you should lay ofr camera movement, that it had a tendency to hurt laughter.

| con't Know whether it was true or not,

lout generally, | moved mucn less than | usually do.

(Diana Dann tt, if we wanted helliire, we'd get Billy Graham.

We dont want tain healers, tent-show evangelists

or Oberammergau Passion Players.

What alioout that terriric new messiali

ABC WAS SUPPOSE to have signed Up as our competition for next year?

-[man 2] That's lAim. -lhe bottomless pit is here.

[Diana] That's hin?

([Roizman] Paddy, the way he wrote nis scripts, he wrote them very visually.

Fié would cesecriloe how sheatts of light would le coming in through a window,

and i would be a smoke-tillec room, or it would be very dark.

rie gave every description you could ever want in reading a script,

as far as wondering what Is thie look of this story gonna be about.

And! loesicdes looking tor story content, one of the things | look for is visuals,

of his description visually

or Gach Scene, Set and everything!

SO It took @ lot of mystery Out of it for me, and that appealed to me

DSSIdes the Story content

because | thought kt was coming from a guy that was being very ballsy

and Making statements that nobody had ever heard before.

A\nd | loved! the fact that he was speaking his mind,

and | just wanted to be a part or ithat.

[Rosenberg] Both Sidney and Pacey were experts on the television world.

They had come trom tine television world more so than I.

| had to be educated during the course of the film.

Luckily, Sicihey arranged ror Walter Cronkite to take me around

for a tour of CBS news facilities, and | began to educate myself about it.

Lumet] We literally had so many sets in the movie,

there wasn't a stuclo in New York that could have taken care of that movie.

TAS only possilole one would have been out in Astoria, and | think that was occupied.

So it was almost no choice:

And we got = lriad the great good luck that MGM had this wonderiul building

at 1350 Avenue of the Americas with three empty floors.

SO it was like having a studio AllEKOROURSEIMESS

| was given an entire empty rloor at the MGM building.

And then, taking Various priorities,

such as trying to tind a great view clown Sixta Avenue for Hackett's office

and geting a geography that made sense

so that you had a teeling of seeing trough coors and through spaces

tO See the entire scale of the network!

([Roizman] | was now strapped with working in a place

where | had to create this light

ano male it loox like it was reall

In a place where | had very litte control over.

‘SO | was constantly putting ditrerent gels on the windows and things like that

and changing them from mayoe one shot to the next,

trying to maken trom one scene tO tae next

DeCAaUSS OF the light changing outside,

It mighit be sunny one minute, might be overcast another minute,

And it was a very difficult situation, lout we had to do it and do it quickly,

SO in that sense, that was a huge challenge there,

a huge cnallenge.

At night, we had to balance the light against the existing windows

irom buildings across the street!

We cidnt have backings and things like that that you would use on a stage.

TAoOse were alll reall backgrounds

| had! to keep ithe light so low-key inside te Offices

SO that you could see ithe light outside, you could see the windows outside.

And we were Working wit litte tiny 25-wait mushroom bullos, we call them,

and we were Making Up Ide GIMMICKS to put them in

and tae them loehind the desks

and on the ceilings and things like that to get little key lights

and sources of light, and still keeping them so far down

and working wicle open with tie lenses

so that we could have some detail outside the windows,

out a feeling of the background.

Because It | had worked lorighter and then stopped the lens down,

we would have had! pure lolack outsicle the windows.

The way | hear it, Mex«, you were primarily responsible

ror this colossally stupid prank:

-jannouncer] The UBS Evening News.

Wii Flowarg Beale!

[Rosenberg] We were sul witout 2 control room and 2 studio;

| thought it migiht be a piece or cake because we could go in

and get any of the network studios anc control rooms,

and | thougiit tt would los easy.

And as | went into the location-finding of i,

| round that we got Zero cooperation from the networks, understandably.

[Lumet] Nobody could knock oft their TV schedule for a long enough period

KO GIVE US the time we needed.

And fortunately, we found this place outside of Toronto

whicn just rented television facilities, and it was alosolutely periect.

it had everything we needed.

And so we went up there!

| think we were there for a week or ten days.

Because tnere was 4 lot talking place in the studios.

| think the determining tactor was niniat we were alae to snoot tie set

and Nave activity going on live ia. the contro] room at the same time.

[Lumet] What we did was, In order to get a genuine television feeling,

was We put on 2 television show

and then photographed the television show being cone live.

[Fioward] This tule ts the gospel, ihe ultimate revelation.

Als tuloe can malke or lorealkk presidents, popes, Prime ministers...

[Rosenberg] In the seript, Paddy had called tor Howard to be in front

of a Gothic stained glass window, a church window.

And | knew that image was important to him,

lout || couldln't figure out a way to make that image work

wit the other clemenis or the show,

SO that’s when | got the idea of taking the stained glass window

and tuming It Into a rosette and creating the turntables,

wihicn originally were going to loe clriven mechanically by winches,

lout Sidney had a great idea or actually having the stagehands pushing them

and made it have a much more sense of reality

because you cid see the audience,

and he wanted to see as much backstage action

of the television world being snot as |e COUIIC.

[Lumet] And | think nS One of the reasons

tnat it has Such a Teel or reality

i terms or tie television work on it.

| mean, wien Fioward Beale comes out on his famous “mad as hell” speech

and walks out and people are ducking out of the way,

Kinat tiny lite ridiculous set Is exactly what the news sets looked like

In those days.

| rarely go to the set. Most editors don't go to sets,

You dont. J

Walter Murch goes as tar as to say

he never wants (ORSCCHAMACHOMOUMOREOSIUINE?

But | rememioer | cid go to the set up there,

DeCaUSse We didn't have film yet,

and | was just hanging arounc and watching the shooting.

And | rememioer talking to One of the engineers,

at how Sidney directed the live cameras,

and Sidney seemed as happy as I'd ever seen him just doing live television again.

So we shot that as live television tinen,

It WaS prety amazing because 4 lot of the actors were nonactors.

They were people's assistants and tings.

Many of the technicians, many of the people at the console

were reall people, and their performances were pretty good.

| had asked Sidney aloout it at the time. | said, “You know what would lbe nice here?

What iv we put a star tiker on the camera! so that looking towards the audience,

nes like surreal?”

| hated those kind of things,

lout In this case, | thought mayloe it would just take it over the top enough.

And Sidney liked the idea. Hie said, "Go ahead, go for it

Why not?” So we clic that.

laudience cheering and whistling]

[Rosenberg] Ihe newsroom, | had done in a huge store

hat was empty on Sixt Avenue,

It was a gigantic retail establishment of some kind that | cleared out,

and we brought a spiral staircase to tie into fine control room

ane! then louilt the enure newsroom within that storetront.

Ihe only ume we were In a stucio was in a tiny insert stage

ror the scene with Flolden and Dunaway.

We were in tie til lousiness,

We weren't used to scenes of that nature, which are now quite tame in today's world,

and we wanted to make sure that she had complete privacy.

SO that was done in a litte controlled insert stage on 48th Street,

the exterior or which was shot in East Hampton.

[Diana] We're standing on the First Amendment,

freedom of the press, and the right to protect our sources.

Inarrator] On October the 75th,

Diana Christensen lew to Los Angeles ror what the trade calls powwows and coniabs

win our West Coast programming @xecs,

[Rosenberg] We never went to Calirornia, so the scenes iin California were done,

| believe, as | rememioer, out in Long Island,

win the Long Island lexpressway standing in

ror the thruways in Calitomia,

and with the use of dressing and light

we managed to convey the Califomia feeling.

lm thererore pleased to announce | am submitting to the board of directors

a plan tor the coordination of the main protit centers.

[Rosenberg] Ihe stocknolders meeting, we used the Plaza Hotel for the ballroom,

and then the MGM building was also very useful for the lobby

DeCause thie actual Howard Beale Show was shot in Canada,

OUR tAS People entering tne loullding and in the lobloy

ANG GOING into the show was happening in the MGM building in New York.

Mr. Jensen Wanhts to mest Floward Beale personally.

rie wants Mr. Beale in his otrice at 10:00 tomorrow morming.

Vallhalla, Wir. Beale. Please, sit Cown.

Lumet] Tae sequence with Ned Beeattiy was shot up in the boardroom

lor trae New Yorik Public Library:

And tie tirst moment | walked in, [ said, "That’s ft."

([Roizman] In the screenplay, that was so beautifully descriloed

as far as the light and light efrects and things like that went,

it WAS ONS Of those things you picture and you can't wait to shoot itt

it's gonna be great-looking.

Well, as tt turned out, at the New York Public Library,

Key wouldn't let us rig any lights anyplace.

And so | was reallly hamperec oy how much | could co in the room.

And they allowed me to put one light on a post someplace, and that was it.

Everytning else had to loe on the tloor, nicden trom the camera,

Ane! so | found tt very limitne in that way,

ane so | tried to make tie loest | could of it,

ihe Arals have taken billions of dollars out of this country,

and now they must Putt It back,

[Lumet] And then through the use of the lenses;

loy Gnanging lenses constantly

as Ned Beatty was talking,

| was getting a greater and greater COMPOESSOMOMTOSeH Anoss

SO It kept, to me, looking like more and more of a starlit sky.

And! tie voice coming irom aloove It, the man coming trom above it,

winding up witn his walk around tne talole to where he finally arrives.

But first, tarough darkness, you lose alll the stars and all that.

Ano taen e's tiie SUT

-Because youre on television, dummy: -[Roizman] Sidney had said to me:

| WAIN It tO look like Peter's looking at him like he’s looking at God."

Ano! so | used this heavy backlight on him and lolew it out

so that Ine had this ethereal halo quality around him:

[Lumet] And! it lent ttselt, without ever forcing It,

Into a really complex visual metaphor for what he was saying.

And the truth of that piece in relation to today is unbelievable.

TAS world Is one large ecumenical corporation.

| have seen the face of God,

You just might be right, Mr. Beale!

([Roizman] Ihe sequence that was interesting for me

was when they were discussing the planning of killing him.

| think | can get the Mao Ise-lung people LON BSACROMUS

Aas one of their shows.

[[Roizman] Sidney sort of let me do whatever | wanted in tinere.

‘SO | did it very dramatically, with pools of light on the ditierent people,

lerYING tO Point Out certain areas

and the cliiierent faces, anc hice some areas in shacow

D@CAUSe those People were reallly, in their souls,

Key were lurking in the shacows.

They were planning this clancestine murder of another person because of the ratings.

i Was So bizarre.

And so | tried to treat it like that visually.

It reallly does look like 2 Ford commercial

I's SO perrect. It's so artiicial.

It looks reall, out it's totally artificial.

And that was also iin the staging of It, for instance.

Nobody moves. Everyoody’s in their chair!

Nobody gets up, NODOGY PIcKS Up a glass of water, nobody takes a cigarette.

es Static.

(irlacket] Where does that out us, Diana’?

‘hat PUKS US IN the Shithouse, That's where that puts us.

[Lumet] So it was also in the pauses

and tie fact that nobody's voice ever got louder than that.

So, what do we do aloourt this Beale son of a loittch?

Suppose we'll have to kill him.

[Lumet] So ithe corruption of the camera was complete.

it had nothing to do with reality anymore.

And then It WAS Intercut with people arriving

Tor the beginning of ihe Howard Beale Show;

including our killers. |GAucKIes]

We see them arriving.

As a resullt, the movement versus the static quality in that room,

Ke tension lbetween those two things just keeps building and building.

It was very calculated on my part exacily how to do it.

Ladies and gentlemen, let's hear Itt.

-FlOow co you Teel’? -[in unison] We're mad as hell,

and were not gonna take this anymore!

Lumet] You are aiming ror the third act all along:

That's what everyaniing is being literally directed toward.

nats wet 2 director does!

Ihererore, what was very critical, for example,

WAS ASVEF to ave a2 Scene eadliied the way that scene was edited.

i's like 2 metronome,

There's ho other scene in the picture that’s goings

limmakes metronome ticking]

hat one does:

SO it was allso the only time during tie live television show

Kat we con't go Into the control room.

es all] out inere!

And then even tie floor lof the Howard Beale set,

hak Is Much more Frigtaly Itt

Khan any or the previous scenes in that television studio,

So these are alll of the conscious anc unconscious decisions

Which Go Into the making or a movie.

| mean, t was a completely unconscious clecision

to have the major crane camera come parreling in on Floward Beale that way.

Bur its 2 woncdertul shot

And so sometimes you know where they come trom, sometines you don't,

l figured it would loe aloout 42 16-week shoot, and Howard said:

'Slaney thinks he can do it in 11 weeks.” | said, “Eleven weeks? My God.

Witte all the material that’s in this?

Whoa, IS this gonna be a cnallengel”

Well, we did t in nine weeks. rive days a week, eight hours a day.

‘SO | was very intrigued by that whole thing.

And everything that everyoody ever said

aloout Siciney being totally organized was extremely accurate.

One or the things aloout working with Sidney Lumet is that energy,

tat inerecilole energy that just keeps you moving

and discovering things all tne time. K's wondertull

And SO, Not because we were scheduled in any way to do it,

lout five weeks airier ihe film was shot, Wwe tumed it over to our sound! editors.

We had a locked ‘film. And usually you're months on a movie.

nis is terriic sturr

It is a shattering and oeauttiful sensation:

The main thing tor me aloout Network was There were two things:

Spending time with Paddy Chayetsky, which, as | said before, | miss hin every day.

And aS & Creative Sxperience, it was about as complete a time

as lve hac ever on a movie!

Everyining worked.

And winen It didnt work, we were alle to fix it,

SO from a2 creative point of view, twas 2 dream.

Iman & audience] We're number one!

Were humioer one!

[Walter] Sichey Lumet is 2 dear irienc! of mine.

rie was tie clirector on You Are There,

A program that dramatized historical moments.

We had CBS news people interviewing these characters trom history.

And that program was one of the most popular programs

of tis time in the early “50s

And people still come up to me OMUNEESINEE!

and quote my copy, which closed with “What sort of day was it?

A daly like alll days, iillec! with those events

inet alter anc illuminate our times."

It was a very popular snow, and he and | became quite well acquainted

through his cireciing that wonderful project.

And ainer tne program was presented,

every Sunday night, we would retire to-s

For a litte lilbation at a saloon Across the street trom tie stuclio,

And there we spent some time, and | got to know him very well.

rie Is indeed a genius.

newsreels clacking]

he nrst attempt on Presicent Ford's Ire was 18 days ago,

and again yesterday in San Francisco.

[Walter] In the 1970s, television news was still fairly new.

It reallly only got tts start 4 decade before, in the "60s.

SO We were enjoying the excitement of finding our way,

of discovering the new ways to do television news,

Kihie techniques we could use

and how we would get our film in and develop it in time.

All or that was very primitive compared to what we have today,

with satellite transmissions anc! all te rest of it.

SO it was an exciting time ror nearly all of us involved.

We were developing wnat television news really became in the “70s.

It Grew Up.

That was sort Of our passing through adolescence into adulthood.

| have decided to kill mysell

i'm going to blow my rains out right on this program 2 week from today.

lununcder crashes]

Walter] We were all anxious to see It!

Witr alll the aclvance pullicnty,

we realized t was playing upon our business,

ane we howled with laughter,

rolled over on thie iloor,

Wihtn the depiction of what television news was reallly like

i tne Movie version,

-TAIs iS going Out live to 6/ afiiliates; -|_ eave him on.

SO | dont have any bullshit lett

/ just ran Out OF it, You See.

Walter] | uncerstand that, presumally,

tie movie was SUPPOSsed to be a combination of drama and comedy.

JO US in tAe News lousiness, it was all comedy.

It was So overdrawn as to what took place in the newsrooms

and how we put a Story togeiner.

Apparently the ratings went up five points last night,

and he wants rloware to GO back on and yell “Bullshit.”

fall laughing)

Walter] And | guess at the moment,

we probally had some concern

Kdiat thie pullic would think that this Is the way newsrooms really operated.

That is always 2 concerm

when you Teel thet your occupation is maligned in the movies.

And we alt tiat way aloourt it,

ror Goals sakes, Diana,

were talking aloout putting a manirestly irresponsible man on national television.

But the SUCCESS OF the Movie was hot a surprise,

| don't think, to any OF US Wo Saw I, It was beautifully produced.

Ihe comedy aspects, as | say, appealed to us particularly.

[man] Go to stancloy, you stupid son of a bitch! Dumlb schmuck.

Walter] But the drama in tt had its place,

aNd kt Seemed to me Guite clear the moment we saw it,

| think we alll sald, "This thing is gonna be a hit."

You lhad less than a minute of hard national anc intemational news:

it was alll sex, scandal, brutal crimes, sports,

children with incurable diseases, and lost puppies.

‘SO | don't think I'll listen to any protestations

or high standards or journalism when...

(Waliter] | uncerstanc that Lumet was criticized by some

ror Putting on a movie that appeared to criticize a profession

that he himself had grown up with.

rils greet Success on television was with You Are There, and it really made him.

But the idea of anyloody criticizing lim,

| dont think, ever occurred to anybody in the profession.

Sour grapes, perhaps, MOMS OME MUNONMEKERCMNOUS?

out Not very meaningrul eriicism.

it'S Ficliculous. e's in. the entertainment business.

rie was in the enierainment business when he did You Are There,

which was under the auspices of the news depariment,

OU KKwas entertainment

Ane as SUGA, WNO expects im to have to uphold the banner

of any previous employer or any previous job?

his tule Is the Most awesome goddamn force in the whole godless world.

And wnen tie 12 largest company in the worlcl controls

goddamn propaganda force

In the whole goclless world,

wine knows what shit will oe pedalec for truth on this newyork?

Ihe Movie shows the corporate ownership Of the network

exercising Tar too muUGA Intluence on the news production,

actually distoning Mt.

‘The new plan calls tor local news to be Wransrerred to owned stations divisions.

News radio would be transierrac! to the UBS radio division, and in efiiect,

dae News division would be reduced from an independent division

KO 2 department accountable to network:

There ts a lot of talk today; with tine ECC rules

permitting even more ownership

of multiple stations in single cities and throughout the nation,

as well as newspapers In communities...

ere is Concem that this could oermit serious iinterierence

with the integrity of the news reports.

| think that that danger possiloly exists, and itis one of the reasons

Ktiat we certainly in the news cepariments are somewhat concemed,

In tact, very concerned, aloout the consolidation of power

of a few organizations.

| wouleln't intieriere wiih the actual news itself, out TV is showbiz, Max.

‘here ts a lot of criticism of television news today.

We know that there is a problem of the network executives

wishing to have the news presented with 2 little more eniieriainment value.

hey dont even dare use that word

oecause they know that if they asked the news department

to make k more entertaining, die News people would revolt.

lv you think I'm gonna go along with this bastardization of the news,

you can have my resignation along with Max Schumacher's right now.

They would protest,

You keep your hands off my news division, Frank.

Walter] And mayoe quit,

That could happen if the pressure got too great.

lFlackett] Your incignation has been duly recorded.

You can always resign tomorrow.

And it is a fact iat the pressure is there,

I've had it up to here with your cruddy division

and its annual $33 million deficit!

We're responsilole to corporate level, not you,

[Walter] It is not, however, to the extent at this point yet

Kina it seriously impinges upon the authority

ofr te evening News broacicast.

Weill goddamn well see aloout that

Walter] Tne movie was entirely a satire.

It POINtEd OU SOMME CONCEeMSs, Pernaps, that people already were beginning to have

regaraing the enterainment tactor iD. DSOWws.

It, in a way, waved a banner or warming to the television industry

Kina it beter not let things ga as far as it clid

on tina “network.

Ane | cont know what will happen with tis revival of it on the DVD fom.

| would expect that it will bring it up again

dat there Is too MUGA entertainment pressure against

On the news devariments.

iiihat won't oe 2 bad erect

as long as we continue to be remincied

Kdnat tre public is concerned aloout that,

[Fiowarel] I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore!

[thunder crashes, tien rumioles|