Hugh Hewitt: Ron Howard discusses Richard Nixon and his Oscar nominated film, Frost/Nixon

Townhall.com ^ | January 28, 2009 | Hugh Hewitt

[EveningStar]

HH: If you’ve listened to this program, you know that I worked for Richard Nixon from 1978-1980, and then again from ’89-’91. I knew him pretty well, I knew him very well in those years. So when Frost/Nixon came out, I sort of was going to be skeptical. What would they do with Jack Brennan? What would they do with the old man? And I loved it. Joining me now to discuss it, Ron Howard, the director/producer of it. Ron, welcome back, good to talk to you.

RH: Thank you, good to talk to you, Hugh.

HH: Congratulations on the movie. What did you learn about Nixon that you didn’t know when you started?

[Dionysius]

Liberals are the real mouthbreathers. Their only guage for measuring intelligence in others is whether or not they agree with them. They are very adept at recognizing evil, however. Each and every one is evil to the core — Ron Howard being in the forefront.

[Cyman]

Really resisted going to see this even though I admire Ron Howard's work. Saw the TV trailers and was very upset that Howard and Langella chose to play Nixon as a caricature the entire movie. In the theater there were only a few of us that laughed at the lines that would favor Nixon but the theater died laughing for every anti-Nixon ploy.

Went with another friend(conservative) and his son. Now mind you, this boy is around conservatives all the time except when he is in a charter christian high school. After the movie we went to get a bite to eat but my purpose was to hear the young man's impression of the movie. He thought that the movie was good and he felt that Nixon was a buffoon(his words). When we went over the movie it was amazing how much of the movie he thought was fact and not artistic license. We tried to explain the truth. He seemed slightly skeptical until I told him that the part that Sam Rockwell plays was how I felt about Nixon in those exact days and months leading up to the resignation and for some time after. The point that we tried to stress to him was that history has a present and a future. Most times history is best judged with the passage of time so that events and people can be put in their proper perspective.

[macamadamia]

I mean, it’s an example of creative license, but creative license born out of research and a desire to offer a more comprehensive sense of both of these characters.


Howard strikes me as really a sort of nasty person. It seems like every time he makes a movie there's some controversy regarding facts and biographies.

[diogenes ghost]

"Don't forget: Sarah Palin - - Dumb."

Wow!

When did she get elected president? I musta missed that news flash.

[Doc Savage]

This was disgusting. I thought Hewitt was going to tongue him as they embraced. Howard is a disgusting liberal hack. And his brother is the original UGLY!

[Old North State]

I am old enough to remember the Nixon Watergate investigations on TV. Today I often wonder, what is that Nixon did that Clinton did not? Nixon was essentially accused of covering up a petty burglary committed by others.
Did he lie? Yes, but so did Clinton.
Did he suborn perjury? Yes he did, but so did Clinton.
Did he interfere with an investigation?: Yes he did ,but so did Clinton.
Was he guilty of the underlying act that triggered the investigation? No, but Clinton was.
The Washington establishment warned us for years about the evil of the cover up; right up until Clinton engaged in one, then it didn't matter anymore. I eagerly await Opie’s examination of the evil Clinton.

[RedMonqey]

Howard is a disgusting liberal hack. And his brother is the original UGLY!

You do know his brother, Clint is more conservative than his brother...

[beaversmom]

Isn’t Hewitt friends with Clint Howard or at least has had him on the program several times?

[Antoninus]

When did she get elected president? I musta missed that news flash.

2012. It was all over www.futurenews.com.

[Ban Draoi Marbh Draoi]

I would love to see a real documentary on the real “watergate” which was nothing more than an attempt to recover compromising photos of a prostitute.

[goat granny]

Hi I remember the Nixon years. No Fox news no Rush no conservative except Buckley. No Internet only ABC,NBC,CBS. I am sure their reporting on Nixon was fair and unbiased. I think G.Gordon Liddy wrote a book about it. He was one of Nixons plumbers...(called that because it was their job to plug the leaks in the WH.) and he was one of the guys that actually did the break in of the Democrat headquarters in the Watergate Hotel. Nixon found out after the fact and tried to cover for them and failed... Liddy went to prison rather that rat out Nixon like some of the others in the inner circle did......John Dean for instance..I think thats the guy...