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www.titlovi.com
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Gary Nardino was
a very close friend of mine,
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a one-time agent of mine.
He was running Paramount Television.
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00:00:22,235 --> 00:00:23,827
He called me one day
and he asked me
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00:00:24,004 --> 00:00:26,199
if l'd be interested in doing
The Winds of War.
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00:00:26,373 --> 00:00:29,274
And l had to admit l didn't know
what The Winds of War was.
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And he told me it was a novel by
Herman Wouk, who l greatly admired.
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A messenger delivered
this 20-pound book.
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l couldn't believe the size of it.
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A thousand... 1 ,1 00 pages,
whatever it was.
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And l called Gary and l said,
''Are you out of your mind?''
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He said, ''Just read it,
and then we'll talk about it.''
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00:00:52,199 --> 00:00:54,497
l guess this is it, then.
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- Tumbleweeds blowing apart, huh?
- That's right.
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Tumbleweeds blowing apart.
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l pray for Natalie and your son, Byron.
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l know you do, Dad.
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Thanks.
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The Winds of War was the creme
de la creme de la creme of a book.
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Everyone wanted that.
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lt was the one that you thought, ''lf l
could get this one particular property,
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00:01:27,701 --> 00:01:30,397
''l could make the greatest miniseries
of all time.''
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So everyone lusted for it,
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00:01:33,373 --> 00:01:35,841
and Herman Wouk
basically had no interest
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00:01:36,009 --> 00:01:38,807
in making it a miniseries whatsoever.
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00:01:38,979 --> 00:01:44,178
Herman Wouk never wanted to sell
The Winds of War...
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00:01:45,118 --> 00:01:47,712
...to television, or to anybody,
for that matter.
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00:01:47,888 --> 00:01:53,224
He was vastly unhappy with the work
that had been done in the past,
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00:01:53,693 --> 00:01:56,321
translating his novels to film.
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00:01:56,630 --> 00:01:59,565
He did not like The Caine Mutiny.
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00:02:00,066 --> 00:02:02,796
He hated MarJorie Morningstar.
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00:02:02,969 --> 00:02:06,268
l don't even think he would look
at YoungbIood Hawke.
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00:02:06,440 --> 00:02:08,567
He was...
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00:02:09,242 --> 00:02:11,710
...thoroughly disenchanted
with Hollywood.
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00:02:11,878 --> 00:02:16,076
MarJorie Morningstar and YoungbIoodHawke were just trivialized,
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00:02:16,249 --> 00:02:18,649
and that wasn't going to happen
with The Winds of War.
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00:02:18,819 --> 00:02:21,185
lt just mattered too much to me.
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00:02:22,289 --> 00:02:24,723
So that was out of the question.
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00:02:25,459 --> 00:02:27,427
Once it became a bestseller,
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00:02:27,594 --> 00:02:29,289
a number one bestseller,
Winds of War,
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00:02:29,463 --> 00:02:33,991
then naturally the offers came,
and we just turned them down.
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00:02:34,301 --> 00:02:40,638
The Winds of War is a, really,
almost perfect book for television.
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And l'll tell you why, in my opinion.
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lt's about a family, and family stories
on television are always the best.
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00:02:49,049 --> 00:02:52,314
And it's a family in crisis
as a result of a war.
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00:02:52,486 --> 00:02:57,219
So you have a family that's evolving
and changing and growing,
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00:02:57,390 --> 00:03:01,156
and relationships shifting throughout
the course of their life,
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00:03:01,328 --> 00:03:07,267
set against this backdrop
of action and suspense and fear,
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00:03:07,434 --> 00:03:11,894
so you had the perfect combination
of elements
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00:03:12,072 --> 00:03:14,199
to make an extraordinary saga.
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00:03:36,863 --> 00:03:40,594
- Are you OK, sir?
- My glasses, they're shattered.
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00:03:40,767 --> 00:03:44,328
That was quite a commotion.
Close call there, wasn't it?
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00:03:44,504 --> 00:03:47,132
What Herman Wouk has done
that is unique
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00:03:47,307 --> 00:03:49,741
is that he manages to put
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00:03:49,910 --> 00:03:53,846
the average Joe and Jane
into the picture
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00:03:54,014 --> 00:03:56,574
as if they were living then,
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00:03:56,750 --> 00:04:01,551
and they were breathing the air
of 1 939 to 1 946.
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00:04:02,756 --> 00:04:07,523
And by doing that, he immediately
attracts everybody's interest.
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00:04:07,694 --> 00:04:11,027
l was a Naval officer for four years
in World War ll,
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00:04:11,197 --> 00:04:14,030
served on destroyer minesweepers
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00:04:14,501 --> 00:04:17,664
very much like the USS Caine
in The Caine Mutiny.
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00:04:17,837 --> 00:04:21,204
That's my naval background.
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00:04:21,374 --> 00:04:24,707
And out there, it occurred to me
that sooner or later,
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00:04:24,878 --> 00:04:29,679
somebody was going to write
a big book about this war.
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00:04:29,849 --> 00:04:34,013
And l didn't think
it could possibly be me,
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but it was a dream.
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00:04:36,189 --> 00:04:37,918
And it never quite left me.
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00:04:38,091 --> 00:04:41,720
Well, Herman Wouk's story
of The Winds of War
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00:04:41,895 --> 00:04:48,095
is a sweeping study of the history
of that period and those events
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00:04:48,268 --> 00:04:54,764
leading up to World War ll
and, of course, the Holocaust.
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00:04:55,375 --> 00:04:58,469
And it has a great importance.
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00:04:58,645 --> 00:05:01,512
lt's a period of history
that l've lived through.
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00:05:01,681 --> 00:05:04,741
So has Dan Curtis
and so has Herman Wouk,
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00:05:04,918 --> 00:05:08,354
and we all remember
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00:05:09,289 --> 00:05:12,747
some of the mistakes
that all of our governments made
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00:05:12,926 --> 00:05:15,622
and the horror of that war
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and how those years of the 1 930s,
when Winds of War begins,
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affected the whole world.
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lt's one of those stories
that must never be forgotten.
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00:05:44,391 --> 00:05:48,020
When l decided to take a shot
at writing this book
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00:05:49,029 --> 00:05:53,329
intended to throw a rope
around World War ll,
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00:05:53,633 --> 00:05:57,797
l realized that l was in
for some very serious reading.
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00:05:57,971 --> 00:06:03,807
And l found myself with a list
of 300 books that l ought to read.
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00:06:04,177 --> 00:06:06,168
And l read them.
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00:06:06,546 --> 00:06:08,776
Started the research,
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00:06:09,783 --> 00:06:12,183
l would say, maybe about 1 960.
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00:06:12,352 --> 00:06:18,291
l finished writing
War and Remembrance in 1 9 7 7,
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00:06:18,458 --> 00:06:20,221
so all that is...
Now there's 1 7 years,
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00:06:20,393 --> 00:06:22,861
and another about three years
on the miniseries,
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00:06:23,029 --> 00:06:25,759
so a good part of my life,
the central part of my life.
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00:06:25,932 --> 00:06:29,868
- This is the famous Pug Henry, dear.
- Oh, what a pleasure.
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00:06:33,039 --> 00:06:34,336
Pug...
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00:06:34,507 --> 00:06:37,032
...will the British hold out
if France quits?
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00:06:37,811 --> 00:06:39,642
l don't know much
about the British, sir.
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00:06:40,613 --> 00:06:44,413
Would you like to go there for a spell
as a Naval observer?
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00:06:44,584 --> 00:06:47,985
Possibly after you've had a month
or so back in Berlin?
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00:06:49,055 --> 00:06:51,023
Mr. President...
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00:06:51,191 --> 00:06:53,591
...is there any chance
of my not going back to Berlin?
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- You go back there, Pug.
- Aye, aye, sir.
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00:06:57,464 --> 00:06:59,864
You'll get your sea command
in due course.
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00:07:01,668 --> 00:07:05,104
l think the most
interesting thing about...
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00:07:06,172 --> 00:07:09,608
...how the books developed
was the German general
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00:07:09,776 --> 00:07:15,544
Armin von Roon's memoirs
or analysis of the war,
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which really is the spine,
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00:07:17,784 --> 00:07:20,218
the historical spine
that runs through both novels.
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lt was my concept
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that the story could be told entirely
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through the experiences
of my characters.
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l was about a year into the writing
when l realized that would not work,
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because they did not have
the overview.
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ln the middle of a war, nobody has
the overview of what's happening.
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And this character, General Armin
von Roon, just walked into the book.
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And one day l was trying to write
some scene or other,
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00:07:49,983 --> 00:07:51,746
and l needed
the historical background,
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00:07:51,918 --> 00:07:56,355
and this character walked
into my room where l was working
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00:07:56,523 --> 00:07:58,081
and said, ''l'll take it from here'',
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00:07:58,258 --> 00:08:01,989
and he started to describe the war
from his viewpoint.
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00:08:02,162 --> 00:08:06,223
That worked, and that was
the essential missing piece.
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AII previous studies inadequate.
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00:08:11,204 --> 00:08:13,434
Assumptions about Soviet Union,
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in view of the proposed AngIo-SovietAIIiance, are highIy hazardous.
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00:08:21,481 --> 00:08:25,941
We are going out on very thin ice.
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00:08:26,119 --> 00:08:31,614
Von Roon is the only fictional
German officer in this story.
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00:08:31,791 --> 00:08:35,352
Mr. Wouk wrote him
as a military diarist.
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00:08:35,528 --> 00:08:37,018
So he didn't have a family.
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00:08:37,197 --> 00:08:41,634
He was never apprehended in secret
meetings or anything like that.
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00:08:41,801 --> 00:08:46,067
So the best l could do
was try to infer
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00:08:46,239 --> 00:08:52,576
a certain ambiguity
about his loyalty to the Fuehrer.
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00:08:52,745 --> 00:08:55,737
More important than ever
to do your background reading
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00:08:55,915 --> 00:08:58,440
and see if you can pick up
some tips,
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00:08:58,618 --> 00:09:02,952
maybe even suggest something
about the character,
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00:09:03,122 --> 00:09:05,590
which is to augment the character
in some way.
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00:09:05,758 --> 00:09:08,556
Research, nothing to beat it.
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00:09:08,728 --> 00:09:10,593
Tell me, Victor...
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00:09:11,731 --> 00:09:13,722
...what is all that
smokescreen about
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00:09:13,900 --> 00:09:15,731
lending and leasing?
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00:09:16,669 --> 00:09:21,732
There is legal precedent for the leasing
of American military property.
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00:09:22,141 --> 00:09:27,511
But the lending of ships and weapons
is a novel idea.
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00:09:27,680 --> 00:09:30,877
Of course, they have to be returned
in good repair after the war.
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00:09:31,050 --> 00:09:33,280
lt's poppycock.
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00:09:33,786 --> 00:09:36,220
lt's politics.
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Check.
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00:09:38,725 --> 00:09:42,217
l started with Pug Henry
because of this...
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00:09:42,395 --> 00:09:43,657
His...
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The centrality of a figure
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00:09:46,332 --> 00:09:50,462
who would be close enough
to the president
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00:09:50,637 --> 00:09:55,506
to see a lot of the aspects
of Roosevelt's decision-making,
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00:09:55,675 --> 00:09:59,668
without his being, in any sense,
a heroic figure.
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00:09:59,846 --> 00:10:03,907
Just a run-of-the-mill,
obscure Naval officer.
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00:10:04,717 --> 00:10:08,175
ln the story, nobody's ever heard
of Pug Henry,
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00:10:08,354 --> 00:10:10,686
and nobody ever hears
of the Pug Henrys of real life.
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00:10:10,857 --> 00:10:13,087
They are the ones
who get things done
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00:10:13,259 --> 00:10:15,784
and never have
the 1 6 minutes of fame.
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00:10:15,962 --> 00:10:17,327
They serve.
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00:10:18,097 --> 00:10:19,359
Goodbye, Pug.
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00:10:20,934 --> 00:10:23,198
Goodbye, Mr. President.
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00:10:25,038 --> 00:10:26,335
Goodbye, Mrs. Roosevelt.
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00:10:29,175 --> 00:10:31,302
l read the book...
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00:10:32,445 --> 00:10:34,276
...and of course, l loved it.
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00:10:34,447 --> 00:10:39,077
But l instantly realized
that it was half a story
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because it ended at Pearl Harbor.
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00:10:41,854 --> 00:10:43,685
And the story
was just getting started.
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00:10:43,856 --> 00:10:47,314
Without counting pages,
l just wrote and wrote and wrote,
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00:10:47,493 --> 00:10:50,189
and finally, l got to Pearl Harbor,
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00:10:51,631 --> 00:10:53,656
and then l went back
and counted the pages,
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00:10:53,833 --> 00:10:57,234
and l saw that l had written
a 1 ,000-page novel, pretty near.
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00:10:57,403 --> 00:11:00,372
And l told this to my wife. l said,
''What am l going to do now?''
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00:11:00,540 --> 00:11:04,476
And she says, ''Well, l don't know.
The story's just beginning'', she said.
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00:11:04,644 --> 00:11:07,112
And l talked to my editor then,
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00:11:07,280 --> 00:11:09,009
and we decided
there was nothing for it
171
00:11:09,182 --> 00:11:13,312
but to tie it off and publish
The Winds of War by itself.
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00:11:13,486 --> 00:11:16,455
And indeed, that's what l did.
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00:11:16,622 --> 00:11:21,059
lt was Barry Diller who came up
with the idea of making a miniseries,
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00:11:21,227 --> 00:11:22,751
which was the correct form.
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l mean, then you have all of the room
that you need to tell the story.
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00:11:26,366 --> 00:11:29,028
We thought that was impossible
because of the commercials.
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00:11:29,202 --> 00:11:31,568
Herman finally agreed
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00:11:31,738 --> 00:11:35,469
to let it happen,
but with all kinds of provisos.
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00:11:35,641 --> 00:11:42,479
He limited the amount of commercial
minutes that the network could have.
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00:11:42,648 --> 00:11:47,483
He put restrictions on them
that they never dreamed of,
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00:11:47,720 --> 00:11:49,051
and they all bought it.
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00:11:49,222 --> 00:11:53,682
The restrictions covered things
like what sponsors would be allowed,
183
00:11:53,860 --> 00:11:55,691
how many commercials
would be allowed,
184
00:11:55,862 --> 00:11:58,387
what the commercial positions
would be,
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00:11:58,564 --> 00:12:00,862
how many would be connected
to each other.
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00:12:01,034 --> 00:12:03,434
Herman had creative approval
on the writer,
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00:12:03,603 --> 00:12:05,161
creative approval on the director,
188
00:12:05,338 --> 00:12:07,203
he had creative approval
on the cast.
189
00:12:07,373 --> 00:12:10,274
So he was loaded with clauses,
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00:12:10,443 --> 00:12:14,846
which were about 4 7,000 pages long
that none of us could understand,
191
00:12:15,014 --> 00:12:18,882
which had to do with his control
over the production itself.
192
00:12:19,052 --> 00:12:21,612
But with that, we got the rights.
193
00:12:21,788 --> 00:12:23,813
Don't marry Slote.
194
00:12:25,458 --> 00:12:27,688
How young you are.
195
00:12:28,094 --> 00:12:29,789
Promise me?
196
00:12:30,430 --> 00:12:34,764
You know what Lenin said. ''Promises,
like piecrusts, are meant to be broken.''
197
00:12:34,934 --> 00:12:36,731
Forget about Lenin,
just promise me.
198
00:12:37,937 --> 00:12:40,337
You idiot, don't you know
how much l love you?
199
00:12:43,709 --> 00:12:48,874
Most of our role was to find
the right people and to support them.
200
00:12:49,048 --> 00:12:52,313
The hard part of it, of course,
was that it was all over the world.
201
00:12:52,485 --> 00:12:54,612
l mean, this was going to cost
a bloody fortune.
202
00:12:54,787 --> 00:12:59,053
This was going to be the biggest thing
that television had ever seen
203
00:12:59,225 --> 00:13:01,022
in the history of the business.
204
00:13:01,194 --> 00:13:05,324
Because the book was so massive
and it involved extras
205
00:13:05,498 --> 00:13:09,229
and it involved attacks
and it involved explosions
206
00:13:09,402 --> 00:13:14,635
and it involved shooting
in all these different areas,
207
00:13:14,807 --> 00:13:17,970
so the production side of it
was really, really difficult.
208
00:13:18,144 --> 00:13:21,477
However, actually taking that script,
mounting it,
209
00:13:21,647 --> 00:13:25,674
putting it on the air,
making it happen, making it real,
210
00:13:25,852 --> 00:13:29,379
and not just a little
eI cheapo production,
211
00:13:29,555 --> 00:13:31,523
but a big, mammoth saga,
212
00:13:31,691 --> 00:13:34,660
which is what was really needed
213
00:13:34,827 --> 00:13:37,193
in terms of the book
and in terms of Herman Wouk,
214
00:13:37,363 --> 00:13:39,957
that was a tremendous challenge.
Tremendous.
215
00:13:40,133 --> 00:13:42,727
l come to the house...
216
00:13:43,970 --> 00:13:46,962
...and l'm greeted
by Herman and Sarah.
217
00:13:48,441 --> 00:13:51,308
Right away, l know Sarah takes
an instant dislike to me.
218
00:13:51,477 --> 00:13:53,468
She thinks l'm Mr. Hollywood.
219
00:13:53,646 --> 00:13:57,878
And Herman and l have this long
dialogue, and l said to him,
220
00:13:58,151 --> 00:13:59,778
''You don't understand.
221
00:13:59,952 --> 00:14:03,115
''l'm my own boss.
l have my own company.
222
00:14:03,289 --> 00:14:07,225
''This is an interview. l've never been...
l don't need this job.
223
00:14:07,393 --> 00:14:10,794
''l have grave doubts about doing it
anyway. l've got problems with it.''
224
00:14:10,963 --> 00:14:14,330
And l told him about the fact
that l thought it was a half a story,
225
00:14:14,500 --> 00:14:18,027
and he allowed as how
he would not ever let anybody
226
00:14:18,204 --> 00:14:19,694
get into the second half,
227
00:14:19,872 --> 00:14:22,102
which turned out to be
War and Remembrance,
228
00:14:22,275 --> 00:14:24,300
until he knew
they could do the first half.
229
00:14:24,477 --> 00:14:26,411
We talked about it again.
230
00:14:26,579 --> 00:14:29,605
We got into a huge argument
because l said, ''OK, l will do it,
231
00:14:29,782 --> 00:14:32,148
''but l won't do it
unless l can do the whole thing.''
232
00:14:32,318 --> 00:14:35,014
Dan started out by saying,
233
00:14:35,254 --> 00:14:37,984
''The book is the Bible
of the miniseries.
234
00:14:38,157 --> 00:14:40,022
''We're going to follow the book.
235
00:14:40,193 --> 00:14:43,253
''When in doubt, we go to the book.''
This is what he said to me.
236
00:14:43,429 --> 00:14:47,490
ln attempting to write for television,
l did some ad-libbing,
237
00:14:47,667 --> 00:14:49,532
and he said,
''No, go back to the book.''
238
00:14:49,702 --> 00:14:51,932
That was the first thing
l learned from him,
239
00:14:52,104 --> 00:14:54,504
which was music to my ears,
240
00:14:54,674 --> 00:14:58,166
the idea that all l do is stick
to my book. lt just couldn't be better.
241
00:14:58,344 --> 00:15:01,245
The first thing l determined
242
00:15:01,414 --> 00:15:06,852
was that we would adapt the book
while l was in preproduction.
243
00:15:07,019 --> 00:15:09,852
So, what l did was sit down...
244
00:15:10,389 --> 00:15:12,584
...and do an outline
245
00:15:12,758 --> 00:15:14,521
of the major sequences
246
00:15:14,694 --> 00:15:18,562
that l was pretty sure
were going to end up in the picture,
247
00:15:18,931 --> 00:15:22,890
so that l could then start to look
for these main locations.
248
00:15:23,069 --> 00:15:25,697
At the same time,
we were going to start casting.
249
00:15:25,871 --> 00:15:30,570
The writing process and preproduction
took probably a year and a half.
250
00:15:30,743 --> 00:15:32,938
l was traveling all over the world
251
00:15:33,112 --> 00:15:34,977
while Herman was working
on the screenplay.
252
00:15:35,147 --> 00:15:39,083
l was also drafting some sequences
that l would send on to him.
253
00:15:39,252 --> 00:15:41,083
And l brought in
254
00:15:41,254 --> 00:15:44,314
my good friend Earl Wallace,
who was a wonderful writer,
255
00:15:44,490 --> 00:15:47,357
who worked as story editor
and also worked very closely with us.
256
00:15:47,526 --> 00:15:50,586
So we all worked very closely together
on the screenplay...
257
00:15:51,664 --> 00:15:53,928
...with Herman having final word
on everything.
258
00:15:54,100 --> 00:15:57,627
Because of our previous experience,
we knew practically better than any...
259
00:15:57,803 --> 00:16:00,601
Certainly any other network
or anybody in the business,
260
00:16:00,773 --> 00:16:02,240
what you had to do
261
00:16:02,408 --> 00:16:05,775
in order to get everybody into the tent
on opening night.
262
00:16:05,945 --> 00:16:08,243
We had every single day
of the year
263
00:16:08,414 --> 00:16:11,247
mapped out on the walls
of this conference room,
264
00:16:11,417 --> 00:16:14,079
and we met once a week
with the public relations people,
265
00:16:14,253 --> 00:16:16,915
the photography people,
with the on-air people,
266
00:16:17,089 --> 00:16:18,750
with the advertising people.
267
00:16:18,924 --> 00:16:20,858
And there was a meeting
for one year
268
00:16:21,027 --> 00:16:23,825
prior to the air date of Winds of War,
269
00:16:23,996 --> 00:16:29,229
where we would discuss what was
going to happen on every single day,
270
00:16:29,402 --> 00:16:33,566
366 days before the premiere night.
271
00:16:33,739 --> 00:16:38,938
We ended up, as a result of this kind
of attack and this kind of detail on it,
272
00:16:39,111 --> 00:16:42,376
we ended up with 1 7 magazine covers
for The Winds of War.
273
00:16:42,915 --> 00:16:46,476
We covered absolutely
every base everywhere.
274
00:16:46,652 --> 00:16:50,053
So we had to take it and turn it into
275
00:16:50,222 --> 00:16:54,659
a major monster television event,
which we did.
276
00:16:54,827 --> 00:16:57,523
With an actor in the White House,
it wasn't surprising to see
277
00:16:57,697 --> 00:16:59,096
the super powers of Hollywood
278
00:16:59,265 --> 00:17:01,290
mingling with Washington's
power brokers
279
00:17:01,467 --> 00:17:05,403
at a special preview screening of
the upcoming Winds of War miniseries
280
00:17:05,571 --> 00:17:06,833
here at the Kennedy Center.
281
00:17:07,006 --> 00:17:10,601
This is a very extraordinary
and unusual film.
282
00:17:10,776 --> 00:17:13,244
The character that Robert Mitchum
plays, Pug Henry,
283
00:17:13,412 --> 00:17:18,645
is kind of an omnipresent character
who is on the spot with Mussolini,
284
00:17:18,818 --> 00:17:20,513
with Hitler, with Roosevelt.
285
00:17:20,686 --> 00:17:25,020
And so, all of a sudden,
you create those years
286
00:17:25,191 --> 00:17:28,820
that a good many of us remember
with some nostalgia
287
00:17:28,994 --> 00:17:31,656
and some sorrow.
288
00:17:31,831 --> 00:17:37,895
l think Winds of War is a piece
that is historical,
289
00:17:38,070 --> 00:17:40,334
a piece that's important
for a lot of people to see
290
00:17:40,506 --> 00:17:43,907
who really have forgotten
or were born after World War ll
291
00:17:44,076 --> 00:17:46,636
and really don't realize
what went on at that time.
292
00:17:46,812 --> 00:17:52,182
And it's obviously a bipartisan war.
Everybody seems to have shown up.
293
00:17:52,351 --> 00:17:57,345
l think that Herman Wouk's and Dan
Curtis' movie about World War ll
294
00:17:57,523 --> 00:18:02,984
is an enormous antiwar document
without being didactic.
295
00:18:03,162 --> 00:18:07,428
l think this is enormously instructive.
lt's interesting. lt's fast-moving.
296
00:18:07,600 --> 00:18:10,569
And l think all of us
can always learn from history.
297
00:18:10,736 --> 00:18:12,499
When l got the part
in Winds of War,
298
00:18:12,671 --> 00:18:17,540
l had no idea what a big deal
this job was. l just really did not.
299
00:18:17,710 --> 00:18:19,871
l knew l was doing a big miniseries,
300
00:18:20,045 --> 00:18:24,345
but l don't think anyone knew
how popular it was going to be,
301
00:18:24,517 --> 00:18:28,920
and that on the week
or the ten days when it was airing,
302
00:18:29,088 --> 00:18:32,524
you could drive through the town, and
there wouldn't be a car on the streets.
303
00:18:32,691 --> 00:18:35,285
l mean, it was amazing.
304
00:18:35,628 --> 00:18:38,096
There were areas of L.A.
that were like a ghost town
305
00:18:38,264 --> 00:18:40,323
because everybody was home
watching television.
306
00:18:41,300 --> 00:18:47,398
lt's hard to describe the rush that you
feel when you get those ratings,
307
00:18:47,573 --> 00:18:51,407
but it certainly is extraordinary,
and it's also nice to know
308
00:18:51,577 --> 00:18:55,741
that you're actually probably going
to keep your job until lunch of that day.
309
00:18:55,915 --> 00:18:59,908
l give credit to Brandon Stoddard of
ABC for taking this enormous gamble
310
00:19:00,085 --> 00:19:05,148
on the notion that the attention span
of the audience could be held
311
00:19:05,324 --> 00:19:09,886
three hours a night straight through
six nights of prime time.
312
00:19:10,062 --> 00:19:11,825
l don't know
if it could be done today.
313
00:19:11,997 --> 00:19:15,364
l don't know that the audiences today
would stand still for it.
314
00:19:15,534 --> 00:19:18,025
Herman Wouk and Dan Curtis
315
00:19:18,337 --> 00:19:20,703
were able to tell their story
316
00:19:20,873 --> 00:19:27,039
and to have their story impact on
the lives of tens of millions of people.
317
00:19:27,213 --> 00:19:30,080
And that is surely
a lasting contribution
318
00:19:30,249 --> 00:19:32,513
to Holocaust education
and remembrance.
319
00:19:32,685 --> 00:19:36,121
l definitely think that Winds of War
320
00:19:36,288 --> 00:19:38,756
and War and Remembrance,
321
00:19:38,924 --> 00:19:42,451
it's anthology of the wartime,
322
00:19:42,628 --> 00:19:47,156
l think one of the best documents
ever made
323
00:19:47,666 --> 00:19:49,361
about this war.
324
00:19:49,668 --> 00:19:52,569
l didn't know whether l could do it.
325
00:19:53,506 --> 00:19:56,373
l didn't know whether
326
00:19:56,609 --> 00:19:59,510
people would be interested
in the Second World War.
327
00:19:59,678 --> 00:20:02,442
l wrote them during the Vietnam War
328
00:20:02,615 --> 00:20:04,014
with marchers outside
329
00:20:04,183 --> 00:20:07,744
and the kind of turmoil in the country
that we now have with lraq.
330
00:20:07,920 --> 00:20:10,753
That was going on then
when l was writing the books.
331
00:20:10,923 --> 00:20:15,155
Many a day, l looked out
of my Washington, D.C. window,
332
00:20:15,327 --> 00:20:17,591
and l could see marchers going by.
333
00:20:17,763 --> 00:20:24,498
l said to myself, ''Who cares?
Who will care about this book?''
334
00:20:27,740 --> 00:20:32,268
lf you've got a theme
in which you believe...
335
00:20:32,444 --> 00:20:34,537
At least this is the way
l've always worked...
336
00:20:34,713 --> 00:20:37,409
You do it, and then
you see what happens.
337
00:20:37,583 --> 00:20:40,177
The fact that the books...
338
00:20:40,920 --> 00:20:43,252
...worked the way they did
339
00:20:43,422 --> 00:20:46,357
and the way that the miniseries
worked the way they did
340
00:20:46,525 --> 00:20:48,789
is just enduring satisfaction to me.
341
00:20:48,961 --> 00:20:52,328
But l put in the time
and l put in the effort,
342
00:20:52,498 --> 00:20:55,558
and l stand by the outcome.
343
00:20:55,734 --> 00:20:58,430
l can remember Brandon
saying to me,
344
00:20:58,971 --> 00:21:00,996
''OK,
345
00:21:01,440 --> 00:21:04,170
''l'll get them in the tent.''
He promoted the hell out of it.
346
00:21:04,343 --> 00:21:06,777
The promotion on The Winds of War
was gigantic.
347
00:21:06,946 --> 00:21:09,710
''After that, it's going to be up to you.''
348
00:21:09,882 --> 00:21:14,751
l says, ''OK.'' l says,
''What kind of a number do you want?''
349
00:21:14,920 --> 00:21:18,412
He said, ''Anything with a five
in front of it.''
350
00:21:18,691 --> 00:21:21,558
Six o'clock in the morning
the telephone rings,
351
00:21:21,727 --> 00:21:24,423
and it's Brandon,
and l said, ''Yeah?''
352
00:21:24,597 --> 00:21:29,432
He said, ''64 share,
353
00:21:29,602 --> 00:21:34,130
80 million people.''
Something insane, right?
354
00:21:34,907 --> 00:21:37,341
He was so happy,
and l'm jumping up and down.
355
00:21:37,509 --> 00:21:40,945
When that thing ran that week,
356
00:21:41,513 --> 00:21:43,242
it was...
357
00:21:43,415 --> 00:21:47,545
lt averaged a 64 share
throughout the entire week.
358
00:21:47,720 --> 00:21:51,451
l remember being in the supermarket
buying something,
359
00:21:51,624 --> 00:21:55,526
and people in the line are yelling
at people in front of them to go faster.
360
00:21:55,694 --> 00:21:58,822
They have to go home to watch it.
The restaurants were empty.
361
00:21:58,998 --> 00:22:00,795
Matteo's was a restaurant
l used to go to.
362
00:22:00,966 --> 00:22:02,797
The guy who ran Matteo's
said to me,
363
00:22:02,968 --> 00:22:05,129
''You're killing my business.
Nobody's in here.''
364
00:22:05,304 --> 00:22:08,068
lt was, like,
a just national experience.
365
00:22:08,240 --> 00:22:10,572
The world was watching
The Winds of War.
366
00:22:10,743 --> 00:22:12,836
lt was the most
unbelievable experience.
367
00:22:13,012 --> 00:22:15,674
My wife called up Chasen's
because we had a little party,
368
00:22:15,848 --> 00:22:17,611
and she wanted to get some chili.
369
00:22:17,783 --> 00:22:21,014
She heard that the chili
at Chasen's was great, right?
370
00:22:21,186 --> 00:22:24,747
So Maude Chasen gets
on the telephone and she says,
371
00:22:24,923 --> 00:22:28,586
''This isn't a takeout place.
We don't send out chili.''
372
00:22:28,761 --> 00:22:31,924
And then she says,
''Who did you say you were?''
373
00:22:32,097 --> 00:22:33,826
And she said...
374
00:22:34,933 --> 00:22:37,902
...''Mrs. Dan Curtis.''
And she says,
375
00:22:38,370 --> 00:22:41,237
''Winds of War Dan Curtis?''
376
00:22:41,874 --> 00:22:43,432
And she says, ''That's right.''
377
00:22:43,609 --> 00:22:46,237
She says, ''How much chili
do you want?''
378
00:22:47,980 --> 00:22:50,448
lt was an incredible experience.
379
00:22:53,448 --> 00:22:57,448
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