Politics in Movies & TV: Who Did It Best?
As long as there have been films and TV shows, there have been films and TV shows about politics. This Inauguration Day is a great time to look back on some of the best and most memorable.
Movies often grab the spotlight, with some standing out above others. Gabriel Over the White House was an offbeat 1933 political tale that cast Walter Huston as a do-nothing president who undergoes a huge political reawakening after surviving a near-fatal car crash. The resulting journey pushes lots of boundaries as it explores how one man can have a huge effect on politics.
Everett Collection
Another man’s huge effect on politics was explored in a 1939 silver-screen classic. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington featured the always-watchable James Stewart as a bumbling young man who is picked to fill a U.S. Senate seat. As he becomes surrounded by political corruption and manipulation, he ends up mounting a lengthy filibuster that continues to be a memorable movie scene to this day.
The inner workings of the U.S. Senate formed the core of another gem in 1962. Advise & Consent relied on a strong ensemble cast — including Henry Fonda, Charles Laughton, Walter Pidgeon, Gene Tierney, Betty White and Peter Lawford — as it explored the Senate’s constitutional “advice and consent” powers in an investigation of a controversial nominee for secretary of state.
20th Century Fox Film Corp./Courtesy: Everett Collection
Other films have tackled tales and characters of various political stripes. Whether it was Warren Beatty leading the charge in 1998’s Bulworth or John Travolta’s charismatic pursuit of the presidency in Primary Colors that same year, the resulting political machinations have usually been entertaining and, at times, even mesmerizing.
When it comes to exploring the inner workings of politics and corruption, though, one of the most effective films continues to be 1976’s All the President’s Men. Based on the book by Washington Post journalists Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, it is a powerful thriller that revolves around the notorious Watergate scandal and features a stellar cast, including Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford, Jason Robards, Jack Warden and Hal Holbrook.
Everett Collection
Television, meanwhile, has tackled politics in a variety of other ways. Although some shows have built their entire premise on a political foundation, there have been other candidates who have tackled politics differently, serving up classic episodes that often had tongue planted firmly in cheek.
Barney, the Brady Kids and Gilligan all got in the political ring on TV
In 1966, for instance, a two-part episode of Batman — titled “Hizzonner the Penguin”/“Dizzonner the Penguin” — found the Penguin (Burgess Meredith) vying for the job of mayor of Gotham City. The Andy Griffith Show often put small-town politics in its spotlight. And although election episodes popped up several times, the most memorable is “Barney Runs for Sheriff,” a 1965 chapter that has Barney Fife (Don Knotts) squaring off against Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith) for the sheriff’s job.
The first season of The Brady Bunch jumped into the political fray by rolling out “Vote for Brady,” a 1969 episode that finds Marcia (Maureen McCormick) battling Greg (Barry Williams) in a race for student-body president. Then, there was a 1975 episode of Happy Days called “The Not Making of a President,” which found Richie (Ron Howard) going against the traditional Republican political views of his dad (Tom Bosley) by campaigning for Adlai Stevenson in the 1956 presidential race.
Even Gilligan’s Island had a presidential election episode during its first season. A 1964 installment called “President Gilligan” found The Skipper (Alan Hale Jr.) and Thurston Howell III (Jim Backus) vying to become the island’s president.
After the votes were cast, though, the results were a surprise for everyone — especially Gilligan (Bob Denver).
Remind 
Oh What A Year: 1980
January 2020
Take a look back at our retrospect of the year 1980 where we celebrate the hottest in movies, music and TV.
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