American Experience (1988) s07e01 Episode Script

1
(theme music playing)
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McCullough:
"ALL THAT IS WITHIN ME,"
FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT ONCE WROTE,
"CRIES OUT TO GO BACK TO MY HOME
ON THE HUDSON RIVER."
"HYDE PARK WAS
THE CENTER OF THE WORLD."
Broadcaster:
WE INTERRUPT THIS PROGRAM
TO BRING YOU A SPECIAL NEWS
BULLETIN FROM CBS WORLD NEWS.
A PRESS ASSOCIATION
HAS JUST ANNOUNCED
THAT PRESIDENT ROOSEVEL
IS DEAD.
THE PRESIDENT DIED
OF A CEREBRAL HEMORRHAGE.
ALL WE KNOW SO FAR IS
THAT THE PRESIDENT DIED
AT WARM SPRINGS IN GEORGIA.
McCullough:
ON APRIL 13, 1945, THE FUNERAL
TRAIN HEADED NORTH.
IN THE LAST CAR LAY THE BODY
OF THE PRESIDEN
OF THE UNITED STATES.
FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVEL
HAD LED AMERICANS
THROUGH THE GREAT DEPRESSION
AND THE GREATEST WAR IN HISTORY.
NOW, ALONG RAILROAD TRACKS
FROM GEORGIA TO NEW YORK,
THEY GATHERED TO SAY GOOD-BYE.
Man:
A WHOLE GENERATION
OF AMERICANS HAD GROWN UP
KNOWING NO OTHER PRESIDENT.
HE WAS A PRESENCE
IN THEIR LIVING ROOMS,
HE'D CALLED THEM "MY FRIENDS,"
HE'D BEEN AT THE HELM
THROUGH THE TWO WORST CRISES
OF THIS CENTURY.
AND TO HAVE HIM SUDDENLY GONE
WAS AN OVERWHELMING SHOCK.
Man:
THE BOSS MAN COME TO THE FIELD,
HE THROWED UP HIS HANDS.
HE SAID,
"MR. ROOSEVELT DIED TODAY."
I SAID, "WHAT?"
HE SAID,
"MR. ROOSEVELT DIED TODAY."
I JUST SAT THERE.
I JUST SAT THERE.
I WAS STUNNED.
I FELT LIKE I HAD LOS
ONE OF THE CLOSES
BROTHERS I EVER HAD.
Man:
IT WAS THE SINGLE GREATES
FEELING OF LOSS
DISORIENTATION UNCERTAINTY.
AND THE SENSE
THAT THE WHOLE WORLD
WAS NOW WITHOUT THE ONE MAN
THAT IT NEEDED.
Man:
THIS WAS A MAN
OF GREAT EBULLIENCE.
HE WAS A MAN OF CONSTANT CHEER.
HE WAS A MAN OF LAUGHTER.
HE HAD THE FEELING OF LIFE.
THERE WAS VITALITY.
THIS WAS A COUNTRY IN DESPAIR,
AND HE BROUGHT US ALL TOGETHER.
McCullough:
HE WAS THE MAN
WITH THE BIG, EASY SMILE
THE INFECTIOUS SENSE OF HUMOR.
Reporter:
MR. PRESIDENT, HOW SOON
ARE YOU COMING BACK?
JUST AS SOON AS
CONGRESS WILL LET ME.
McCullough:
HE LOVED CONVERSATION, COMPANY
AND GOOD TIMES.
LAST YEAR I NEARLY
KILLED A PHOTOGRAPHER.
ALL READY?
McCullough:
THIS WAS HOW AMERICANS SAW
FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT.
THIS WAS THE MAN
THEY TRUSTED SO MUCH,
THEY ELECTED HIM PRESIDEN
FOUR TIMES.
Man:
PEOPLE JUST IDOLIZED HIM.
THE MOST ASTOUNDING THING WAS
THE PICTURES OF ROOSEVEL
YOU SAW EVERYWHERE
BUS STATIONS, LIBRARIES,
BARBER SHOPS, HOMES
THERE WERE PICTURES
OF ROOSEVELT.
THE ENTIRE COUNTRY DECIDED
HE WAS THE SAVIOR.
WE FACE THE FUTURE WITH
CONFIDENCE AND WITH COURAGE.
WE ARE AMERICANS.
(cheering)
McCullough:
NEVER BEFORE ROOSEVELT HAD
AMERICANS FEL
THAT GOVERNMENT WOULD
TAKE CARE OF THEM:
PROTECT THEIR HOMES
AND THEIR FARMS,
GUARANTEE THEIR SAVINGS
ACCOUNTS,
PROMISE THEM SECURITY
IN SICKNESS AND OLD AGE.
BUT THE PRESIDEN
WHO CHAMPIONED THE COMMON MAN
WAS NOT LIKE MOST AMERICANS.
McCullough:
"MY DEAR MAMA,
I AM IN A GREAT HURRY.
"I FOUND TWO BIRDS' NESTS.
"I TOOK ONE EGG.
YOUR LOVING FRANKLIN."
FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVEL
SPENT HIS CHILDHOOD
AMONG PEOPLE SO UNLIKE
ORDINARY AMERICANS
THEY MODELED THEMSELVES AFTER
THE LORDS AND LADIES OF ENGLAND.
Man:
THE WORLD OF WEALTH
AND PRIVILEGE
THAT F.D.R. GREW UP WITH
WAS ONE THAT WAS ESSENTIALLY
VERY COMFORTABLE FOR EVERYBODY.
AND THE FAMILIES
THAT LIVED ON THOSE ESTATES
WERE GENERALLY FRIENDS
OF ONE ANOTHER,
RELATED, VERY OFTEN,
TO EACH OTHER
AND WERE THE ONLY PEOPLE
THAT VISITED ONE ANOTHER.
I THINK IT'S FAIR TO SAY
THAT EVEN THE PROFESSIONAL
MEN IN THE TOWNS
WHO WERE THE DOCTORS
AND THE LAWYERS AND SO ON
WERE NOT GENERALLY INVITED
TO THE RIVER HOUSES TO DINNER.
McCullough:
FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT WAS BORN
IN HYDE PARK, NEW YORK,
ON JANUARY 30, 1882
ON THE BIG, FORESTED ESTATE
HIS PARENTS CALLED SPRINGWOOD.
Man:
SPRINGWOOD WAS A BEAUTIFUL,
ISOLATED PLACE.
IT WAS ITS OWN WORLD
AND IT WAS ENTIRELY BUILT AROUND
THIS PRIVILEGED LITTLE BOY.
AND I THINK HE SPEN
MOST OF HIS LIFE TRYING
TO REPLICATE THE WAY
HIS BOYHOOD WAS ARRANGED.
McCullough:
"AT THE VERY OUTSET,
HE WAS PLUMP, PINK AND
NICE," HIS MOTHER SAID.
"I USED TO LOVE TO BATHE
AND DRESS HIM."
"HE LOOKED VERY SWEET,
"HIS LITTLE BLOND CURLS BOBBING
AS HE RAN AS FAST AS HE COULD
WHENEVER HE THOUGHT I HAD
DESIGNS ON COMBING THEM."
NEARLY EVERY DETAIL
OF FRANKLIN'S CHILDHOOD
WAS RECORDED
WITH SINGLE-MINDED DEVOTION
BY HIS MOTHER,
SARA DELANO ROOSEVELT.
SHE KEPT HIS BABY CLOTHES,
EVERY CHILDISH DRAWING,
EACH GOLDEN CURL.
FRANKLIN WAS
EIGHT-AND-A-HALF YEARS OLD
BEFORE HE WAS ALLOWED
TO BATHE HIMSELF.
Ward:
IF IT'S THE JOB OF A MOTHER
TO MAKE HER CHILD FEEL
THAT HE OR SHE CAN DO ANYTHING,
THEN SARA DELANO ROOSEVELT WAS
SURELY ONE OF THE GREAT MOTHERS
IN AMERICAN HISTORY.
McCullough:
FRANKLIN'S FATHER
WAS MORE THAN
25 YEARS OLDER THAN SARA.
HE WAS 53
WHEN FRANKLIN WAS BORN.
FRANKLIN CALLED HIM POPSY.
EVERYONE ELSE CALLED HIM
MR. JAMES.
MR. JAMES BRED TROTTERS
AND RODE TO THE HOUNDS.
HE SMOKED CHEROOTS.
HE WOULD RIDE OUT WITH HIS SON
TO SURVEY THEIR ESTATE.
THE WORKERS TIPPED
THEIR HATS TO MR. JAMES
AND THEN TO MASTER FRANKLIN.
THE BOY ACCEPTED THESE DISPLAYS
OF DEFERENCE AS ROUTINE.
Man:
F.D.R. GREW UP IN A VERY TIGH
LITTLE ISLAND.
HE LEARNED HOW TO PLEASE ADULTS
FROM PROBABLY
BEFORE HE REMEMBERED.
HIS ACTIVITIES
WERE RELATED TO
SHOWING OFF FOR THEM,
RELATING TO THEM,
NOT TO OTHER CHILDREN.
AND HE DIDN'T GO OFF TO PLAY
GAMES WITH OTHER CHILDREN.
I DON'T THINK HE EVER SWUNG
A BASEBALL BA
UNTIL HE FINALLY WENT TO SCHOOL.
HE WAS TUTORED AT HOME OR ABROAD
BECAUSE EVERY YEAR THEY WEN
ABROAD FOR SEVERAL MONTHS.
F.D.R., WITH ALL THIS ATTENTION,
WAS UNDOUBTEDLY A LONELY BOY.
McCullough:
FRANKLIN WANDERED
HIS FAMILY ESTATE,
SECURE, HE LATER SAID,
"IN THE PEACEFULNESS
AND REGULARITY OF THINGS."
THEN WHEN HE WAS NINE, HIS
WELL-ORDERED WORLD FRACTURED.
HIS 63-YEAR-OLD FATHER
SUFFERED A HEART ATTACK.
ANY IRRITATION
MIGHT AGGRAVATE HIM
PROVOKE ANOTHER HEAR
ATTACK, AND KILL HIM.
Woman:
HIS FATHER'S SICKNESS
MUST HAVE REINFORCED
THE TENDENCY
THAT WAS ALREADY IN HIM AS
A SMALL CHILD TO BE A NICE BOY,
TO NEVER MAKE ANY TROUBLE,
NEVER MAKE ANYBODY SAD.
NOW HE HAD TO WORRY, "IF I GO
IN THERE AND MAKE TROUBLE,
I MAY WEAKEN
HIS ALREADY WEAKENED HEART,"
SO IT MUST HAVE PUT AN
ENORMOUS PRESSURE ON THIS KID.
McCullough:
WITH AN INFIRM FATHER
AND A DOMINEERING MOTHER,
FRANKLIN LEARNED TO CONCEAL
HIS TRUE FEELINGS.
THROUGHOUT HIS LIFE,
HE WOULD REMAIN
A CHARMING BUT DISTANT FIGURE,
EVEN TO THOSE
WHO WERE CLOSEST TO HIM.
WHEN HE WAS 14 YEARS OLD,
FRANKLIN LEFT THE RAREFIED WORLD
OF HIS HYDE PARK ESTATE.
HIS PATH SEEMED CLEAR:
BOARDING SCHOOL, HARVARD
AND AN UNEVENTFUL LIFE OF LUXURY
AND EASE AMONG HIS OWN KIND.
"DEAR MAMA, I AM GETTING ON
VERY WELL WITH THE FELLOWS.
"I HAVE NOT HAD ANY BLACK MARKS
OR LATENESS YE
AND I AM MUCH BETTER
IN MY STUDIES."
Ward:
HIS LETTERS ARE ALWAYS CHEERFUL,
EVERYTHING'S WONDERFUL,
HE'S HAVING A GRAND TIME
WITH THE OTHER FELLOWS,
AND YET HE WASN'T.
HE WAS, I THINK, QUITE UNHAPPY.
McCullough:
AT GROTON, A PRIVATE SCHOOL
FOR SONS OF THE RICH,
FRANKLIN, WITH ALL HIS CHARM
AND SELF-ASSURANCE,
EXPECTED TO EXCEL.
HE DID PLEASE HIS TEACHERS
AND TOOK TO HEAR
HIS HEADMASTER'S URGINGS
TOWARD PUBLIC SERVICE,
BUT HE DID NOT FIT IN
WITH THE BOYS.
Curtis Roosevelt:
GROTON WAS HIS FIRST EXPOSURE
TO OTHER CHILDREN
ON A REGULAR BASIS.
AFTER ALL, HE BOARDED.
ALL THE CHILDREN BOARDED.
SO HE WAS WITH OTHER BOYS
24 HOURS A DAY,
AND IT MUST HAVE BEEN
A RUDE SHOCK
TO COME OUT OF THAT NEST,
THAT VERY PROTECTED NES
WHERE HE WAS THE ONLY BIRD
OR CHICK IN THE NEST.
McCullough:
SPORTS MEANT EVERYTHING
AT GROTON,
BUT FRANKLIN WAS TOO SLIGH
FOR SUCCESS.
HIS MOTHER WORRIED
FRANKLIN MIGHT BE INJURED
AND WROTE THAT HE "NOT HAVE THE
MISFORTUNE OF HURTING ANYONE."
HE WAS ENTHUSIASTIC
ABOUT BASEBALL,
BUT ONLY CARRIED THE BATS
AND FETCHED THE WATER
FOR THE BALLPLAYERS.
Man:
HE WASN'T AN ATHLETE.
HE'D NEVER PLAYED WITH OTHER
BOYS GAMES MUCH.
AND THAT WAS VERY BAD INDEED,
BECAUSE IT MADE HIM AN OUTSIDER,
AS IF HE DIDN'T BELONG.
AND REALLY IN A STRANGE WAY,
HE DIDN'T BELONG.
McCullough:
PLUNGED INTO
AN UNFORGIVING WORLD
OF ADOLESCENT BOYS,
FRANKLIN NEVER FIT IN.
HIS STRUGGLE FOR ACCEPTANCE
ONLY ISOLATED HIM FURTHER.
Potter:
FRANKLIN'S TONE WAS NO
THE GROTON TONE.
HE SEEMED SO DESPERATE
FOR APPROVAL.
HE WAS TOO AMBITIOUS
AND TOO EAGER,
AND HE WAS VERY MUCH, I WOULD
SAY, FROM WHAT I'VE HEARD,
VERY CLOSE TO BEING
A GOLDEN RETRIEVER.
IN OTHER WORDS,
HIS TAIL WAS ALWAYS WAGGING,
EVEN WHEN IT SHOULDN'T BE.
McCullough:
JEFFREY POTTER'S FATHER
WAS THE STAR
OF THE BASEBALL TEAM.
"I CAN'T UNDERSTAND THIS THING
ABOUT FRANK," HE SAID
WHEN ROOSEVELT BECAME PRESIDENT.
"HE NEVER AMOUNTED
TO MUCH AT SCHOOL."
"AT GROTON," FRANKLIN
CONFESSED YEARS LATER,
"SOMETHING HAD GONE
SADLY WRONG."
AT HARVARD, HE WAS DETERMINED TO
WIN POPULARITY AND RECOGNITION,
AND HE DID SUCCEED.
HE CAMPAIGNED
FOR CLASS OFFICE AND WON
AND WAS ELECTED EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
OF THE COLLEGE NEWSPAPER.
BUT WHAT HE WANTED EVEN MORE
WAS ADMISSION TO PORCELLIAN,
HARVARD'S MOST EXCLUSIVE CLUB.
Chanler:
YOU IMMEDIATELY,
IF YOU WERE A MEMBER
OF THE PORCELLIAN CLUB,
WERE RECOGNIZED AS A
AS WE SAY IN THE CLUB,
A BROTHER
BY ALL THE GRADUATES
WHO HAD EVER BEEN IN THE PLACE
THAT WERE STILL ALIVE.
BUT IT WAS ESSENTIALLY
A NETWORK OF FRIENDSHIPS,
NOT OF POWER,
BUT OF FRIENDSHIPS,
BUT THAT COULD LEAD TO POWER.
McCullough:
THE ELECTION WAS SECRET,
HELD BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
IN THE PORCELLIAN CLUBHOUSE.
EACH MEMBER WAS GIVEN
ONE WHITE AND ONE BLACK BALL.
A SINGLE BLACK BALL DEPOSITED
IN THE WOODEN BALLOT BOX
WAS ALL IT TOOK
TO EXCLUDE A CANDIDATE.
HIS FATHER HAD BEEN A MEMBER.
SO HAD OTHER ROOSEVELTS.
FRANKLIN HAD EVERY REASON
TO BELIEVE
THAT HE WOULD BE CHOSEN TOO.
FRANKLIN WAS BLACKBALLED.
Chanler:
NO DOUBT FRANKLIN ROOSEVEL
FAILED TO BE ELECTED
TO THE PORCELLIAN CLUB
FOR THE SIMPLE REASON
THAT SOMEBODY WHO WAS IN THERE
AT THE TIME DIDN'T LIKE HIM.
YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO HAVE DONE
ANYTHING PARTICULARLY
SIGNIFICANT.
THE FELLOW WOULD JUST SAY,
"I DON'T LIKE
THE CUT OF YOUR JIB,
SO I DON'T WANT YOU IN THERE,"
AND OUT YOU WENT.
McCullough:
YEARS LATER,
WHEN HE WAS PRESIDEN
AND THE NEW DEAL AT HIGH TIDE,
THERE WERE THOSE
PORCELLIAN MEMBERS
WHO WOULD CALL HIM
A TRAITOR TO HIS CLASS
AND ASCRIBE HIS SOCIAL POLICIES
TO REVENGE.
Ward:
CERTAINLY NONE OF ROOSEVELT'S
CLASSMATES AT HARVARD
IMAGINED THAT HE WOULD EVER
BE PRESIDENT.
I THINK THEY WERE THE FIRS
OF MANY, MANY PEOPLE
WHO UNDERESTIMATED ROOSEVELT.
McCullough:
WHILE FRANKLIN WAS AT HARVARD,
HIS FATHER, 72 YEARS OLD
AND GROWN FRAIL AND WEAK
FROM HEART DISEASE, DIED.
SARA WROTE IN HER DIARY,
"ALL IS OVER.
HE MERELY SLEPT AWAY."
NOW HER BOY WAS
ALL SHE HAD LEFT.
SHE MOVED TO BOSTON
TO BE NEAR HIM.
A FAMILY FRIEND ONCE WROTE:
"SHE WOULD NOT LET HER SON
CALL HIS SOUL HIS OWN."
FRANKLIN BEGAN USING
A SECRET CODE IN HIS DIARY:
HE WROTE, "E. IS AN ANGEL."
FRANKLIN HAD FALLEN IN LOVE
WITH A DISTANT COUSIN.
"E." WAS ELEANOR ROOSEVELT.
FROM THE FIRST,
ELEANOR ROOSEVELT SAW
THAT THERE WAS A SERIOUS MAN
BENEATH THE EASYGOING CHARM.
FOR THE RES
OF THEIR LIFE TOGETHER,
EVEN THROUGH THE MOST DIFFICUL
YEARS OF THEIR MARRIAGE,
SHE WOULD BE DRAWN TO
THE SERIOUS SIDE OF HIS NATURE.
Goodwin:
FRANKLIN AND ELEANOR COME
FROM THE SAME SOCIAL CLASS.
THERE ARE CERTAIN MORES,
CUSTOMS, RITUALS
THAT LINK THEIR CHILDHOODS.
EVERYTHING ELSE IS
SO TOTALLY DIFFERENT,
THEY MIGHT HAVE COME FROM
THE OTHER ENDS OF THE WORLD.
Eleanor Roosevelt:
I WAS A VERY UGLY LITTLE GIRL.
MY MOTHER WAS VERY BEAUTIFUL.
I THINK SHE ALWAYS WONDERED
WHY HER DAUGHTER
HAD TO BE SO UGLY.
I ADORED MY MOTHER,
BUT RATHER LIKE A DISTAN
AND BEAUTIFUL THING
THAT I COULDN'T POSSIBLY
GET CLOSE TO.
OH, MY FATHER MEAN
A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT.
I ADORED HIM ALL THE DAYS
OF MY CHILDHOOD.
HE CALLED ME LITTLE NELL
AFTER THE LITTLE NELL
IN DICKENS'S STORY,
AND I ALWAYS LIKED THAT.
McCullough:
ELEANOR'S CHILDHOOD WAS
A SERIES OF LOSSES.
HER PARENTS' MARRIAGE
WAS TROUBLED.
ELLIOTT ROOSEVEL
WAS AN ALCOHOLIC.
ERRATIC AND SELF-DESTRUCTIVE,
HE LEFT HOME WHEN SHE WAS SIX.
LESS THAN TWO YEARS LATER,
HER MOTHER DIED OF DIPHTHERIA.
THE YEAR AFTER,
HER YOUNGER BROTHER DIED
AND THE FOLLOWING YEAR, HER
BELOVED, DRUNKEN FATHER DIED.
ELEANOR AND HER BROTHER
WERE LEFT WITH DUTIFUL,
RESERVED RELATIVES.
SHE GREW AFRAID OF OTHER
CHILDREN, MICE, THE DARK,
PRACTICALLY EVERYTHING.
Goodwin:
FROM THE MELANCHOLY LIVES
OF BOTH OF HER PARENTS,
ELEANOR TOOK AWAY THE FEELING
THAT LOVE NEVER LASTS,
THAT THE WORLD IS
A DARK AND FORBIDDING PLACE
AND THAT YOU NEVER CAN
COUNT ON ANYTHING.
McCullough:
THEN WHEN SHE WAS 15,
SHE WAS SENT TO
CALLED ALLENSWOOD,
WHERE SHE WAS ENCOURAGED
TO THINK FOR HERSELF,
BE INDEPENDENT,
OVERCOME HER FEARS.
Woman:
ALLENSWOOD WAS DEFINITELY
A TURNING POINT.
IT WAS THE FIST TIME THAT SHE
WAS REALLY ALLOWED TO SHINE,
AND HER OWN SPECIALNESS
WAS RECOGNIZED.
THAT IS REALLY WHERE
SHE GOT HER SENSE OF SECURITY
AND ALSO HER SENSE
OF HER OWN POWER.
McCullough:
THE YEARS SHE SPENT A
ALLENSWOOD, ELEANOR SAID,
WERE THE HAPPIEST OF HER LIFE.
SHE WAS 18 WHEN FRANKLIN
BEGAN TO PURSUE HER.
Woman:
HE WAS A GAY AND OUTGOING
AND CHARMING YOUNG MAN.
THERE WAS SOMETHING
VERY SYMPATHETIC ABOUT HIM
AND ROMANTIC
AND THEY HAD A VERY SWEE
AND ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP,
ACCORDING TO
THEIR EARLY LETTERS.
McCullough:
"WE HAVE HAD
TWO HAPPY DAYS TOGETHER,"
SHE WROTE HIM,
"AND YOU KNOW HOW GRATEFUL I AM
"FOR EVERY MOMEN
WHICH I HAVE WITH YOU.
YOUR DEVOTED LITTLE NELL."
Goodwin:
ELEANOR'S RELATIVES AND FRIENDS
THOUGHT OF FRANKLIN
AS A FEATHER-DUSTER, WHICH MEAN
SOMEBODY WHO JUST SKIMMED
ALONG THE SURFACE OF LIFE
AND NEVER GOT VERY DEEP
INTO ANYTHING AT ALL.
I'M NOT SURE THEY THOUGHT HE
WAS A WONDERFUL CATCH FOR HER,
BECAUSE EVEN THEN ELEANOR
HAD A CERTAIN VITALITY,
A CERTAIN SERIOUSNESS OF PURPOSE
THAT MADE PEOPLE FEEL
THAT SHE WAS SOMETHING SPECIAL.
Gurewitsch:
CAN YOU IMAGINE HOW DIFFEREN
SHE MUST HAVE BEEN
FROM THE AVERAGE RUN
OF DEBUTANTES OF THE TIME?
SHE MUST HAVE BEEN
VERY INTERESTING
BESIDES BEING TALL,
WITH A BEAUTIFUL FIGURE,
FINE, LIGHT HAIR, AND
LOVELY SKIN AND GREAT WARMTH.
THERE WAS SOMETHING ELSE, TOO,
AND THIS IS NO
TO BE UNDERESTIMATED.
IT DIDN'T HURT HIS COURTSHIP
THAT HER UNCLE WAS
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
McCullough:
THEODORE ROOSEVELT WAS
A HUGELY POPULAR PRESIDENT:
TIRELESS, VOLUBLE, INSPIRING.
T.R., SOMEONE SAID, WAS
A STEAM ENGINE IN TROUSERS.
AS A BOY, FRANKLIN HAD
WATCHED WITH PRIDE
HIS DISTANT COUSIN'S
SPECTACULAR RISE TO POWER:
ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE NAVY,
GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK,
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
"THEODORE ROOSEVELT,"
FRANKLIN WOULD LATER SAY,
"WAS THE GREATEST MAN
I EVER KNEW."
NOW FRANKLIN WAS COURTING
THE PRESIDENT'S FAVORITE NIECE.
THE PRESIDENT WAS DELIGHTED
THAT FRANKLIN HAD PROPOSED
MARRIAGE TO ELEANOR.
FRANKLIN'S MOTHER WAS NOT.
FRANKLIN HAD, IN FACT, CONCEALED
FROM SARA THE ENTIRE COURTSHIP.
Goodwin:
THE FACT THAT SHE DIDN'
EVEN KNOW
THAT HE WAS IN LOVE
WITH THIS GIRL
SHE DIDN'T KNOW
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING
THAT WAS HAPPENING
IN HER SON'S LIFE
AND SHE THOUGHT SHE KNEW
EVERY WAKING THOUGH
IN THIS CHILD
FROM THE TIME HE WAS BORN.
McCullough:
"DEAREST MAMA,
"I KNOW WHAT PAIN
I MUST HAVE CAUSED YOU
"AND YOU KNOW I WOULDN'T DO I
"IF I REALLY COULD HAVE HELPED
IT, BUT I KNOW MY MIND
AND I AM THE HAPPIEST MAN
JUST NOW IN THE WORLD."
Goodwin:
AND FINALLY, SHE HAD TO ACCEP
THAT THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN
AND DECIDED THA
SHE WOULD CONTROL ELEANOR
AND THEN SOMEHOW
SHE WOULDN'T LOSE FRANKLIN.
Curtis Roosevelt:
I THINK F.D.R. WAS
VERY MUCH ATTRACTED
TO MY GRANDMOTHER
BECAUSE THEY WERE
TWO LONELY PEOPLE
TWO PEOPLE WHO WERE NOT TOTALLY
SATISFIED WITH THE STANDARDS
AND IDEALS
OF THEIR UPPER-CLASS GROUP.
AND I THINK THE TWO OF THEM
LOOKED AT EACH OTHER
AND KNEW THAT THEY COULD
DRAW STRENGTH FROM EACH OTHER.
McCullough:
ON MARCH 17, 1905,
ST. PATRICK'S DAY,
FRANKLIN AND ELEANOR
WERE MARRIED.
HE WAS 23.
SHE WAS 20.
THE PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES WAS THERE
TO GIVE AWAY THE BRIDE.
"WELL, FRANKLIN,"
T.R. TOLD THE GROOM,
"THERE'S NOTHING LIKE
KEEPING THE NAME IN THE FAMILY."
THE HONEYMOON WAS A THREE-MONTH
GRAND TOUR OF EUROPE.
Goodwin:
ON THE SURFACE, EVERYTHING
SEEMED FINE.
THEY'RE SEEING VENICE,
THEY'RE SEEING ROME,
BUT AT NIGHTS, ROOSEVELT,
ELEANOR REPORTED,
WOULD BE TORMENTED
BY NIGHTMARES
AND HE WAS SLEEPWALKING
AND THEN HE BROKE OU
IN HIVES,
ALL OF WHICH SUGGESTED
THAT SOMETHING WASN'T RIGHT.
McCullough:
THEY CLIMBED THE ALPS,
MOTORED THROUGH
THE FRENCH COUNTRYSIDE.
FEW WOULD HAVE SENSED
THAT THEY WERE ILL AT EASE.
Ward:
HE LOVED TO HAVE A GOOD TIME.
ALL HIS LIFE
HE LOVED TO DO THAT.
SHE WANTED SOMEONE
SHE COULD CONFIDE IN.
SHE'D BEEN ALONE,
REALLY, ALL HER LIFE
AND SHE WANTED
AN INTIMATE PARTNER.
SHE DID NOT GET ONE IN FRANKLIN.
HE DIDN'T LIKE SHARING
INTIMACIES WITH ANYONE,
EVEN HIS WIFE.
McCullough:
BACK IN AMERICA,
SARA WAS WAITING.
"I AM SO GLAD,"
SARA HAD WRITTEN THEM,
"THAT ALTHOUGH YOU'VE
HAD SUCH A PERFECT TIME,
YOU ARE NOW ANXIOUS TO SEE HOME
AND MOTHER AGAIN."
THAT WINTER,
AS A CHRISTMAS GIFT,
SARA GAVE THEM A DRAWING WITH
A NOTE SCRAWLED ON THE BOTTOM:
"TO FRANKLIN AND ELEANOR,
FROM MAMA.
NUMBER AND STREE
NOT YET QUITE DECIDED."
WHEN FRANKLIN AND ELEANOR
ARRIVE HOME
FROM THEIR HONEYMOON,
SARA TELLS THEM,
"I'VE GOT A PRESENT FOR YOU.
IT'S GREAT A NEW HOME."
NOT ONLY THAT,
BUT IT'S FURNISHED BY HER,
IT'S STRUCTURED BY HER,
IT'S DECORATED BY HER
IT'S HER.
McCullough:
SARA BUILT THEM A BROWNSTONE
AND THEN MOVED INTO ITS TWIN
NEXT DOOR.
Cook:
THE HOUSE IS FIVE STORIES,
AND ON EACH FLOOR
THERE ARE SLIDING DOORS
WHERE SHE CAN WALK FROM HER SIDE
OF THE HOUSE INTO THEIR SIDE.
AND ELEANOR ROOSEVELT WRITES,
"THERE WAS NEVER ANY PRIVACY
DAY OR NIGHT."
SARA DELANO ROOSEVEL
WAS JUST PART OF THE SCENE.
Curtis Roosevelt:
IN A WAY,
MY GREAT-GRANDMOTHER
MADE HER DEPENDENT.
SHE WANTED BOTH HER SON
AND HER DAUGHTER-IN-LAW
TO BE DEPENDENT UPON HER.
HIS MOTHER CONTROLLED
F.D.R.'s PURSE STRINGS
UNTIL THE DAY SHE DIED IN 1941,
WHEN HE WAS INTO HIS THIRD TERM
AS PRESIDENT.
UH, AND AND
BUT, YOU KNOW, THE PRESIDEN
OF THE UNITED STATES
DIDN'T CONTROL HIS OWN INCOME,
HIS MOTHER DID.
Woman:
THE FIRST TEN YEARS
OF HER MARRIED LIFE
WERE SPENT HAVING CHILDREN,
SIX CHILDREN IN ABOUT TEN YEARS.
SHE LOVED THE CHILDREN,
BUT SHE DIDN'T REALLY KNOW
HOW TO RUN THAT INFANT STAGE.
Gurewitsch:
I THINK SHE WAS TOTALLY INEP
WHEN IT CAME
TO DEALING WITH CHILDREN.
SHE RELIED ON HER MOTHER-IN-LAW
AND ON THE VARIOUS GOVERNESSES
AND WAS SO UNSURE OF HERSELF
NOT ONLY BECAUSE SHE WAS
AN UNSURE PERSON AT THE TIME
BUT SHE HAD NEVER EXPERIENCED
MOTHER LOVE.
Goodwin:
AND BECAUSE SHE FELT INSECURE
ABOUT NOT KNOWING
HOW TO MOTHER HER OWN CHILDREN,
SHE ONCE AGAIN TURNED TO SARA.
SARA KNEW, SARA HAD CONFIDENCE.
SARA HAD AN OPINION
ABOUT EVERYTHING.
SO IT WASN'T ONLY
THAT THEY BROUGHT IN
NURSES AND GRANNIES
TO HELP THE CHILDREN.
SARA WAS THE OVERSEER OF THE
HOUSE ENTIRELY AND OF THE KIDS.
Cook:
HIS MOTHER'S EVER-LOOMING
PRESENCE
WAS NEVER CHALLENGED.
F.D.R. NEVER WANTED TO MOVE OU
OF HIS MOTHER'S HOME
AND SO THEY LIVED IN
SARA DELANO ROOSEVELT'S HOMES.
AT HYDE PARK, IT'S HER HOME,
SO SHE SITS
AT THE HEAD OF THE TABLE.
FRANKLIN SITS
AT THE OTHER END OF THE TABLE,
AND ELEANOR SITS SOMEWHERE
IN THE MIDDLE WITH THE CHILDREN.
Curtis Roosevelt:
I SEE HER
AS AN UPPER-CLASS
GRAND DAME WHO KNEW HER PLACE.
SHE WAS JUST DOING
WHAT CAME NATURALLY.
SHE, IN A WAY, KNEW WHO SHE WAS
AND MY GRANDMOTHER, IN THE
EARLY YEARS OF HER MARRIAGE,
DIDN'T KNOW WHO SHE WAS.
THAT TOOK A LONG TIME
FOR HER TO FIND OUT.
McCullough:
IN THE EARLY 1900s,
THE ROOSEVELTS APPEARED TO BE
AN UTTERLY CONVENTIONAL
UPPER-CLASS COUPLE,
WITH FRANKLIN AMIABLY
DABBLING IN THE LAW.
BUT AT 25,
HE WAS BORED AND RESTLESS,
LOOKING FOR AN OUTLE
FOR HIS ENORMOUS ENERGIES.
TO A FELLOW LAW CLERK
HE CONFIDED A REMARKABLE,
SECRET AMBITION.
Man:
HE SAID HE INTENDED
TO ENTER POLITICAL LIFE
AS SOON AS HE COULD,
WITH A VIEW TO
BECOMING PRESIDENT.
HE SAID THAT MODESTLY ENOUGH,
BUT VERY DEFINITELY
AND HE LAID OUT A DEFINITE PLAN.
McCullough:
FRANKLIN TOLD CLARK
HE WOULD FOLLOW THE PATH
BLAZED BY HIS HERO,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT:
STATE LEGISLATURE,
ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE NAVY,
GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK,
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
COUSIN THEODORE
HAD ALREADY PROVED
THAT A GENTLEMAN MIGHT,
AS FRANKLIN'S MOTHER SAID,
"GO INTO POLITICS
BUT NOT BE A POLITICIAN."
Ward:
THEODORE ROOSEVELT WAS
ALMOST AN OBSESSION
WITH FRANKLIN.
WHEN HE WAS TOLD
HE HAD TO WEAR GLASSES,
HE GOT PINCE-NEZ
AND PUT THEM ON HIS NOSE
BECAUSE THEODORE ROOSEVEL
WORE PINCE-NEZ.
HE WOULD SAY THINGS LIKE "BULLY"
AND "DE-LIGHTED"
WHEN HE WAS TALKING TO THE PRESS
EARLY IN HIS POLITICAL CAREER.
HE WAS FASCINATED BY HIS ENERGY,
HIS ENTHUSIASM,
ABOVE ALL, I THINK,
IN HIS FEELING
THAT GOVERNMENT COULD DO
ENORMOUS AMOUNTS OF GOOD.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT WAS THE GREA
MODEL FOR FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT.
McCullough:
IN 1910, AT THE AGE OF 28,
FRANKLIN JUMPED AT THE CHANCE
TO FOLLOW IN HIS
COUSIN THEODORE'S FOOTSTEPS.
HE WAS INVITED TO RUN
FOR THE STATE SENATE,
MOSTLY BECAUSE
HIS LAST NAME WAS ROOSEVELT.
HE RAN AS A DEMOCRAT,
ALTHOUGH T.R. WAS A REPUBLICAN.
Ward:
HIS FATHER HAD BEEN A DEMOCRAT,
BUT I THINK THE REAL REASON WAS
THAT THEODORE ROOSEVEL
HAD SEVERAL SONS,
ALL OF WHOM, EVERYONE PRESUMED,
WERE GOING TO HAVE POLITICAL
CAREERS IN THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.
AND THERE WAS SIMPLY
NOT ENOUGH ROOM
FOR ANOTHER REPUBLICAN
ROOSEVELT.
Eleanor Roosevelt:
HE WAS OFFERED
THE IMPOSSIBLE TASK
OF RUNNING FOR OFFICE
IN DUTCHESS COUNTY.
NO DEMOCRAT HAD EVER
BEEN ELECTED IN 32 YEARS.
HE WASN'T A VERY GOOD SPEAKER
IN THOSE EARLY DAYS.
THERE WOULD BE
HORRIBLE LONG PAUSES
AND I WOULD WONDER WHETHER
HE WAS EVERGOING ON AGAIN.
AND HE MADE A VERY
VIGOROUS CAMPAIGN
AND IT JUST HAPPENED THA
THAT YEAR WAS A DEMOCRATIC SWEEP
AND HE GOT IN.
OTHERWISE, I DON'T THINK HE
WOULD HAVE STARTED THEN AT ALL.
McCullough:
FRANKLIN CELEBRATED
BY HANDING OU
$14.00 WORTH OF GOOD CIGARS.
IN ALBANY, IN THE ROUGH-AND-
TUMBLE WORLD OF STATE POLITICS,
HE BEGAN HIS CAREER IN THE
STYLE OF HIS COUSIN THEODORE.
WITHIN DAYS OF BEING SWORN IN,
HE LED A REBELLION AGAINS
THE LEADERSHIP OF HIS OWN PARTY.
HE LOST AND THE BOSSES
NEVER FORGAVE HIM.
Ward:
PARTY REGULARS
COULDN'T STAND HIM.
THEY THOUGH
HE WAS RICH, SPOILED,
UNWILLING TO COMPROMISE
OR COOPERATE
UH, A SNOB.
McCullough:
"THIS FELLOW IS STILL YOUNG,"
ONE OF THEM SAID.
"WOULDN'T IT BE SAFER TO DROWN
HIM BEFORE HE GROWS UP?"
TO SURVIVE,
FRANKLIN WOULD NEED HELP,
AND HE TURNED TO A SHREWD,
STRANGE-LOOKING REPORTER
LOUIS HOWE.
Curtis Roosevelt:
I REMEMBER THE SMELL
OF LOUIS HOWE
MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE.
A GNOME GAUNT,
SHORT, WISPY HAIR.
I MEAN, ENOUGH
TO SCARE A CHILD, AND I WAS.
Cook:
HE'S DIRTY, HE NEVER SHOWERS
OR BATHES ENOUGH.
HE SMOKES
THESE DREADFUL, SMELLY,
SWEET, CORPORAL CIGARETTES
AND THE ASHES, YOU KNOW,
SORT OF COAT HIS VEST AND TIE.
McCullough:
FRANKLIN'S MOTHER ESPECIALLY
DISLIKED HIM.
"THAT DIRTY LITTLE MAN,"
SHE CALLED HIM.
ELEANOR, TOO, DISAPPROVED.
Cook:
THEY WANT HIM OUT.
HE REPRESENTS THE WORST,
THE SMELLIEST, YOU KNOW,
STUFF OF POLITICS.
UM, HE DRINKS, HE SMOKES,
HE CURSES, HE'S A PAIN.
OUT OF THERE.
BUT STILL, LOUIS HOWE
WAS A SEASONED POLITICIAN.
AS YOU MIGHT SAY, HE KNEW WHERE
ALL THE BODIES WERE BURIED.
AND F.D.R. NEEDED TO KNOW.
McCullough:
TOGETHER, HOWE
AND FRANKLIN FORMED
ONE OF THE ODDEST ALLIANCES
IN AMERICAN POLITICAL HISTORY.
IT WOULD LAS
UNTIL HOWE'S DEATH IN 1936.
"I WAS SO IMPRESSED
WITH FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT,"
HOWE LIKED TO SAY
OF THEIR FIRST MEETING,
"I THOUGHT THEN NOTHING
BUT AN ACCIDENT COULD KEEP HIM
FROM BECOMING PRESIDEN
OF THE UNITED STATES."
IN 1913,
AFTER ONLY TWO YEARS IN ALBANY,
THE DEMOCRATIC STATE SENATOR
WITH THE FAMOUS LAST NAME
WAS SUMMONED TO WASHINGTON.
IMPRESSED BY HIS GROWING
REPUTATION AS A REFORM DEMOCRA
AND BY FRANKLIN'S PEDIGREE,
PRESIDENT WOODROW WILSON
OFFERED HIM
THE JOB OF ASSISTAN
SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
THE SAME JOB
THAT THEODORE ROOSEVELT HAD USED
TO CATAPULT HIMSELF
TO THE PRESIDENCY.
HE WAS JUST 31 YEARS OLD.
FRANKLIN LOVED THE NAVY.
HE PRESSED FOR
THE LARGEST POSSIBLE FLEET.
HE LEARNED TO DEAL WITH
CONGRESS, BUSINESSMEN, LABOR,
AND HE BUILT A REPUTATION
AS ENTHUSIASTIC, EFFICIENT,
HARDWORKING.
BUT JUST AS HE BEGAN TO WALK
THE CORRIDORS OF REAL POWER,
FIRST HE PUT HIS JOB, AND THEN
HIS MARRIAGE, IN JEOPARDY.
Cook:
WASHINGTON FOR FRANKLIN
IS A GREAT LIBERATION.
YOU KNOW, HE NEVER HAD
A TEENAGE REBELLION.
HE NEVER HAD A MOMENT WHERE HE
DEFIED HIS MOTHER OR HIS WIFE.
HE HAD REALLY BEEN A DUTIFUL SON
AND HE HAD REALLY BEEN
A DUTIFUL HUSBAND.
WASHINGTON BLEW ALL THA
OUT OF THE WATER,
IF I MAY USE A NAVAL TERM
FOR THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY
OF THE NAVY.
McCullough:
HE WAS A YOUNG MAN ON THE MAKE.
HE WORKED FOR SECRETARY
OF THE NAVY JOSEPHUS DANIELS,
AND HE WANTED HIS JOB,
RIDICULED HIM BEHIND HIS BACK,
UNDERMINED HIS DECISIONS.
Ward:
F.D.R. WORKED
AS A SUBORDINATE
UNDER JOSEPHUS DANIELS
FOR ALMOST EIGHT YEARS,
AND HE WAS
A TERRIBLE SUBORDINATE.
I THINK HE SIMPLY
COULDN'T STAND THE NOTION
THAT SOMEONE WAS
GIVING HIM ORDERS
ABOUT SOMETHING HE WAS QUITE
SURE HE KNEW MUCH MORE ABOUT.
ROOSEVELT UNDERCUT HIS BOSS
TIME AND AGAIN.
HE WENT OVER HIS HEAD TO
THE PRESIDENT FROM TIME TO TIME,
AND DANIELS PUT UP
WITH ALL OF IT.
McCullough:
DANIELS SAID HE ENJOYED
FRANKLIN'S "SPONTANEITY
AND GAIETY,"
IMAGINING GREAT THINGS
FOR HIM.
WHEN THEY LOOKED
AT THEIR PICTURE TAKEN TOGETHER,
DANIELS TOLD HIM, "I'LL
TELL YOU WHY YOU'RE SMILING.
"WE'RE BOTH LOOKING DOWN
ON THE WHITE HOUSE
"AND YOU'RE SAYING TO YOURSELF,
'SOME DAY I WILL BE LIVING
IN THAT HOUSE.'"
FRANKLIN JUST KEPT SMILING.
Ward:
DANIELS THOUGHT ROOSEVEL
A WONDERFULLY CHARMING YOUNG MAN
AND, I THINK, MUST HAVE BEEN
THE MOST PATIENT MAN
IN AMERICAN HISTORY,
BECAUSE ANY OTHER MAN
WOULD HAVE FIRED ROOSEVEL
FOR INSUBORDINATION EARLY ON.
McCullough:
AT THE SAME TIME,
FRANKLIN'S MARRIAGE
WAS HEADING FOR TROUBLE.
Curtis Roosevelt:
IT WAS NOT A HAPPY HOUSEHOLD.
F.D.R. ENJOYED HIMSELF.
HE ENJOYED HAVING A GOOD TIME
AND UNFORTUNATELY, HE COULDN'
GET MY GRANDMOTHER TO GO ALONG.
SHE ACTUALLY DISAPPROVED.
SHE HAD MORAL RESERVATIONS,
IS THE ONLY WAY I CAN PUT IT,
ABOUT REALLY ENJOYING HERSELF.
McCullough:
ELEANOR WAS CAUGH
IN WHAT SHE DESCRIBED
AS "THE SLAVERY OF THE
WASHINGTON SOCIAL SYSTEM,"
DUTIFULLY ADVANCING
HER HUSBAND'S CAREER.
OVERWHELMED WITH
SOCIAL OBLIGATIONS,
SHE SPENT HER DAYS
LEAVING HER CALLING CARDS
AT THE STATELY HOMES
OF THE RICH AND POWERFUL.
"I WAS PERFECTLY CERTAIN,"
ELEANOR LATER WROTE,
"THAT I HAD NOTHING TO OFFER
"AND THAT MY DUTY AS THE WIFE
OF A PUBLIC OFFICIAL WAS TO DO
EXACTLY AS THE MAJORITY
OF WOMEN WERE DOING."
AND SUDDENLY THE MOS
IMPORTANT THING IS TO BE
PART OF THE SOCIAL WHIRL
OF WASHINGTON, D.C.,
WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY
A ROUND OF COCKTAIL PARTIES,
TRIVIAL CONVERSATION
THE VERY THING
THAT ELEANOR HATES.
FRANKLIN FINDS OU
THAT HE'S INCREDIBLY WELL-SUITED
FOR THE SMALL TALK,
GOSSIPY SIDE OF WASHINGTON LIFE.
HE'S A GREAT CONVERSATIONALIST.
HE LOVES TELLING STORIES.
HE LOVES SMALL TALK,
AND HE LOVES
THAT KIND OF SUPERFICIAL
CONNECTION BETWEEN PEOPLE,
AND HIS VITALITY AND HIS
MAGNETISM ARE BEGINNING TO SHOW.
McCullough:
FRANKLIN WAS ESPECIALLY
ATTRACTIVE TO WOMEN.
ONE WASHINGTON HOSTESS
DESCRIBED HIM
AS THE MOST "DESIRABLE" MAN
SHE HAD EVER MET.
EVERY SUMMER,
THE ROOSEVELTS SEEMED TO FIND
RELIEF FROM THE STRAINS
OF WASHINGTON
ON AN ISLAND OFF THE COAS
OF MAINE CAMPOBELLO.
"WE SPENT SO LITTLE TIME
ALONE WITH OUR PARENTS,"
THEIR ELDEST SON
JAMES LATER WROTE,
"THAT THOSE TIMES ARE TREASURED
AS THOUGH GIFTS FROM THE GODS."
"FATHER LOVED LIFE ON THE ISLAND
MORE THAN ANY OF US,
BUT GOT TO SPEND
THE LEAST TIME THERE."
"MOTHER ALWAYS LIKED I
BECAUSE SHE HAD HER OWN HOME,
WHICH SHE RAN."
"FATHER TAUGHT US TO SAIL.
"THIS WAS THE ONE ACTIVITY
HE LOVED ABOVE ALL OTHERS
AND WANTED US TO LOVE."
BUT AS SUMMER AFTER SUMMER
WENT BY,
FRANKLIN SPENT LESS
AND LESS TIME AT CAMPOBELLO.
ELEANOR GREW ANXIOUS
AND SUSPICIOUS.
IN THE SUMMER OF 1917,
FRANKLIN WROTE FROM WASHINGTON
TO CALM HER:
"DEAREST BABS, YOU WERE
A GOOSY GIRL TO THINK,
"OR EVEN PRETEND TO THINK,
"THAT I DON'T WANT YOU HERE
ALL SUMMER,
BECAUSE YOU KNOW I DO."
"BUT HONESTLY, YOU OUGHT TO HAVE
SIX WEEKS STRAIGHT AT CAMPO
JUST AS I OUGHT TO,
ONLY YOU CAN AND I CAN'T."
McCullough:
WHEN AMERICA ENTERED
WORLD WAR I,
THE NAVY SENT FRANKLIN
ON AN INSPECTION TOUR
OF THE WESTERN FRONT.
HE REVIEWED THE TROOPS,
TOURED THE BATTLEFIELDS
AND GOT AS CLOSE TO THE FIGHTING
AS THE MILITARY WOULD ALLOW HIM.
AS HE WAS ABOU
TO SAIL BACK TO AMERICA,
HE WAS STRUCK DOWN
BY A STRAIN OF INFLUENZA
AND BROUGHT HOME SEVERELY ILL.
FRANKLIN WAS 36 YEARS OLD.
HE HAD HANDSOME CHILDREN,
A DUTIFUL WIFE, A FAMOUS NAME
AND A RISING CAREER.
AS ELEANOR UNPACKED
HIS SUITCASE,
SHE ACCIDENTALLY
MADE A DISCOVERY
THAT WOULD CHANGE
THEIR LIVES FOREVER
A PACKET OF LOVE LETTERS
TO HER HUSBAND.
LUCY PAGE MERCER WAS
ELEANOR'S OWN SOCIAL SECRETARY.
SHE WAS A REFINED YOUNG WOMAN
FROM AN OLD, SOUTHERN,
CATHOLIC FAMILY.
Goodwin:
LUCY WAS TALL AND STATUESQUE.
SHE HAD A FACE, PEOPLE SAY,
THAT BELONGED IN DRAWING ROOMS.
SHE HAD A CHARM
THAT WAS RIVALED ONLY
BY FRANKLIN'S CHARM.
ONE THINKS OF FRANKLIN
IN THOSE DAYS,
AND INDEED THROUGHOUT HIS LIFE,
AS THIS INCORRIGIBLE FLIRT.
FLIRTING WAS
A PART OF HIS VITALITY,
HIS MAGNETISM, HIS CHARM.
HE LOVED TO CONQUER WOMEN
IN CONVERSATION.
SO THAT'S PROBABLY
HOW IT STARTED WITH LUCY,
BUT THEN I DO THINK
IT BECAME SOMETHING MORE.
McCullough:
WHILE ELEANOR WAS AWAY
AT CAMPOBELLO,
FRANKLIN SPENT TIME
WITH LUCY ALONE
AND EVEN APPEARED WITH HER
AT DINNER PARTIES.
HE HAD FALLEN IN LOVE.
Cook:
ELEANOR ROOSEVELT REALLY HAD
A VERY ROMANTIC IDEA
THAT SHE COULD HAVE
A PERFECT MARRIAGE,
THAT THEY WOULD LOVE AND TRUS
AND RESPECT EACH OTHER
AND BE PARTNERS IN LOVE
THE WAY HER PARENTS NEVER WERE,
WHICH IS, I THINK,
WHY HER DISCOVERY
OF THE LUCY MERCER AFFAIR
WAS SO DEVASTATING TO HER.
McCullough:
"THE BOTTOM DROPPED OUT OF MY
OWN PARTICULAR WORLD,"
ELEANOR CONFIDED TO A FRIEND,
"AND I FACED MYSELF,
MY SURROUNDINGS, MY WORLD
HONESTLY FOR THE FIRST TIME."
Goodwin:
ELEANOR'S IMMEDIATE RESPONSE
WAS NOT ONLY TO CONFRON
FRANKLIN,
BUT FROM WHAT WE SEEM
TO UNDERSTAND,
TO OFFER HIM A DIVORCE
"IF THIS IS WHAT YOU WANT, GO."
Gurewitsch:
MR. ROOSEVELT KNEW
THAT HIS MOTHER WOULD WITHDRAW
ALL FINANCIAL HELP.
SHE THREATENED HIM WITH THAT.
HE WOULD LOSE HIS FAMILY LIFE.
AND IT REALLY MEANT GIVING UP
HIS POLITICAL AMBITIONS,
AND THAT WAS SOMETHING HE HAD
TO THINK OVER MORE THAN ONCE.
McCullough:
FRANKLIN WOULD HAVE TO CHOOSE
BETWEEN HIS LOVE FOR LUCY MERCER
AND HIS POLITICAL CAREER,
FAMILY AND ELEANOR.
Gurewitsch:
AND HE FINALLY DECIDED
TO STAY MARRIED
AND TO TRY TO MAKE
THE BEST OF A MARRIAGE,
AND MRS. ROOSEVELT'S
CONDITION WAS
THAT HE NEVER SEE
LUCY MERCER AGAIN.
McCullough:
"AFTER EVERYONE HAD THEIR SAY,"
JAMES LATER WROTE,
"FATHER AND MOTHER SAT DOWN
AND AGREED TO GO ON
FOR THE SAKE OF APPEARANCES."
ELEANOR AND FRANKLIN
WOULD LIVE TOGETHER,
BUT NEVER AGAIN SHARE
THE INTIMACIES OF MARRIED LIFE.
DEVASTATED, ELEANOR
WENT TIME AND AGAIN
TO WASHINGTON'S
ROCK CREEK CEMETERY.
FOR HOURS SHE SAT GAZING
AT A MONUMEN
TO A WOMAN
WHO HAD KILLED HERSELF.
ALL HER CHILDHOOD FEARS
HAD BEEN CONFIRMED.
THOSE SHE LOVED MOST FIRS
HER FATHER, NOW HER HUSBAND
WOULD ALWAYS DESERT HER.
NOTHING LASTED.
Gurewitsch:
IT WAS A MARKED TURNING POIN
IN HER LIFE.
SHE HAD NO PERSONA,
SHE FELT DESTROYED.
SHE'D HAVE TO MAKE
A LIFE FOR HERSELF
AND THAT'S WHAT SHE DID.
McCullough:
THE SURPRISE OF THE 1920
DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION WAS
THE NOMINATION
FOR VICE-PRESIDENT.
"THE YOUNG MAN I AM GOING
TO SUGGEST," THE SPEAKER SAID,
"HAS A NAME TO BE CONJURED
WITH IN AMERICAN POLITICS."
FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVEL
WAS 38,
ONE OF THE YOUNGEST VICE-
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES
IN AMERICAN HISTORY.
HIS COUSIN THEODORE HAD BEEN 42
AT THIS POINT IN HIS CAREER.
FRANKLIN WAS NOW
AHEAD OF SCHEDULE.
AS THE CAMPAIGN GOT UNDER WAY,
HE THREW OPEN HIS MOTHER'S HYDE
PARK HOME FOR A PARTY RALLY.
SARA WAS PROUD
BUT APPALLED WHEN 5,000 LOYAL
DEMOCRATS TRAMPLED HER LAWN
AND INVADED HER STATELY HOME.
VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES
USUALLY RAN MODEST CAMPAIGNS,
BUT FRANKLIN BARNSTORMED
MORE THAN 8,000 MILES
THROUGH 20 STATES IN 18 DAYS.
"DURING THE THREE MONTHS
IN THE YEAR 1920," HE SAID,
"I GOT TO KNOW THE COUNTRY
AS ONLY A CANDIDATE FOR OFFICE
OR A TRAVELING SALESMAN
CAN GET TO KNOW IT."
FRANKLIN PRESSED ELEANOR TO
ACCOMPANY HIM ON THE CAMPAIGN.
RELUCTANTLY SHE WENT ALONG
AND HATED EVERY MINUTE OF IT:
THE SMOKE-FILLED ROOMS,
THE LATE-NIGHT CARD GAMES,
THE HARD-DRINKING POLITICIANS
AND REPORTERS.
EVER SINCE HER DISCOVERY
OF HER HUSBAND'S AFFAIR,
SHE HAD BEEN CAUTIOUSLY
EMBRACING A LIFE OF HER OWN.
Goodwin:
BEFORE LUCY CAME
INTO THEIR LIVES,
MY OWN SENSE IS
THAT ELEANOR WAS NOT HAPPY
SIMPLY AS A WIFE AND A MOTHER,
BUT SHE HAD NO OUTLE
FOR HER ENERGY.
SHE HAD TORRENTIAL ENERGY
AND THERE WAS NO OUTLET FOR IT,
BECAUSE IN THAT DAY AND AGE
IT WASN'T LEGITIMATE
FOR A WOMAN TO HAVE
A CAREER OUTSIDE THE HOME.
Curtis Roosevelt:
THE AFFAIR WITH LUCY MERCER
ENABLED HER TO SEE HERSELF
IN PERHAPS A DIFFERENT LIGHT,
AND I PERSONALLY BELIEVE THA
F.D.R.'s AFFAIR WITH LUCY MERCER
ENABLED MY GRANDMOTHER
TO OPEN A DOOR AND WALK OUT.
Cook:
SHE MEETS WITH ALL
OF THESE POLITICAL WOMEN:
THEY WERE SUFFRAGISTS,
THEY WERE PROGRESSIVES,
THEY'RE DEDICATED
TO MAKING THINGS BETTER
FOR MOST PEOPLE.
Gurewitsch:
THEY WERE WOMEN WHO KNEW THINGS,
WHO COULD EDUCATE HER,
WHO COULD TEACH
HER PARLIAMENTARY LAW,
WHO COULD TELL HER
ABOUT LABOR MOVEMENTS,
LABOR UNIONS, AND SO ON.
IT ALSO WAS
SLIGHTLY REBELLIOUS OF HER.
SHE WAS BREAKING BOUNDS.
McCullough:
ELEANOR WAS MOVING
INTO A VANGUARD OF WOMEN
WHO WERE POLITICAL ACTIVISTS.
IN 1920, WOMEN WERE VOTING IN
THEIR FIRST NATIONAL ELECTION
AND FRANKLIN,
NEVER MISSING A POLITICAL BEAT,
WAS ARDENTLY
COURTING THEIR VOTE.
HE LOVED EVERY MINUTE
OF THE 1920 CAMPAIGN,
BUT WHEN AN AIDE ASKED HIM IF
HE THOUGHT HE WOULD BE ELECTED,
HE REPLIED, "NARY AN ILLUSION."
FOR THE DEMOCRATS,
THE ELECTION WAS A DISASTER.
FOR THE REPUBLICANS, "THE
VICTORY," ONE OBSERVER SAID,
"WAS MORE THAN A LANDSLIDE,
IT WAS AN EARTHQUAKE."
BUT FOR FRANKLIN,
THE CAMPAIGN WAS A TRIUMPH.
AMERICANS ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY
NOW KNEW HIS NAME.
HE HAD MET AND WON THE GOODWILL
OF THOUSANDS OF PARTY LEADERS.
HE STOOD READY TO AIM HIGHER
THAN THE VICE-PRESIDENCY
NEXT TIME.
AT 38, HE WAS YOUNG, STRONG,
ENERGETIC AND IMPATIENT.
IN THE SUMMER OF 1921,
HE VISITED A BOY SCOUT CAMP
SERVING CITY CHILDREN.
HE ENJOYED HIMSELF IMMENSELY,
POSING FOR PICTURES
FOR THE NEWSPAPERS
AND JOKING WITH THE BOYS.
THIS IS THE LAST PHOTOGRAPH
OF FRANKLIN ROOSEVEL
STANDING ON HIS OWN TWO FEET.
WHEN HE SAID GOOD-BYE,
HE TOOK WITH HIM THE GOODWILL
OF THE CAMPERS
AND A MYSTERIOUS,
UNDETECTED VIRUS
ALREADY MULTIPLYING AND
CIRCULATING THROUGHOUT HIS BODY.