Sparks Commentary: A review of Ken Burns’ “The Roosevelts: An Intimate History”

A miniseries covering Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, and Eleanor Roosevelt

Just as the Americans remember Mr. Churchill, so do the British remember Mr. Roosevelt. But when people in Britain hear the name “Roosevelt,” they tend to think of Franklin Roosevelt, the man who led the United States during World War II. Many in Britain don’t even realize that there was another “Roosevelt” president before him. That is, there was Theodore Roosevelt, in the early twentieth century. Theodore Roosevelt is a little more famous in America than he is abroad. Nonetheless, even Americans will hear the word “Roosevelt,” and instead think of his fifth cousin Franklin Roosevelt. There were two famous divisions of the Roosevelt family, of which this documentary makes extensive note. One was the “Oyster Bay Roosevelts,” the branch that produced Theodore Roosevelt. The other was the “Hyde Park Roosevelts,” the branch that produced FDR. But there was another Roosevelt who was one of the bridges between these two branches – although there were other marriages between the branches. That is, there was Eleanor Roosevelt. She was born into the “Oyster Bay Roosevelts” as Theodore Roosevelt’s niece. But she married into the “Hyde Park Roosevelts,” when she married FDR – her own fifth cousin once removed. These are the three principal characters of the story.

Comparisons with other PBS documentaries about these three individuals

Each of these three individuals has had his or her story told elsewhere. For example, David Grubin once did a four-hour documentary about Theodore Roosevelt. David Grubin also did a separate four-hour documentary about Franklin Roosevelt. And another PBS filmmaker did a two-and-a-half-hour documentary about Eleanor Roosevelt. Nonetheless, PBS gave Ken Burns the green light to produce “The Roosevelts: An Intimate History.” This is a 14-hour series covering all three of these famous individuals. Therefore, it is longer than all three of these other films put together. It may thus go into more depth with all three of these individuals, especially Eleanor Roosevelt. Paul Giamatti, who is famous for playing the title role in HBO’s “John Adams,” is the voice of Theodore Roosevelt. Edward Herrmann, who played FDR in a miniseries, is the voice of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. And Meryl Streep, the winner of three Academy Awards, is the voice of Eleanor Roosevelt. Thus, they put together quite a cast for this film. The actor Peter Coyote delivers the very skillful narration. Of course, this film is also directed by Ken Burns, who is famous for his film “The Civil War.” This earlier series was principally written by Geoffrey C. Ward, who also wrote the script for this film. Incidentally, Geoffrey C. Ward was also the writer for David Grubin’s aforementioned documentary about Theodore Roosevelt – creating some similarities between these films. Nonetheless, this film has different emphases than any of these other three films. All of these films offer something that the others don’t, including the Ken Burns coverage that I will be reviewing now.

Theodore Roosevelt jumping a fence on horseback, 1907

Comments on the first two episodes, including the one covering Theodore’s presidency

This film has a chronological approach, which keeps the backtracking to a minimum. Thus, it starts by briefly talking about the Oyster Bay Roosevelts, and Theodore Roosevelt being born into that branch in 1858. This first episode focuses mostly on him. Nonetheless, it also briefly talks about the Hyde Park Roosevelts, and FDR being born into that branch in 1882. They also mention Theodore Roosevelt’s brother Elliott, a man whose life was eventually destroyed by alcohol. But his wife gave birth to Anna Eleanor Roosevelt in 1884. This is the woman now known simply as “Eleanor Roosevelt.” Thus (again), Theodore Roosevelt was Eleanor Roosevelt’s uncle. The first episode ends in 1901, when an assassin’s bullet killed President William McKinley – making Theodore Roosevelt into the new president. The second episode is entirely focused on the period of Theodore Roosevelt’s seven-year presidency. Thus, it is mainly focused on Theodore Roosevelt himself. However, it also mentions this period’s events for the lives of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. This includes how the Roosevelt family (including Franklin and Eleanor) were then thrust into the national spotlight. FDR, then a college student, said that his cousin Theodore’s presidency was “all that anyone wanted to talk about” (or words to that effect). And Franklin loved talking about his famous presidential cousin. It was also during Theodore’s presidency that Franklin and Eleanor were married. But it would be a rocky marriage in many ways. Thus, both of them (especially Eleanor) would often have cause to regret it.

Eleanor and Franklin with their first two children, 1908

Little-known connections between Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt and his Oyster Bay Roosevelts were mostly Republicans. By contrast, FDR and his Hyde Park Roosevelts were mostly Democrats. Franklin still had some reason to hope that the illustrious “Roosevelt” name would help him in his political career. Nonetheless, he feared that the difference in political parties would be resented by many, including by his cousin Theodore. But, surprisingly, Theodore gave his blessing to Franklin’s political career. Theodore said that he was “very sorry” that Franklin was running as a Democrat, but he wished him success in his political career anyway. Theodore was sure that Franklin would fight corruption in both parties, just as Theodore himself had done. This was one of the surprises for me – that there were so many connections between Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt. Later on, someone once sued Theodore Roosevelt for libel, when Theodore charged that there was “corruption” in high places. Few eyewitnesses to such corruption were willing to testify about it in court on Theodore’s behalf. But FDR happily did so, giving eyewitness testimony that helped to destroy the plaintiff’s case. Noting Franklin’s last name, the judge actually asked Franklin: “What’s your relation?” (or words to that effect). Franklin grinned, and said: “Fifth cousin by blood, and nephew by marriage” (or words to that effect). I cannot now remember which of this documentary’s episodes includes this story, but one of them certainly does. Regardless, Franklin soon began a rise of his own, which was likewise meteoric.

The only known photo of Theodore Roosevelt (left) with Franklin D. Roosevelt (right), taken in 1915

Comments on the later episodes, including those about FDR’s presidency

The third episode covers the period between Theodore Roosevelt’s leaving the White House, and Theodore’s death in 1919. They mention Theodore’s rivalry with his former Republican ally Mr. Taft, and his bitterly-resented Democratic opponent Woodrow Wilson. Theodore hated Mr. Wilson, but nonetheless congratulated Franklin on being appointed as Wilson’s “Assistant Secretary of the Navy.” It was a position that Theodore himself had once held. Thus, it was one of many positions that would (eventually) be held by both men. After Theodore Roosevelt died in 1919, Franklin Roosevelt then became the Democrats’ candidate for vice president in 1920. But the Democrats lost the White House that year, leading to a string of three Republican presidents in the 1920s (or “Roaring Twenties”). It was during the intervening years that FDR was stricken with polio. Thus, an entire episode is spent on this – the fourth episode, to be precise. Eleanor later commented that this was the only time in their marriage that she broke down and sobbed. FDR was almost completely paralyzed during this time. Later on, he regained enough strength that he could finally lift one of his arms from the podium while giving speeches. Before that, he needed both arms on the podium to hold himself up – now, just one arm was sufficient for this purpose. Thus, FDR was elected president in 1932, and took office in 1933 – the same year that his future enemy, Adolf Hitler, took power in Germany. The fifth episode basically focuses on the Great Depression portion of Franklin’s presidency. The sixth episode basically focuses on the build-up to World War II, and on most of World War II itself (including Pearl Harbor, when it began for us). The seventh episode starts with FDR’s last presidential campaign in 1944, when he was elected to an unprecedented fourth term – longer than any other president. But, soon afterwards, FDR died of natural causes in 1945. Soon afterwards, his hated enemy Adolf Hitler committed suicide in that same year. Thus, the remainder of this seventh (and final) episode is about Eleanor’s post-First-Lady life. They mention the end of the war under President Harry Truman, and then go through her death in 1962.

Eleanor Roosevelt speaking at the United Nations in July 1947

Conclusion: A great overview of a most interesting family

To a certain degree, some other members of the Roosevelt family are mentioned, in both the Oyster Bay and Hyde Park branches of the family. This series shows how these family members felt – first about Theodore Roosevelt, and then about Franklin Roosevelt. It shows their respective war records in World War One, and then again in World War Two. But this film’s greatest contribution may be its distinctive coverage of Eleanor Roosevelt. No other PBS film (so far, at least) has spent anywhere near as much time on her life. For example, they talk about her role in her husband’s presidency, advising him on certain aspects of the New Deal. And they talk about her being a wartime First Lady, and helping her husband to get support for this long (and somewhat costly) war. The post-Theodore episodes tell the lives of both Franklin and Eleanor in parallel, including Franklin’s extramarital affairs. For example, they make the argument that Franklin’s cousin Daisy Suckley was another of his many lovers. In some ways, these last four episodes resemble PBS’s “Abraham and Mary Lincoln: A House Divided.” That is, like that latter David Grubin film, Ken Burns talks about both the president and his First Lady together in parallel. I don’t always agree with the film, and I don’t always sympathize with its three main characters – although I tend to be somewhat more fond of Theodore Roosevelt. But this film is even better than the other Roosevelt documentaries as a drama (although the others are great), and helps you to understand the role of all three Roosevelts in the larger twentieth century. Together, Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt served in the White House for 19 years, with Eleanor Roosevelt serving as the First Lady for 12 of those years. Thus, no other family has occupied the White House for that long, and no other family has ever had such an influence on American history – or on the world at large.

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