Lincoln Discussion Symposium

Obviously, it's been a few years, but I really didn't like Mary Tyler Moore's portrayal. If memory serves me right (and sometimes it doesn't), that was in a 1988 miniseries.

I think Sam Waterson was Abraham in that, and I didn't care for his portrayal, either.

In the recent National Geographic TV depiction of Killing Lincoln, I didn't like Mary's portrayal in that one, either. There wasn't much resemblance to Mary.

I'm with all of you; Julie Harris stood out. I'm also with earlier posts; a Mary Lincoln movie, if done correctly, would be something to see.

On a related note, I remember Gregory Peck was Lincoln in the 1980s miniseries The Blue and The Gray. He was effective, or at least I thought he was.

Tom: what did you think of Sally Field's portrayal?

Sada Thompson played Mary in the Hal Holbrook Lincoln portrayal in Carl Sandburg's Abraham Lincoln in the 70s and also did a credible job.

I have only a faint recollection of Sada Thompson in the Hal Holbrook Lincoln, but I remember some TV series that she did about the same time, and I thought she would be perfect as Mary Lincoln.

I still have not seen the Spielberg film, but I was overjoyed when I heard that Sally Field was playing the First Lady. I'm a stickler for wanting historical presenters to look like historical figures. I also know that Ms. Field has a wide range of emotions that she can play off of. How does she compare to Julie Harris?

Bill, I'm like Laurie -- I haven't seen the Spielberg film yet. I'm waiting for the DVD. I'm not a movie guy; I haven't been to a movie theater in years. (I saw Conspirator on DVD as well, a year and a half after it premiered).

From the clips I've seen, it looks like Field does a credible job. But, I'm just going off the few seconds of promo clips. It appears there was a resemblance, which helped.

Oh I forgot. Amazon told me I'll be getting my copy very soon. Have you preordered it?

Gene, I agree with you that Sally Field did a wonderful job playing Mary Lincoln. I also would have liked to have seen more of her in the movie. I also would have liked to see more of Tommy Lee Jones Playing Thadius Stevenson. He also had a small part for such a great actor.

Gary: Although I agree with you, I have heard some people complain about the amount of screen time Tommy Lee Jones did get. They argue that the movie was about Lincoln-not T.S.

Bill, I guess you can't please everyone all the time. I enjoyed Tommy Lee's acting. Even though the movie was about Lincoln it was also showing how he worked with other politicians to get things done. T.S. was a big part of that focus. The movie was called "TEAM OF RIVALS". I myself don't believe Tommy Lee took anything away from Lincoln. Just my opinion. Thanks

I thought TLJ was sensational. I would have loved to have a whole film of him playing the role! And to think, to the common person on the street TS is unknown.

Still haven't seen the movie, but I would think that Jones would have to play Thaddeus Stevens as a very strong and commanding figure since his character pretty much represented what both Lincoln and later Johnson had to contend with. To me, Thaddeus Stevens is the epitome of the Radical Republicans who did their darnedest to screw up Reconstruction.

Probably a tie between Sally Field and Donna Murphy.

Patty Duke will be playing Mary Lincoln in a one-woman show in Burbank, CA this September. I wish I could go see it!

Patty Duke should be great in the role. She seems to have slipped off of Hollywood's radar over the past decade.

I'm one of those who is psychotic about actors and actresses looking like the famous people they are portraying, however. You would have to go far to top Sally Field in that category.

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