Word: redford
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...Redford saw in Watergate the possibilities of a film while Woodward and Bernstein were still churning out daily stories. He introduced himself to the pair and got to know them before they were well into their book; Woodward credits him with influencing their work. Redford chose the basic elements that compose the movie package and is therefore responsible not only for most of the problems the movie encountered in production, but for the solutions that had to be devised for them; it is Redford's sensibility?not deep, but interestingly complex in its blend of coolness and caring?that...
...Redford's interest in Watergate began when he heard a group of reporters discussing the bungled breakin. Ironically they were covering the actor's promo tour for The Candidate. They all thought Nixon had probably known about it and that no one?least of all their fellow newsmen?would ever pursue the matter far enough to confirm or deny their suspicions...
...Redford was shocked: "I've always had a very low regard for cynicism; I think it is the beginning of dying." He had a less philosophical reason for focusing on the burglary. Back home in Van Nuys, Calif., when Redford, then 13, had won a tennis tournament, Senator Richard Nixon had awarded him the trophy. Young Bob was not impressed: "I thought, what a nonperson...
...Watergate case slowly built, Redford noted two particularly interesting reporters among those plugging away at the story. When he read brief biographies of Woodward and Bernstein he was fascinated by the odd-couple quality of their pairing?a Wasp and a Jew, one cool and controlled, the other more voluble and volatile. Characteristically?he is a man much more interested in people than in ideas?"that was the first time I saw the potential film." He adds: "I remember thinking, 'This is very interesting, a study in opposing characters and how they work together.' I'm really fascinated...
...when the Woodstein team appeared to be doing things wrong that Redford got in touch with them. The Post had claimed that H.R. Haldeman had been named in grand jury testimony as one of the controllers of the Watergate dirty-tricks fund. He had not been named before the grand jury, thus allowing the White House to cast doubt on the accuracy of everything Woodward and Bernstein had reported. "I wanted to see them when they had bottomed out," says Redford. "People who take wild shots and miss interest...