“Good Night and Good Luck” has just concluded its live performance on CNN.
The story of how legendary CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow stared down Senator Joseph McCarthy is more timely than ever. What’s clear is that Roy Cohn, not seen in the play but McCarthy’s lackey, eventually taught Donald Trump the senator’s manner of terrorism.
The play worked better on TV than on the stage of the cavernous Winter Garden Theater. The closeups of George Clooney, who plays Murrow, transformed the production. Perhaps if “Good Night and Good Luck” had been in a human sized theater it would have worked better. But tonight, David Cromer’s production shined.
What Trump is trying to do to CBS now is an eerie parallel to the facts of the play, which took place in 1957. McCarthy thought he could shut Murrow and CBS down through blackmail and ridicule. Now Trump is trying to do the same to “60 Minutes,” a show that was led by a character in tonight’s play, Don Hewitt. If CBS caves now, this entire legacy will be wiped out. It must not happen.
The showing of the play live on CNN was a brilliant idea. Of course, this play in particular speaks to a subject that CNN finds close to the heart. But I hope the network does this again, and replays this production soon.
