The Making of the President

Disc 1
The Making of the President, 1960
With Dwight D. Eisenhower retiring, the presidential field seems wide open from the outset. For the Democrats, will young upstart John F. Kennedy hold off the ebullient populist Hubert H. Humphrey and an eleventh-hour movement to draft Adlai Stevenson? For the Republicans, how can Richard M. Nixon, Ike’s heir apparent, bring his party’s liberal wing on board? Nixon and Kennedy eventually vie in the first television debates and a historically close election.

Disc 2
The Making of the President, 1964
Ascending to the White House after a national tragedy, Lyndon Johnson must choose a running mate; possibilities include the late president’s brother, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy—the Democrats’ emotional favorite, but a potential threat to LBJ’s leadership. Meanwhile, Sen. Barry Goldwater marshals a “citizens’ army” to march to the Republican nomination against desperate, panicked opposition. The general election presents voters with a stark philosophical choice and marks a tectonic shift in American politics.

Disc 3
The Making of the President, 1968
The election year brings a deepening sense of national crisis: Americans killed by the hundreds in a divisive war, a sitting president shocked in the first primary, Martin Luther King and Robert F. Kennedy assassinated, and dozens of cities torn by riots. Both major parties’ conventions feel like armed camps, but Chicago—site of the Democratic event—turns chaotic and violent. When Hubert H. Humphrey, Richard M. Nixon, and George Wallace face off in the general election, voters look for healing.

• Bonus program: A Thousand Days: A Tribute to John F. Kennedy (an homage first shown at the ’64 Democratic National Convention)
• Bonus program: The March of Time: Seven Days in the Life of the President (an intimate look at Lyndon B. Johnson)
• 16-page viewer’s guide, featuring Theodore H. White’s essay on documentaries, a biography of White, and articles on each election’s major issues and some quixotic campaigners
• The Contenders after Their Campaigns: updated biographies on candidates who didn’t win their party’s nomination.
• More atathenalearning.com

Packaging:Boxed set
Run Time:259 minutes
Format:Full screen
Number of discs:3
Language:English
Subtitles:No
Color or B&W:Color and Black & White
CC:No
SDH:Yes
Region Code:1
Aspect Ratio:4:3
Rating:NR

"Superlative"—The New York Times

"Completely fascinating"—The New York Times

American Cinema Editors, Eddie Award Winner for Best Edited Special (1964)

Emmy Award Winner for Outstanding Achievement in Composing Original Music for Television (1964)

Emmy Award Winner for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Documentary Programs (1964)

Emmy Award Winner for Program of the Year (1964)

Emmy Award Nomination for Individual Achievements in Music – Composition (Lalo Schifrin, 1966)