First Lady, what is the behind-the-scenes story in the bright public image? Showtime's new show, First Lady, will premiere on April 17 and will focus on three presidents: Michelle Obama, Betty Ford and Eleanor Roosevelt. "In this country, first ladies and their teams are often at the vanguard of social progress, even though they don't have a budget or a salary." In the tenth episode of the show, Betty Ford writes in a letter to Michelle Obama. Undoubtedly, the first ladies who understand the United States will be more helpful in understanding American society.
The story of the First Lady
In the 1920s, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, suffering from polio inflammation, also began his campaign for governor of New York; in 1973, Gerald Rudolph Ford was appointed vice president by then-President Nixon to succeed Spiro Agnew, who resigned; in 2008, Barack Obama was appointed vice president to succeed Spiro Agnew, who resigned; in 2008, Barack Obama was appointed vice president. Obama brought his wife and young daughters into the White House...
This is a pivotal moment in the political careers of the three U.S. presidents and where the story of the First Lady begins. Three different timelines, with cameras bouncing back and forth, document their indispensable role in her husband's success: Eleanor Roosevelt provided her husband with a preparatory list of female cabinet members, eventually leading to Roosevelt appoint Francis Perkins as the first female secretary of labor; in 1974, Betty Ford made her breast cancer diagnosis public, bringing more women together with her; and in 2008, Michelle accompanied Obama. It has been welcomed by countless people on the road to election.
Once their husbands entered the White House, however, things were different. They were told they needed to take a step back and just smile. "Oh, I see." In one scene from the series, Eleanor, using her arrogant Mid-Atlantic accent, told Louis Howe, Roosevelt's senior adviser, "I could have sent him to this position, but not good enough to accompany him on his way." Entertainment Weekly pointed out that this injustice was the basis for the birth of "First Lady", but "for some reason, the people behind this project still believe that no first lady can support a series alone."
In fact, Betty Ford's life alone is colorful enough: she was a dance student at Martha Graham, the mother of modern American dance, who made her explicit support for abortion rights, was one of the main lobbyists for the ERA Equal Rights Amendment, and built a world-famous drug rehabilitation center in the desert. But her story, along with Eleanor and Michelle's, was eventually split into a kind of collection of classic retrospectives, "like a cinematic presentation of every first lady's wikipedia page introduction": Eleanor gave several famous radio speeches — "A woman is like a tea bag, you never know how powerful it is until it is immersed in hot water." Young Michelle watched her sick father struggle with a health care system that promised only better health insurance for wealthier patients.
Excellent actor plays excellent lady
"First Lady" not only featured three of the most iconic women in American history, but also brought in three extremely talented Hollywood actresses to play them: Michelle Obama, played by Kitting Professor Viola Davis in "Get Away with it," Betty Ford by Michelle Pfeiffer, the villain of the 1992 film Batman Returns, and Eleanor Roosevelt by The Crown. Played by Thatcher's Lady Gillian Anderson. Producer Cathy Schulman said: "We wanted to focus our choice of actors on the actresses we thought best represented these ladies, not the actresses who looked like them on the outside. ”
"They all bring incredible strength and honesty." The show's director, Susanne Bier, said. She added that each actor's performance has a unique style, "Michelle Pfeiffer brings so much sense of humor and elegance, Viola has an extreme depth, and Gillian is both mysterious and charming, strong and vulnerable". She gives each heroine's story a subtle difference in filters: Eleanor's part has a 1930s-specific era luster; Michelle's period is fresh and vivid, like looking out of a window; Betty's part is in pastel tones from the 1970s.
In addition to the three lead actors, Shulman and Bill also needed to find actors for their youth. Jayme Lawson, who recently starred in Batman, played young Michelle, Kristine Froseth in Finding Alaska as young Betty, and Eliza Scanlen, known for "Sharps" and "Little Women," played young Eleanor. Schulman said from vanity fair magazine's first exclusive photo shows that the matches "had to focus more on appearance, but we still wanted to create a vibrant connection." Bill agrees, noting that it's not a physical resemblance, but "spiritual." There are special kinds of manners, like the way we walk, the way we blink, or some other things that we may not think too much about, but they all permeate the younger versions of the first lady and the real first lady."
Kristen Fróseis (left) and Jamie Lawson (right)
Of course, "The First Lady" is still a TV series, not a documentary. Vanity Fair points out that making a project based on real people is never easy, especially when they are people familiar to the public. The series tells the story of a private conversation between the first lady and her husband at home and reveals some of the fears that every woman may have when she enters the White House. Although Shulman and Bill work tirelessly to learn as much as they can about the story of the three first ladies, as Bill says, 'This is a TV series based on reality, but it's definitely fictional.' ’”
The first ladies in history
From Natalie Portman's 2018 film "First Lady" to the 2020 miniseries "Mrs. America", in recent years, there have been more films and television works about the first lady of the United States, but there are still more stories worth digging into about those first ladies in history.
Martha Washington: Martha was america's first first lady, but she was also the only woman to appear on U.S. banknotes for more than 130 years — a record that wasn't broken until 2020, when prominent abolitionist and feminist Harriet Tubman appeared on the $20 note.
Elizabeth Monroe: James Monroe's wife was a typical pro-French, beautiful and stylish appearance that earned her the nickname "American Beauty" in France. During the French Revolution, Elizabeth also used her privilege to rescue Adrienne de Lafayett, the wife of the Commander-in-Chief of the Revolutionary Army, Marquis Lafayette.
Abigail Adams: The sixth president of the United States, Adams, may have had a close-sighted "rival," with his wife, Abigail, rumored to be rarely referred to as "Lady Adams, but instead as Mrs. Adams." President), this is because she is politically knowledgeable and sharp-tongued.
Rachel Jackson: Mrs. Jackson had an extraordinary influence over her husband, Andrew Jackson. It is often said that with just a small gesture or a single sentence, she could stop his impulsive reactions, thus saving the arrogant politician many embarrassing encounters.
Julia Tyler: Julia was a fun first lady and had a good taste for good things. Not only did she introduce polka to Washington's ballrooms, but she also often drove a carriage in the Washington area, which was marauded by a white Arab.
Caroline Harrison: Caroline is best known for winning admission to Female Students for Johns Hopkins University in 1892. But what many people don't know is that she also established a tradition of choosing white house-specific cutlery. Since then, every first lady has chosen her own set of cutlery.
Mamie Eisenhower: 50 degree powder, which is Mamie Eisenhower's favorite color, and a color specially developed for her by Pantone Color, officially known as "First Lady Pink" or "Mami Powder". After its birth, it quickly became the most iconic color in the United States in the 1950s, appearing on bathroom wallpaper, hair dryers, tea sets and almost everything else.
Nancy Reagan: Nancy's pretty face is easily recognizable in the last few Hollywood movies. Before becoming first lady, she starred in 11 feature films, including The Next Voice You Hear, Donovan's Brain, and an Oscar-nominated documentary, The Dark Wave. Her name may not be so easy to find on the credits, though, as she uses the stage name "Nancy Davis."
News and image sources: BBC, Vanity Fair, Entertainment Weekly, Reader's Digest, some of the images are from the Internet
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