TV: INSIDE A CELLULOID WASHINGTON, CLICHES INTACT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-01365R000300250003-7
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 27, 2004
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: March 10, 1971
• Content Type: NSPR

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Approved For Release 200$/olif '3 d-, A-RDP88-0136'tk000300250003-7
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coining a phrase,
15 JO H;" J. 0'CC:it0it be shown intwo T)arts illy casting Con)p` i1 "Vanished" it partly,
\ . r o
tuned a large cast On i speculation is rife. And at
What can you say about a prl.lle tI111e on SCparatw eve- ' 'C a
foul-hour 11"n'-s. U^s, It V.'asn't.even the first, "names" -- would-bw namesf the center of the rifeness
a
movie chit snauld former names and one or two stands the Presincnt's hand-
Ilave'ivecl, if at all, Tor client motion picture made specifi real names. An aclapation of snipe bachelor 'Pre'ss' Secre-
gp minutes? Well, to begin cally for television. but it Fletcher Knebcl's 1965 novel, tary (James Farentino), jug;-
with, you can say that. the probably was the first ells' the plot brought any viewer gling a 'curiously ideological
filjii was made for television tom-blade specimen to COSt
Willing to suspend every last romance. with his pretty
as a first-time.cn any about $2-million. and ? shred of dish ~,~~liof inside of- secretary nd an urn?rs.,.ad-
scr'een motion picture event. Presented Monday and yes- ficial Wasilin-ton. There; en- able demand for information
It wasn't the first movie to terday by the National Broad- sconccd in a ,clever montage from .the Washington press
of on-location 'and reason corps. It's always something
able-facsimile shots, heavy like "Joe A] 'sop's office call-
matters clanked about the of- ing," and alga ys the call is
fice of the President. (Richard ignored. Get tike behind me,
-Wiclrnark), credlibility gap, ,
p What with the ensuing dis-
The body of a Ch]ne;e appearance of some top sci-
entists, the implications of
sailor is washed up, mysteri-
in-
ously, on an Arl)eriacn shore: Soviet arnellt,nd the refusal Of tile
The Presidents closest ad tile
- to-. comment
? visor and friend (Arthur Hill) President
an ytilin thickens
disappears. mysteriously,. and, oddly the n crisis ou h the plot
.while playing golf at Burning.
thins. Though, Cp'rhaps, it
Tree. The adviser, wilose
wife (Eleanor Paricei) has a wouldn't secrn too odd to
the student of TV soap op-
-to ; problem turns out tehra.. Each tV.?o-hour part of
to have teen r eetine, - "Vanished" was dotted with
teriously v: itil another gen- six sell ;rate comllrercial
tleman ever ?Wedlccsda y eve- ,
Y ) slots, and that leave, Irooin
ning for more than a year. for a each deal. of } adding
An el ctiorf is coming lip and. O
leading up to and av.-ay from
an opposition Senator (l,obert s-;? ge
Young), every inch the slith the . y. or m_ >~._. ;
erin. Kentucky Colonel, So the c:rtrances and exits,
starts dropping ]lints, not so
mysteriously, about a "laver.- the hellos and good-b~,s are
intcrrninable. So the scene
der and lace' scandal. . ? "bridges" carry local-color
Crisis. Hippies, v:ho evi- 'touches that collapse into the
delltly will demonstrate about ludlicrou:---ailllouricelirent to
anything, make a misallce of end one scene With the Presl-
theinslves shouting outside dent: Pakistanis are in
e s
the W,i ite House. TV 'lows-'
the, CavIGCt h001i1, Mr. 1?resi-
man Chet Huntley is at his det." Pretty secretary no-
rnost casually ominous iii , tunliim to fold of boss, Picks
keeping the public nfornlad, up phone suggestively, and
even maintaining his compo- . Purrs: "TOra Wicker on 2."
Sure as a guest se.ress gazes
Gemara discovers an into]-
into the news camera and
' .. ligence chi~.:f on pllo nr?e, and.
confides: "I see no sexu-ah ?
have,
lity. I see ret, the Color of to tQ11 r malve.lio~.v Yr }.uarndd it t is to
blaodt." - - to tell
get trained personnel." PI e_.
0
Suillably, he isn't tensing to
Well, as Betty White puts Tarn W; C, er on 2-
And in the end? `residentidnlark, who for the most
part has been locking solemn
ani:1 asking everyone to keep
-the faith, calls a press con-
ference and, is a dazzling
burst of Good Tlink,'unravel s
all the mysteries. It's really
not worth going' in to, ex-
cept possibly to note that hie
close adviser -w.a'x t?lkin
' 'Chinese lessons on those
Wednesday evenings: ' '.
It toad have been worse.
"'He could have been Watching
some silly motion picture
event on televison.
Approved For Release 2005/01/13 CIA-RDP88-01365R000300250003-7