In 1968, television network ABC was dead last in the ratings. So for the Democratic and Republican national conventions held in August, ABC hired political polar opposites conservative William F. Buckley Jr. and liberal Gore Vidal to provide commentary and debate each other. The network hoped this "Unconventional Convention Coverage" would lift them from third place.
During live and unscripted broadcasts the fierce rivals faced off with plenty of mud slinging, barb trading and explosive insult sharing. ABC's ratings catapulted. The sparing between these two intellectual behemoths also made for great drama.
In the new Magnolia Pictures documentary Best of Enemies, filmmakers Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville offer insight, back story and riveting rare footage of Vidal and Buckley. "Here are two incredibly articulate witty people on national TV arguing over the soul of the nation. The stakes were huge," explains Neville, who actually worked for Vidal as a fact checker. "It's theater, but it's also opera. I want somebody to adapt the documentary to an opera."
The duo's drama was partly due to the fact that the debates were live and unscripted. "The great thing about Vidal and Buckley is that they weren't speaking talking points," says Gordon. "They were original thoughts. It was unplanned."
At the film's New York premiere last week, I asked a few of the celebrity guests, including Christine Baranski, Swoosie Kurtz, Dick Cavett and Chuck Scarborough to share a live TV moment that made an impression on them. Click to this Parade.com story to read what they said.
Filmmakers Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville (Kristina Bumphrey/StarPix )