Saturday, June 22, 2002, 8:00 pm, $5
One of the most remarkable political documents of our time, Point of Order! is a hilarious, often exasperating, journey into the inevitable fall of one of America”s greatest political demagogues. For five incredible weeks, millions of Americans tuned in to watch as U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy”s reckless crusade to expose Communist subversion in the U.S. Army backfired against the pressure of televised media. With Roy Cohn at his side, McCarthy”s innuendoes and unsubstantiated claims against the Army were no match for the “heroic” Joe Welch. As Special Counsel for the U.S. Army, the meek and mild spoken Welch unmasked McCarthyism and further pushed Joe McCarthy into political oblivion. The sheer theatricality of the Army-McCarthy Hearings also serves as a milestone in the history of television and its manipulative influence over the evolution of our political system.
1963 B/W 97mins