Benjamen Walker's Theory of Everything - How to tell the truth about lies (part i of ii)

Episode Date: February 15, 2022

Journalists may write the first draft of history but Hollywood prints the legends and the myths. The 1976 film All the President’s Men remains our most authoritative account of Watergate. The film is also responsible for the myth of Deep Throat. Your host follows the myth… from 1976 to the present. This is the first half of a new ToE miniseries about America’s complicated relationship with truth and lies.

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Episodes every other week at neverpo.st and wherever you find pods. This installment is called How to Tell the Truth About Lies, Part 1. Journalists may write the first draft of history, but it is Hollywood who prints the legends and our enduring myths. In their movie All the President's Men, director Alan Pakula and producer-star Robert Redford show us how serious they take this responsibility from the very first scene. We see a security guard at the Watergate complex inspect a door that's been taped open by the Watergate burglars.

The actor playing this security guard is Frank Wills, who was the actual security guard who came across that taped door on the night of June 17, 1972. He rips off the tape and calls the police, just like he did in real life. This leads to the arrests of the five burgl bob woodward getting a call from his editor at the washington post therefore which then leads to you know i shall resign the presidency effective at noon tomorrow. The filmmakers built a detailed model of the Washington Post newsroom on the studio lot in Burbank, California. And they filled it with paper and trash shipped in from the actual newsroom in D.C. All in the name of accuracy.

But this is window dressing. The film is fiction. Hollywood storytelling at its finest. Follow the money. The most important line in the movie is fiction. Just follow the money. Reporter Bob Woodward has a high-level government source whom he meets with in an underground parking garage.

This is Deep Throat. And in their first meeting, Deep Throat gives Woodford an instruction, written for him by Hollywood screenwriter William Goldman. Just follow the money. After the meeting, Woodward goes back to the newsroom and shares this advice with his editors. The money's the key to whatever this is. Says who?

Deep Throat. Who? Oh, that's Woodward's garage freak, his source and the executive. shares this advice with his editors. Deep background is a term used by government officials who want to disclose information with reporters, but without identification or attribution. Deep Throat is a sex act and the name of an infamous X-rated movie that hit theaters the same month as the Watergate break-in. How much can you tell me about Deep Throat? How much do you need to know? In 1975, when All the President's Men was being filmed, Bob Woodward had only shared the name of his secret source with two people. Carl Bernstein, his fellow reporter,

and Ben Bradley, their boss at the Washington Post. When it came to bringing Deep Throat to the screen, the filmmakers were on their own. I have to do this my way. Hal Holbrook, the actor who portrays Deep Throat, initially tried to turn the part down. When his old friend Robert Redford offered it to him, he said, Bob, there's nothing here, he recalled. It's in the dark. There's hardly anything to the role. Nobody will see me. Redford then told him, I promise you something, Hal. People will remember this role more than any other in the film.

Robert Redford was right. The three sequences in the underground parking garage are the most memorable scenes in All the President's Men. As film critics and theorists have pointed out time and time again, these scenes are just mind-boggling. Everything about them, the way they're lit, the way they're shot, the dialogue, the sound, the deep throat sequences, they are the heart of the movie.

Now this film is responsible for some of the greatest myths to emerge out of the social and political turmoil of the 60s and 70s. Myths about the power of the press and investigative reporting. Myths about the strength of American democracy where no one, not even the president, is above the law. The myth that the system works. And the key to all of these myths is Deep Throat. I don't like newspapers. In his second appearance, Deep Throat confesses to Bob Woodward his true feelings about the press. I don't care for inexactitude and shallowness. We aren't told, though, why.

If Deep Throat hates the press so much, why then is he meeting with a newspaper reporter in the dead of night? This is a question that goes unanswered. It just hangs there in the dark, along with a question Woodward does ask right before Deep Throat disappears into the shadows. The FBI and Justice know this. Like Deep Throat, none of the secretaries, lawyers, and bookkeepers Woodward and Bernstein hunt down want to talk to the press.

They do so only because they are appalled at what is going on behind the scenes. They talk because they want to do what is right. But since Deep Throat is a top government official, the stakes are higher. Because if he talks, well, then he is betraying both his president and his sacred oath to secrecy. When Hal Holbrook was asked how he dealt with the enigma at the heart of his character, he replied, he created a backstory for Deep Throat that was based on a question of morality. And Holbrook was by no means acting alone. He never went rogue or off script. William Goldman didn't just give Deep Throat the best line in the movie,

he structured the entire film on Deep Throat's struggles with morality. Listen, I'm tired of your chicken shit games. I need to know what you know. When Woodward meets with Deep Throat for the third and final time, he and Bernstein are stuck. Without Deep Throat's help, their investigation will end. Their story will end. Their story will die.

The camera lingers on Deep Throat's face as he agonizes over what to do. And then he talks. It was a Halderman operation. First, he confirms what we already know, that the break-in was an operation run by Nixon's chief of staff. But then, he tells Woodward incredible. Your lies are in danger. Now that is some serious whistleblowing. And in the second part of this mini-series, we're going to return to these incredible allegations. But right now, I want to keep our focus on the why. The Deep Throat we see in All the President's Men has a motive. It's a motive that is emotionally powerful and structurally powerful.

And it's a motive that goes uncontested for 30 years. Because the identity of Deep Throat remained a secret for 30 years. Let's just get right to it. Who is Deep Throat? Well, first of all, we're not telling you. Scores of investigative journalists, documentarians, and private detectives tried to solve the mysteries of Deep Throat, but no one pulled it off. Except for Dick. One of Hollywood's final exploitations of the Watergate myth

before Deep Throat outed himself in 2005 was the 1999 comedy Dick. A lot bigger names than you have asked us who Deep Throat is, so I don't think we'd reveal it on a little tiny show like this one here. You know what I think. Woodward and Bernstein are portrayed by Will Ferrell and Bruce McCullough. I don't think there is any such person as Deep Throat. I think y'all just made it up. Yes, there is. Deep Throat is... Don't say it! He's trying to trick us! And they are amazing.

Don't ever touch me! But the real star of Dick is Deep Throat. You know, this way we can get back into the stairs without having to go to the lobby so nobody will ever see us until my mom. Arlene, you're a genius. Young Kirsten Dunst and Michelle Williams play Betsy and Arlene, two 15-year-old girls who sneak out of the Watergate apartment

Arlene lives in with her mom on the night of July 12, 1972, to mail a fan letter to Bobby Sherman. It's Arlene who tapes the parking garage door open so they can sneak back in. Hold it. They also run into G. Gordon Liddy on the stairs. Wait a minute, I know you. Me too.

And then, on a class trip to the White House the following day, they see him again. As far as you're concerned, I'm not even here. Liddy alerts his cronies, and the girls are brought into the West Wing. Hi, Bobby. They meet the president's dog. How are you doing, young ladies? And the president. Liddy alerts his cronies, and the girls are brought into the West Wing. They meet the president's dog.

How are you doing, young ladies? And the president. Call me Dick. Hi, Dick. Hi. How old are you? 15. Well, how would you two be interested in being official White House dog walkers? What do you think?

At first, the girls are totally enamored with their behind-the-scenes view of the White House. Arlene even dreams of Dick. Arlene, come away with me. But then they discover Nixon's secret taping system. What? Punch-league to Colson is the problem. Get down off of me, checkers. Get down off of me, checkers!

Get down off of me, you piece of shit! I just don't want this whole fucking War Brigade business biting me in the ass! You know the goddamn Jews are out to get me! There's a confrontation. We heard that tape! What'd you hear? You kicked checkers, and you're prejudiced, and you have a potty mouth! You're a bad man!

You stinking little idiots! Get the hell out of here! We don't ever come back here again, okay? You don't mess with the big boys! Woodward. Later that night, the girls decide to prank call the Washington Post. Hello? Hello. We, um, know things.

What kind of things? Oh, we have a list of creeps. We got it at the White House. That's the committee to re-elect the president. It's to hold them in, and it has a list of names, and next to them are amounts of money, and then dates. Could I meet you somewhere? There is an underground parking garage. Asked for a name, Betsy wrestles with what to say.

Just give me a name so that when you call next time I'll know it's you. Her brother has just been busted for sneaking into a porn film. Deep throat! Yeah, that one. The big joke in this ludicrous retelling

is that the girls are responsible for everything, starting with the taping of the door at the Watergate complex to the resignation of Richard Nixon. But the movie totally works, because Dick remains true to the myth of Deep Throat. American democracy is strong because there are good people working behind the scenes. The system works. Dick also makes it clear why Woodward and Bernstein were so serious about keeping Deep Throat's identity a secret for as long as they possibly could. A lot of people want to know who our source is on this. Really? We're going to be famous!

But we've decided never to reveal your identity. For our own protection, huh? No. It's just was embarrassing. In 1972, Mark Felt was the number two man at the FBI. And at the same time he was leaking details about Nixon's covert surveillance operations to Bob Woodward and others, he was personally authorizing illegal surveillance and harassment of innocent Americans. In 1980, he was even tried and convicted for these illegal operations. But it's even more embarrassing than that. On May 2nd, 1972, six weeks before the Watergate break-in, FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover died,

and Nixon passed FBI number two man Mark Felt over, and instead appointed an outsider, Patrick Gray, as interim FBI director. This is why Mark Felt was leaking White House secrets to the press. He wanted Nixon to see that Patrick Gray was not up to the task of keeping his secrets safe. There was no moral struggle. Mark Felt leaked because he wanted Nixon to make him FBI number two man, number one. In 2005, when Mark Felt's family forced him to reveal his secret identity, Mark Felt was suffering from dementia. And in his Deep Throat book, The Secret Man, Bob Woodward uses this dementia to forever shield and protect the myth of Deep Throat. Because Mark Felt's mind is gone, he writes,

Deep Throat's true motives can never be known. There's a nickname for you at the paper, Deep Throat. I give you the guardian of the American dream. Mark Feltz. In 2017, Donald Trump fired FBI Chief James Comey, who had just the year before turned the presidential election on its head with a late October investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails. Hollywood decided it was time for another go at the myth. Mark Felt, the man who brought down the White House. Liam and Peter, can you talk about what characteristics of the real Mark Felt you wanted to make sure really came through on screen?

In press interviews, star Liam Neeson revealed his reverence for the myth of Deep Throat. Democracy works. That's what came out of the overall story of Watergate. Investigative journalism works. In fact, investigative journalism, I think, was invented then. And Peter is an ex-investigative journalist. No man, and certainly not the president, is above the law. He has to be accountable. Liam Neeson's Mark Felt is a heroic, selfless, dedicated, no-nonsense FBI man. Dick.

Sure, he's disappointed when Nixon calls to tell him he's not getting the top job. A new day. But he's patriotic. Yes. And loyal. A fresh start. And ready to support the new boss. As long as you keep the FBI first, you'll be able to count on me.

His true loyalties, though, lie with the Bureau. Here's that Weather Underground file. They're embarrassing the FBI In this film, Mark Felt okays illegal surveillance operations Because they're necessary These kids aren't messing around But that's it The film goes to ridiculous lengths to isolate Deep Throat From the FBI's well-documented excesses

The FBI illegally, unconstitutionally, unreprehensibly bugged and taped... Mark Felt also leaked FBI secrets to Time magazine reporter Sandy Smith. Only in this telling, it's Mark Felt's FBI rival Bill Sullivan who is to blame. Who did the wiretaps? Bill Sullivan.

It became a rogue FBI operation. Sullivan drove it. Sullivan and the White House by themselves. How about you? What did you know? About everything else. I knew every sordid little detail. But not this.

In this version of the story, there is no mystery to Deep Throat's motives. So, one more time, what are we doing? You looking for a little help? Pay back. I want the FBI to lift the laundry to its job. That's all I want. Mr. Woodward. Likewise, there's no mystery as to why Mark Felt meets with Bob Woodward in the underground parking garage.

How high? How high does it go? We don't get to hear Liam Neeson say, follow the money. But he does deliver one of Hal Holbrook's other famous lines. Take out your notebook. There's more. When news of this film was announced, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein begged director Peter Lansman to change the name of his movie. Calling Mark Felt the man who brought down the White House, they said, is not historically accurate.

But as our brief tour through Hollywood's Watergate archive makes clear, the Deep Throat story was never about facts. You have been listening to Benjamin Walker's Theory of Everything. This installment is called How to Tell the Truth About Lies, Part 1. This episode was written and produced by me, Benjamin Walker. We'll continue our journey through the halls of legends and myths of Watergate and other conspiracies from the 1970s next time, in the second half of this miniseries. The Theory of Everything is a proud founding member of Radiotopia from PRX,

home to some of the world's best podcasts. Find them all at radiotopia.fm.