Opie Taylor — Go To Your Room
by Rodney Lee ConoverWhen I was a kid, I was watching TV with my father after he got home from work one night and he boldly proclaimed, “You watch, Nixon is gonna quit.” And sure enough, he did. I was amazed. My dad actually predicted our president was going to resign!
It wasn’t until many years later that I found out just about everyone knew that was going to happen, but still, I was pretty impressed. I still am. My dad had two jobs, a third on the weekends and managed to make every wrestling match or swim meet me or my sisters were ever in. Honestly – I don’t know how he did it – I just went to the Starbucks and I’m exhausted.
But anywhoozer, that was then, back about the time I started watching, “The Andy Griffith Show.” A thoughtful, incredibly written program the entire family watched and still can. It holds up today as anyone knows who sits around watching TV all morning after they go to the Starbucks. It’s sweet, it has social commentary, tons of laughs, a chick named “Crump,” – come on, what’s not to love?
It also featured young Ronnie Howard, no older than myself at the time. Remember the one where the older kid was stealing Opie’s milk money and Andy had to teach him how to confront a bully? I cried. I’m not kidding. Ronnie Howard made me cry. Every time I see it.
But instead of becoming a drug addicted, kleptomaniac, bound for Reality TV; child star Ronnie Howard went on to more acting success as a teenager, then as a young adult in films, then, well, you know the resume. Incredible. Unlikely. Impressive. Those words don’t cover it and anyone that’s ever given Hollywood a shot knows it.
Remember when Harrison Ford rolls his black Chevy with Cindy Williams in the car and Steve Bolander runs to her and holds her and makes her believe he’ll never leave her? Made me cry. Ronnie Howard made me cry. Every time I see it.
Then, Ronnie Howard grows up, becomes “Ron” Howard, and directs a ton of great films like, “Night Shift;” “Apollo 13;” and “Parenthood,” just to name a few. Remember at the end when their kid is destroying the set of the school play and Steve Martin and Mary Steenburgen realize they’re just on life’s roller coaster? Made me cry. Ron Howard made me cry. Every time I see it.
So imagine my delight when I read Ron Howard is directing “Frost/Nixon.” I’m going to walk in to a theater and be whisked back to the days of watching TV with my dad and for a brief moment, I’m going to be happy again. Happy Days. Get it?
Then I read another article where the actual David Frost calls the movie ‘Fiction,’ because they’ve changed the historical facts for ‘entertainment value.’ What? Nixon wasn’t a reviled enough guy already? I don’t care that you get into a pissing match with Chris Wallace, comparing George W. Bush to Nixon – that’s your opinion – but you can’t keep the agenda out of “Frost/Nixon”? What’s the matter with you?
Great. So now I can’t see it. Thanks for nothing ‘movie chiefs’. I can’t drift back to my childhood, watching TV, being amazed by my dad… Made me cry. Ronnie Howard made me cry.
Email this to a friend | Print |
Share on Facebook
| Tweet this
| 
Follow Us on Twitter
Subscribe via RSS
Tips & Feedback
43 Comments
Love this new talk site. Since we are influenced by advertising, media and entertainment, I’m so happy to get some “diversity” of thought into the mix.
To Mr. Howard: Please take some time to study politics and politicians before you make tedious, high school like claims like you did regarding Nixon and Bush.
Sorry but that is Hollywood for ya…
You are right, no need to watch fiction based on a true story…
The title of this article is misleading.
There is nothing mentioned about Andy sending Opie to his room as a punishment or otherwise
Howard made some great films but lately he seems to be doing what all Hollywood loves to do assassinate the character of Christians and Conservatives.
The DaVinci Code? Ron says he’s such a spiritual guy but has to remind those who get caught up in dogma that it’s not about Dogma. What a bunch of garbage. Face it Hollywood hates Christians, as no one in Hollywood had anything nice to say about “The Passion”. Almost every Christian knew it was a film that needed to be made (my church made a low budget version of it) but no one had the guts until Mel came along and got vilified for it.
Now the Davinci Code 2? Just goes to show you can never hate Christians enough that you won’t stop trying to destroy their faith with made up controversies.
Then we get down to reminding people again, and again, how evil conservatives are. Did we really need another movie about Nixon? I for one saw nothing in hearing that it was coming out except to remind people they made the right choice in Obama, and that we don’t really need any Republican/Conservatives in office. Also, let’s make sure that all the previews for the film have Nixon saying he could supposedly do whatever he wanted in office and it would be “legal”. Which of course was the lefts rallying cry for 8 years against Bush, that he was “Shredding The Constituion”.
Michael Moore started the idea that Hollywood needed to go on the offensive around election time in order to tip the scales. Now most people don’t get instantly influenced by this stuff, but as with the gay cowboy flick, it subtly gets into your heart and mind by playing on your emotions.
What’s even sadder is that Tom Cruise had to try to get himself back into the good graces of his Hollywood brethren by making yet another Nazi flick – as if the only evil in the world is Nazi’s. He’s hoping they forget that he’s a scientologist or overlook it at the same time hoping Germans will be so overjoyed with his movie that they too will have a better view of Scientology.
OMG, softballs at a millionaire for his vitriol toward Americans that have made him successful. Just more of the typical self guilt from the new hollywood.
Dont mean nothing – Opie, Penn, MMoore, Rosie – just more of the degradation of the hollywood of the Real Americans.
Oh, where, oh where, have the Duke, Jimmy, Clark and the other Real Americans gone? Guess this is why the old movies are never going to be replaced by the fools of today.
My thinking is, don’t judge the film till you’ve seen it. Take the Da Vinci code, for example. Ok, here you have a movie full of Catholic bashing nonsense. That’s the wonderful thing about catholiic bashing though, it’s vogue. You can do it all you like and nobody cares, in fact most folks consider it “stylish” anymore.
Anyway, this movie is based on a book by Dale Brown, who honestly should have stuck to writing real fiction as opposed to this pseudo-historical nonsense. All of the “research” his book is based on has been debunked time and time again, but it doesn’t seem to matter, they hype the movie as having “historical” value anyway.
So I wait till the movie comes out on cable, no way I’m paying any of my hard earned money to see a catholic bash fest, but once it hits cable I watch it anyway, and honestly I was thrilled with it!
Why you ask? Sure, it was chock full of catholic bashing nonsense and backhanded insults, just as I suspsected it would be – however the movie itself was so absolutely dismal, poorly done and boring that the by the time they got around to catholic bashing you really didn’t mind so much, in a movie that was that boring and terribly done the bashing itself came of as really kind of pathetic more than anything else.
I needed the parts of the movie where they told outlandish lies about a faith practiced by millions around the world just to keep my pulse rate high enough to keep me awake for the rest of the movie. Without it I would have been sound asleep after the first 15 minutes of that snooze fest.
So what do I expect from Frost/Nixon? Same terribly done revisionist history you see in most anything hollywood puts out when it comes to movies about politics and history. Nixon will doubtless be portrayed as worse than Hitler, and Frost will most likely be shown as the white night trying to save us all from the evil conservative. Think I’ll take a pass on this one completely.
Nope, I’m waiting for Nixon/McCarthy, the movie – since these are the only two guys hollywood seems to like making “historical” films about. Yup, Nixon, Time Travel, McCarthy – throw in a bit where they actually plan the Kennedy Assasination and you’ve got the holy trinity of hollywood “historical” hit pieces. And they wonder why box office sales are in the round file?
There does seem to be a tendency for movie makers to remake history in their own image.
Howard’s choice to do this will hit him at the box office. There will be less people going because of possible inaccuracies, than going to see what scandelous fiction has been added.
They can’t make a correct Iraq War movie, correct movie on the current Bush’s life, now Nixon’s life…wonder when they will do a bash movie on Reagan. Probably is one that I am not aware of.
I loved him as meathead in all in the family. classic.
I haven’t seen Frost/Nixon yet — likely to Netflix it, though. I wonder what the crowd here makes of former Nixon staffers and their _favorable_ reaction to the film? I caught a snippet of Pat Buchanan on Mike Gallagher’s radio program this morning talking about it in favorable terms. Hugh Hewitt praised the movie on his radio show and Web site. The guys at the Nixon Center blog, The New Nixon, had a lively discussion about the film, but ultimately gave it “five Checkers.” (See Frank Gannon’s review here: http://thenewnixon.org/2008/12/26/fn-receives-the-ultimate-accolade-5-checkers/)
So I don’t think Rodney Lee Conover or the commenters are quite on the mark on this one.
It’s sad to see Ron become just another brain-dead Hollywood leftist.
My point here is that Ron Howard has done some incredible things in his long, long career, avoided the pitfalls and temptations much better than I have personally, and along the way, entertained me, and yes, made me cry. I can’t see Frost Nixon because I don’t want to chance having my childhood memories tainted. I want them right where they are.
I thought Howard jumped the shark when he did Davinci, but the FunnyorDie political ad for Obama was the Great White. I just want to plead with Hollywood to please, please shut up. About everything. We don’t care what you think. We no longer see your movies that suck because they suck. I think the fact that they made a movie about such a “non-event” as the Frost-Nixon interview is beyond belief. Ask everyone you know if they even remember this when it happened, or if they cared. The cue the crickets.
Todd Robbins said, “Anyway, this movie is based on a book by Dale Brown…”
Actually, that would be *DAN* Brown. I only point that out because Dale Brown is a very talented author who has written several great military fiction books, most about the Air Force.
Dan Brown, on the other hand, has one talent: finding sexual themes in the shapes of random objects.
One of these Browns is not like the other. One has talent; the other got to see Tom Hanks play a character he (the author) described as looking like Harrison Ford.
Like Dennis Miller, a great entertainer, this tidbit’s author about “Frost/Nixon” will destroy conservatism faster than any hush hush Zeitgeist.
Without an understanding of Buckley, which is lacking, there can be no conservatism.
Only entertainers and their preening, profitable emotions.
Thanks Rush and Dennis and this guy.
Thanks a lot.
Its not that I lost all respect for Ron Howard as a film maker when I saw that Obama ad, its that I can never watch anything he produces again without thinking about his politics. Please, everyone in Hollywood, be supportive, be patriotic, join the USO, but don’t let me know every political thought you are having. Don’t you see how your alienating half of your potential movie viewing audience? I haven’t been able to watch any of my “Bourne” movies since Matt Damon opened his mouth about Sarah Palin. And he always seemed so nice. Come to find out he really has a potty mouth. By the way, the worst thing Ron Howard ever did was cast Tom Hanks as the lead in those Da Vinci movies. Talk about the worst miscasting ever ever ever. Nothing against Tom Hanks. Of course, I think Tom produced it so I guess he can cast himself.
Hugh Hewitt saw the movie and liked it — and he worked with Nixon in RN’s retirement years. If there had been a hidden anti-Nixon agenda, HH would have sniffed it out.
It’s not that “Frost/Nixon” is bad historically, IMHO. It’s that Howard constantly uses it to attack GWB in a non-historical and factually inept manner. (See Chris Wallace’s response: http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tim-graham/2008/12/02/chris-wallace-whacks-liberal-frost-nixon-chat-comparing-bush-nixon )
Raina,
I agree with you whole heartedly! We won’t watch anything with Susan Sarandon, Jane Fonda (Obviously), John Cusack (who I used to really like), Robert Redford, those you mentioned and the list goes on. I really wish there was some way to let these people know how we feel!
It must run in the family. I had the same reaction to Ron Howard films until DaVinci Code. Frost/Nixon is the end of my era of good feelings for Opie’s movies. Not one more dime for Ron from our household. He is another Hollywood icon on my entertainment economic boycott list.
Nick wrote: “It’s sad to see Ron become just another brain-dead Hollywood leftist.”
Nah, he’s just another brain-dead Hollywood capitalist. Whatever sells.
I thought about when Opie went wrong, and then he and Andy Griffith appeared in that Obama schlock-fest commercial and I knew that a better question was, “When did Andy Taylor go wrong?” Honestly, they should both know better than be liberals.
I liked Frost/Nixon very much. Excellent, and fair. Langella’s performance is breathtaking. I ended up having far more empathy for Nixon. Frost is just whining about being portrayed as a talk-show host without real journalistic chops when he took on Nixon. They did that deliberately to make the film a political version of Rocky. And it works fabulously.
Please, folks. It’s the Left that has closed minds. Don’t blacklist these people just because you disagree with them.
This is the best Ron Howard has to offer? yawn.
Why should we be surprised. This guy grew up so far away to what the reality of everyday Americans and who we are why should anything Ron Howard does shock any of us.
I know a woman who met Richard Nixon. She was helping on a deposition for a case unrelated to Watergate. Richard Nixon was in her estimation the classiest man she had met during her years in DC…she was too afraid to talk to Ronald Reagan but thats another story….anyway the truth about making Frost/Nixon was in my opinion is this: How do you show the unwashed plebes out there (plebes would be us) how bad Republicans are? Why make a movie about that evil Nixon. They couldn’t trash Reagan’s character too many people got angry but Dick Nixon can always be dragged out for more flogging. And since last year was an election year well more GOP bashing by the DNC’s unpaid propagandists shouldn’t surprise anyone. I haven’t seen a Ron Howard film in years. At any rate I find his direction uninteresting and his subject matter shallow.
Let’s talk a bit about story structure.
a)What Happens in the Movie: Frost ratchets up the tension of the debates until on the final night, he corners Nixon, who confesses his crimes before the entire nation on live TV. It’ll make you cry.
b)What Happened in Real Life: Nixon was a producer of the show, and would get more money the people tuned in. He also knew,as in any prize fight, he would have to make a dramatic confession. He and Frost choreographed the structure of the interviews to climax with Nixon’s big mea culpa.
Now, which makes for better drama? “A” – clearly. It’s practically a template for dramatic structure.
Which one would make conservatives heads really explode? “B” might make for an interesting character study, a la Oliver Stone, but tell me this place and the media-sphere in general wouldn’t blow ape-sh#* if Opie portrayed ol’ Dick as a money grubbing, opportunistic hypocrite (never mind that it’s based on a play).
My whole life long, when I was in a good mood, the number one song I would whistle was the theme to the ‘Andy Griffith Show’. (second was ‘If I Only Had A Brain’ from ‘The Wizard Of Oz’.) It’s taken some effort, but after the Obama ad, I’ve quit cold turkey.
Hey everyone Opies PR guy Chasm just posted! AWESOME! How much does Ronnie pay you man? Do you also fetch his Starbucks?
Ron Howard? Opie? Well this article made me spew! BOYCOTT em all! To ell with em all!
Stephanie – Chasm is so far down in the tank that his little bubbles aren’t coming up any longer.
Would you believe it? Chasm called ‘Flags of Our Fathers’ “inspirational and pro-America..!!!! I kid you not, Stephanie. He actually said that. Man, this dude is brain dead!
Stephanie, John, Laura, everyone, I’m wasn’t talking about Opie or Ronnie or anyone. I was writing about how things were when I was a child. When a father taught his son how to stand up to a bully, when a man held a woman and convinced her he would never leave her, and meant it. When parents put their children ahead of themselves. It’s not about the Da Vinci Code. Stop putting it through a filter. Let your inner Rodney flow.
thanks, Rodney Lee
PS: Kirk, your link has a virus in it, but you maybe knew that? No one click on it, please.
I began losing faith in Ron Howard with the release of “Beautiful Mind”, and the subsequent discovery that most important biographical facts in that movie were complete fiction. It was a wonderful movie, but it wasn’t a true depiction of the man it portrayed.
He did such great work for so many years and then comes down with BDS. What a shame, reruns of Gomer Pyle don’t seem so bad now.
Please! John Wayne movies were historically accurate? I don’t think so! Every movie based on actual events is manipulated to tell a more compelling story. It’s called ENTERTAINMENT not History Lesson. Anyone who believes they are seeing what actually happened deserves to be manipulated.
I sooooooooo love this site; can’t tell you how excited I am to see something like this happen.
Unfortunately, he and Andy forever tore my fond memories from my heart when they did the Obama ad together…Ron AND Andy made me cry.
Seems there may be a track record here…
According to reviews and personal accounts given to me, Ron Howard chose to portray Max Baer as something of a monster in “Cinderella Man.” Artistic license is one thing, but to portray a once living person — with living descendants — dishonestly to put more money in his pocket does not set right with me.
Maybe Ron Howard can look forward to someone portraying him as a satan worshiping, cannibal, necrophiliac for his grand children’s viewing enjoyment in 50 years.
OK, maybe that analogy was a little over the top. But it was just as accurate and sensible as Howard’s Obama recent ad.
Dang that cut n’ paste! Shoulda’ said:
OK, maybe that analogy was a little over the top. But it was just as accurate and sensible as Howard’s recent Obama ad.
[...] to write a piece that will surely piss off his music idol, Bruce Springsteen. Fellow comedian Rodney Lee Conover also went after sacred ground, Opie Cunningham. Stand up comedian Tom Shillue stood up twice in [...]
Mr. Conover,
If you’re gonna stop viewing TV shows and movies made by artists who have political views you disagree with you’ll most likely need to eschew a whole slew of favorites from your precious childhood. And the intelligence of your argument–if it can be called that–begins to take on water as one attempts to wade through your clunky prose. Get thee to a copy editor, good sir!
Jaxon
I indeed have seen Frost/Nixon and will continue watching Andy Griffith loyally as ever, along with daily viewings of films and TV shows written, produced, directed and acted in by any number of folks I vehemently disagree with politically. My post was not an argument, but satire.
Read thee again, and try to getteth the point this time. thanketh thee.
Sir Rodney
I’m with you, Rodney. I’ve loved Ron Howard for years and have enjoyed his movies with an almost sisterly pride because I grew up with Ron Howard. It’s just too bad that movie makers have to start getting political, because I truly enjoy going to movies. I don’t go to that many any longer because I don’t want their liberal propaganda shoved down my throat. They have their freedom of speech to make whatever they want, but we have the perogative to use our purse strings to decide whether we want to support their speech or not. That’s our freedom of speech. That’s the way of the world and as it should be.
Thank God for this site because the best way to combat speech you don’t agree with is through more freedom of speech. That’s the American way.
I’ve learned to never trust Hollywood history. A Nixon aide who was at the actual interview said it did not happen the way it was portrayed. Another Nixon-bashing movie. Yawn. I used to despise Nixon during the Watergate hearings, but after growing up and doing my own research, I realize now that the Left destroyed him and his presidency. Nixon was a complex and brilliant man. As a prosecutor he helped convict Alger Hiss, which was unforgivable to the Left. He was blamed for Vietnam, which was a Kennedy/Johnson war. He was determined to win the war, but the Left was determined to lose it. “Journalist” Carl Bernstein was a red diaper baby, whose agenda was to topple President Nixon and Watergate served that purpose. He has since been exposed as a hack who writes fiction to gin up a story. I highly recommend “Silent Coup” by G. Gordon Liddy, who tells a very different version of the story. Nixon made mistakes but the entire Watergate saga was way overplayed. In the process the Left succeeded in toppling Nixon, making the US lose in Vietnam (wasn’t that the real purpose?), and generally wreaking havoc on our country. That was their greatest victory until Obama. It’s a shame Ron Howard feels a need to spit on Nixon’s grave. He’s becoming another Oliver Stone.
The powerful of all shredders is the bulldog of shredders considered world widely for home and office use
You must be logged in to post a comment.