NAPOLEON AND JOSEPHINE: A LOVE STORY {PART 3 OF 3} (TV)

Summary

The final installment in this three-part miniseries depicting the tempestuous love affair between Napoleon Bonaparte and his first wife Josephine de Beauharnais. In this episode, believing that Josephine has left him for another man, Napoleon throws her belongings from the house and contemplates ending his life with arsenic. Josephine and her children return, however, and eventually are able to assuage his anger. As Royalists conspire against him, Napoleon takes Josephine to the palace of Versailles and stuns her by announcing that it is now their home, as he has decided to have Barras arrested and to seize control of the government himself. He throws a lavish party and objects when Therese attends, feeling that she is too low-class, though Josephine is upset to spot Talleyrand and warns Napoleon that he is not a friend. Hortense encounters Napoleon's brother Louis, but the party is interrupted by a rock through the window aimed at the "tyrant," and Napoleon coolly observes that the English are supporting his enemies. Later, Napoleon schemes to reconcile with the Catholic church and grudgingly gives his blessing to Hortense and Louis, while elsewhere Talleyrand meets with a conspirator, Fouche, to discuss Napoleon's upcoming public appearances at which he could be assassinated.

On their way to the opera, Napoleon, Josephine and Hortense narrowly escape death when the Royalists blow up a cart of gunpowder. Napoleon vows that they will pay, though the main conspirator refuses to name his leader even under torture. Napoleon questions Josephine about her high-ranking "friends," and then demands the arrest of Duke D'Enghien despite the fact that the man has sanctuary in a German state. D'Enghien boldly demands to give the order for his own execution by firing squad, accusing Villeforte of betrayal before dying. Josephine chastises Napoleon for the blunder of D'Enghien's death, but Napoleon then reveals that he intends to name himself emperor. When Josephine nervously points out that they may never have a legitimate heir, Napoleon adds that he feels "addiction" to her rather than love. Josephine meets with the Pope and the pair are quickly remarried within the church, and at the coronation Napoleon proudly crowns himself emperor and Josephine empress. His siblings squabble over their new titles and over Napoleon's questionable actions, and Napoleon frets to his mother that their lack of an heir may be due to his "old affliction," as Josephine has already borne children. She suggests that he "test" his virility with a young friend of Pauline's, and the girl is soon brought to the palace.

Josephine furiously berates Napoleon for the affair, but they quickly make up and decide that he will name Hortense's unborn child as his lawful heir. He fights several more successful battles in Austria, though Villeforte admits to DuPont that he does indeed feel like a traitor. Hortense's baby dies shortly after birth and Napoleon is again left without an heir, and he soon heads to Poland to fight a Russian army, observing that Europe is uniting against him. He encounters an attractive young woman, Maria, whose husband is only too happy to demonstrate his "patriotism," and Napoleon soon embarks on an affair with her. He stays with her for some time and she becomes pregnant by him, but they both know that the child cannot be his true heir. Josephine frets to Therese about the rumors of her husband's mistress, and Napoleon admits the truth to her upon returning, pointing out that he can indeed produce children and has no choice but to publicly divorce her and remarry for the sake of his crown. They are both devastated, as their feelings for one another are still strong, and Josephine soon helps Napoleon to select an appropriate new bride. Marie-Louise of Austria arrives and eventually bears Napoleon his long-desired son, and he assures her that his next battle will be victorious and his last. He loses many men to the harsh Russian winter, however, and DuPont is forced to end Villeforte's life after he is badly injured.

His troops decimated, Napoleon returns to France and to an occupied Versailles, realizing that he has no choice but to abdicate. Talleyrand informs him that he may be exiled to the unpleasant island of Saint Helena rather than executed, though an ill Josephine pleads with Talleyrand to compromise on the Corsican island of Elba instead, willing to sell herself to him for Napoleon's sake if need be. Napoleon bids farewell to his son Eugene and then finds Josephine sick in bed, where they chat comfortably about his younger son and about his optimistic plans for "ruling" Elba. He urges her to visit him there someday, and declares that he has always loved her despite his various claims and misdeeds. The program concludes by noting that Josephine passed away shortly after Napoleon reached Elba and that he himself died seven years later, speaking of her in his final moments. Includes commercials and promos. Also includes an "ABC News Brief" hosted by Karen Stone and an "ABC Olympic Diary" narrated by Jim McKay.

Details

NETWORK: ABC
DATE: November 12, 1987 9:00 PM
RUNNING TIME: 1:55:48
COLOR/B&W: Color
CATALOG ID: B:12007
GENRE: Drama, historical
SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, historical; Romance; Miniseries
SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 1987
COMMERCIALS:
- TV - Commercials - Alcon Opti-Zyme contact lens cleaner
- TV - Commercials - Alka-Seltzer tablets
- TV - Commercials - America's Dairy Farmers cheese
- TV - Commercials - American Heart Association
- TV - Commercials - Amoré cat food
- TV - Commercials - Anacin painkillers
- TV - Commercials - Audi automobiles
- TV - Commercials - Avon cosmetics
- TV - Commercials - Beef Industry Council and Beef Board
- TV - Commercials - Campbell's soups
- TV - Commercials - Chevrolet automobiles
- TV - Commercials - Denorex shampoo
- TV - Commercials - Domino's Pizza restaurants
- TV - Commercials - Duracell batteries
- TV - Commercials - Finesse hair products
- TV - Commercials - Gallo wines
- TV - Commercials - General Mills Total oatmeal
- TV - Commercials - Gold Information Center
- TV - Commercials - Home Pride bread
- TV - Commercials - Honda automobiles
- TV - Commercials - Johnson's baby products
- TV - Commercials - Kellogg's Crispix cereal
- TV - Commercials - Maybelline Blooming Colors mascara
- TV - Commercials - Nabisco crackers
- TV - Commercials - Oldsmobile automobiles
- TV - Commercials - Ore Ida hash browns
- TV - Commercials - Pentax cameras
- TV - Commercials - Ponds cold cream
- TV - Commercials - Preparation H hemorrhoidal ointment
- TV - Commercials - Revlon Super-Lustrous lipstick
- TV - Commercials - Seagram's wine coolers
- TV - Commercials - Snuggle fabric softener
- TV - Commercials - Vaseline Intensive Care lotion
- TV - PSA - ABC Project Literacy US
- TV - Promos - "20/20"
- TV - Promos - "Buck James"
- TV - Promos - "Dolly"
- TV - Promos - "Full House"
- TV - Promos - "Hotel"
- TV - Promos - "I Married Dora"
- TV - Promos - "Mr. Belvedere"
- TV - Promos - "Ohara"
- TV - Promos - "Sable"
- TV - Promos - "The King of Love"
- TV - Promos - "The Pursuit of Happiness"
- TV - Promos - ABC College Football Today
- TV - Promos - ABC news

CREDITS

David L. Wolper … Executive Producer
Bernard Sofronski … Executive Producer
Alfred R. Kelman … Producer
Suzanne Wiesenfeld … Co-Producer
Richard T. Heffron … Director
James Lee … Writer
Gerald Fried … Music by
Bill Conti … Theme Music by
Jean Guelis … Choreographer
Armand Assante … Cast, Napoleon Bonaparte
Jacqueline Bisset … Cast, Josephine de Beauharnais
Stephanie Beacham … Cast, Therese Tallien
Anthony Higgins … Cast, Joseph Bonaparte
Nickolas Grace … Cast, Lord Nelson
Jane Lapotaire … Cast, Letizia Bonaparte
Patrick Cassidy … Cast, Capt. Hippolyte Charles
William Lucking … Cast, Sgt. Dupont
Jean-Pierre Stewart … Cast, Paul François Jean Nicolas, Vicomte de Barras
John Vickery … Cast, Bourrienne
Leigh Taylor-Young … Cast, Madame de Stael
Ione Skye … Cast, Pauline Bonaparte
Anthony Perkins … Cast, Charles Talleyrand
Paul Brooke … Cast, Junot
Colin Bruce … Cast, Lucien
Jeremy Brudenell … Cast, Louis Bonaparte
Simon Chandler … Cast, LeClerc
Natalie Forbes … Cast, Yvonne Grande
Isabelle Gardien … Cast, Marie-Louise
Paul Geoffrey … Cast, Murat
Julie Graham … Cast, Caroline
Jane Gurnett … Cast, Eliza
Emma Harbour … Cast, Hortense (as an adult)
Andrew Hawkins … Cast, Drummond
Richard Heffron … Cast, Duchene
Peter Howell … Cast, Count Walewska
Peter Hudson … Cast, Duke D'Enghien
Sam Jenkins … Cast, Georgette
Stephen Jenn … Cast, Fouche
Dominic Jephcott … Cast, Villeforte / Marchand
Leslie Lisbona … Cast, Young Girl
Charles Millot … Cast, Pope
Stephen Schwartz … Cast, Eugene (as an adult)
Jean-Paul Solal … Cast, Poudray
Ken Starcevic … Cast, Gian Carlo
Wendy Stokle … Cast, Maria Walewska
For "ABC News Brief":
Karen Stone … Anchor
For "ABC Olympic Diary"
Jim McKay … Narrator