INHERIT THE WIND {GEORGE C. SCOTT, JACK LEMMON} (TV)
Summary
This adaptation of the courtroom drama by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee is based loosely on the famous Scopes trial of the 1920s. The program begins with authorities marching across the town green of Hillsboro, Tennessee, to the high school classroom of school teacher Bertram "Bert" Cates. They interrupt as he continues the teaching of Darwinism and evolutionary science to his pupils. Sheriff Sam Gibson places him under arrest for breaking public statutes with his anti-creationist teachings. Elsewhere, Baltimore Herald journalist E.K. Hornbeck is immediately intrigued by news of the arrest and books a train ticket to Tennessee, finding Bert to be a great "American martyr" and Hillsboro to be "the news capital for the entire uncivilized world." Meanwhile, the locals in Hillsboro question the way the rest of America is mocking their small, religious town. However, noted attorney and three-time presidential loser Matthew Harrison Brady has decided to prosecute the case for the state, exciting the locals. Meanwhile, fellow teacher -- and the reverend's daughter -- Rachel Brown visits her fiancŽ Bert in jail. Bert also receives a visit from the cynical, wisecracking Hornbeck, who discusses what he wishes to do with his newspaper coverage of the case. The next day, Brady arrives in town amidst much fanfare. He speaks with Reverend Jeremiah Brown, detailing his condemnation for the "priests of evil-ution." Hornbeck also informs Brown and Brady that Cates will be defended by lawyer Henry Drummond, an atheist. Afterward, Rachel informs her father that she will never leave Bert, leading him to claim she is "betraying" her faith by consorting with an agnostic. The next day, Drummond arrives, immediately welcomed by Hornbeck but derided by townspeople. He soon runs into his old friend Brady and his wife, Sarah. The pre-trial activities begin with Brady and Drummond antagonistically trying to fill the jury with their preferred citizens: Brady with good Christians and Drummond with those that know a bit about Charles Darwin's work. As the jury slots slowly fill, Brady and Drummond get under each other's skin, culminating when Judge Merle Coffey announces that Reverend Brown will be speaking that night at a prayer meeting in the town square. Drummond is outraged, thinking that Darwin's evolutionism is getting unfairly slighted. After the jury is filled, Rachel pleads with Drummond and Bert to quit the trial, but Bert won't allow it. He says that denying the giving of knowledge is unacceptable to him. That night, Drummond speaks with Sarah about their past, with her lamenting how differing beliefs have separated them. Afterward, Reverend Brown stirs the locals with his religious pleas as Drummond and Hornbeck watch from the back. Surprisingly, it is Brady that puts an end to Brown's rantings. Afterward, Rachel cries about her father having "damned" her. Brady appears to offer solace as she laments her circumstances. Late that night, Brady and Drummond discuss their pasts and how they have drifted apart. Drummond also tells Brady that he "steals hope" from the local people while teaching them ignorance and hate. Once the trial begins, Drummond is incensed with the way Brady is conducting his prosecution, injecting religious dogma into the proceedings. Nevertheless, Drummond must figure out a way to present his highly unpopular, evolution-based "right to think" angle. He begins by wondering if Bert's beliefs in any way have "hurt" Howard, one of his Bert's students who is testifying. Then, Brady surprises all by calling Rachel to the stand. There, a nervous Rachel -- after chastising Brady for making public what she told him "in confidence" -- struggles to speak about Bert's negative sentiments on "the church" and how those feelings originated. After the prosecution rests, Drummond attempts to call Dr. Amos D. Keller, a zoology professor, to the stand. However, the witness is ruled irrelevant. Drummond's further witnesses, all noted scientists and thinkers, are denied by both Brady and Judge Coffey. Soon, the judge tells Drummond that he must present a case for why he shouldn't be held in contempt of court. Drummond is then forced to post a $4,000 bail, which, with a little help, he does. That night, as the townspeople march outside and burn Bert in effigy, Hornbeck visits with Drummond, where he explains his thoughts on the ignoble human race. The next day in court, Drummond tries to advance his case via an "expert" on the Holy Bible. He takes the unusual tact of calling Brady to the stand as that expert witness. There, Drummond finds via questioning that Brady has never read "On the Origin of Species." He further questions Brady on whether he believes -- literally -- in everything stated in the Bible, such as whether sex is truly "original sin." With Drummond on the verge of embarrassing Brady, Brady is forced to take a stand for his religious beliefs. From there, Drummond displays a rock that he believes to be ten million years old, holding a fossil's remains; Brady believes it can be no older than 6,000 years old due to a Bible scholar's teachings on the exact time the world began. Soon, Drummond has Brady on the ropes with his questioning about the length of the first day of creation, causing Brady to contradict himself. Calling Brady "the prophet from Nebraska," Drummond further asks why Brady thinks he is the "almighty" word on what is to be taught in schools. After Drummond has finished, an embarrassed and impassioned Brady tries to prove that he is a true believer -- but it is too late. Afterward, Sarah ushers the crushed Brady from the courtroom, where he breaks down. The next day, with WGN radio broadcasting from the courtroom, the jury finds Bert guilty, though a humbled Judge Coffey gives a lenient sentence. Brady is outraged by the sentence, thinking a greater punishment should be meted out. However, Drummond plans on appealing to the state Supreme Court. Nevertheless, Brady isn't finished with his grandstanding, though it brings on a fatal heart attack. Drummond then details to Bert how they actually "won" the case. Finally, Drummond lashes out at Hornbeck after the reporter laughs about Brady's demise. Drummond tells him of Brady's many assets, leading to a moment -- alone in the courtroom -- when Drummond silently reflects over the creation vs. evolution argument.
Details
- NETWORK: Showtime
- DATE: May 29, 1999 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:53:29
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:58777
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama
- SERIES RUN: Showtime - TV, 1999
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Keith Addis … Executive Producer
- David Lane Seltzer … Executive Producer
- Dennis Bishop … Producer
- Martha Elcan … Associate Producer
- Steven Brown … Associate Producer
- Daniel Petrie … Director
- Nedrick Young … Writer
- Harold Jacob Smith … Writer
- Jerome Lawrence … Based on the play by
- Robert E. Lee … Based on the play by
- Laurence Rosenthal … Music by
- Jack Lemmon … Cast, Henry Drummond
- George C. Scott … Cast, Matthew Harrison Brady
- Lane Smith … Cast, Reverend Jeremiah Brown
- Tom Everett Scott … Cast, Bertram Cates
- Kathryn Morris … Cast, Rachel Brown
- John Cullum … Cast, Judge Merle Coffey
- Brad Greenquist … Cast, Tom Davenport
- David Wells … Cast, Mayor Carter
- Peter Mackenzie … Cast, Jesse Dunlap
- Dennis Cockrum … Cast, Meeker
- Steve Monroe … Cast, Howard
- Jim Meskimen … Cast, Sauber
- Royce D. Applegate … Cast, George Sillers
- Amzie Strickland … Cast, Mrs. Krebs
- Ronnie Claire Edwards … Cast, Mrs. Haley
- Piper Laurie … Cast, Sarah Brady
- Beau Bridges … Cast, E.K. Hornbeck
- Dirk Blocker … Cast, Sheriff Sam Gibson
- Critt Davis … Cast, Reporter A
- John Demita … Cast, Harry Y. Esterbrook
- Mark Helm … Cast, Reporter B
- Steve Hofvendahl … Cast, Another Reporter
- Matthew Kimbrough … Cast, Reporter #2
- Hap Lawrence … Cast, Lemonade Hawker
- Derek McGrath … Cast, Radio Technician
- Doug McGrath … Cast, Joe Turner
- Paul Vincent O'Conner … Cast, Stebbins
- Jerry Potter … Cast, Rogers
- Russ Tamblyn … Cast, Ed Morse
- Charles Darwin