User Reviews

There were some excellent little touches to this film: Robert Penn Warren's interview, great video of Huey speaking, interviews with rural Louisiana folks who still love Huey, and even a great Randy Newman song during the title credits. That being said, the documentary was missing a few things that have already been mentioned. I think the main problem is that Huey's life was so incredible and packed with material, that it was hard to whittle it down to 90 minutes. Burns is usually known for these epic, multi-part documentaries (which I usually think are a bit too much), but in this case, Huey's life deserved such treatment! This could have easily been a four-part, eight-hour documentary.

I also think the documentary would have been stronger had it been made ten years later, after new details emerged about Huey's assassination. True, Burns wouldn't have gotten to interview Robert Penn Warren and some of the other people now in the film, but I think more material would have been available for Burns, and he might have considered making the film longer.

As far as the content, it was amazing to see the different views on Long: the old-timers living in the rural parts of the state still loved Huey, as opposed to the old anti-Longs who said they were happy at his assassination! I think these interviews, while not directly having to do with the facts surrounding Long's life, were a great indication of the powerful spell Huey cast on people, whether they loved him or hated him. The legend lives on.

All in all, a strong documentary, but leaves the audience wanting more.

This film charts the life of one of America's most colourful politicians in an unbiased and very entertaining manner. Long's speeches were awesome. Absolutely tailor made for the audience before him, and guaranteed to win them over. It wasn't just his Louisiana electorate he won over though. At the time of his assassination in 1935 he controlled the board of education, the state militia several local police forces, as well as most of the state legislature, and most importantly, as senator, he also controlled state governor, O.K. Allen. Huey's brother Earl once said of O.K.: "A leaf once blew in the window of OK's office and landed on his desk and he signed it."

Ken Burn's is even handed in his criticism of Long, and justly so. Long did take Louisiana out of the mud by building over 2000 miles of road and several bridges over the Mississippi. Burn's manages to commit to posterity what would otherwise have been written off as a dark period in US political history. Again, I'm all in favour of stories that should be told.

Huey Pierce Long never became President of the United States. He hoped to, and (probably for the best) a gunshot stopped him. I say probably because there is considerable debate over him to this day.

If you love democracy, with a balance of power approach as in the Federal Constitution (or the states for that matter) Long is an evil aberration. He used the normal methods of rising up the political ladder as a state railway commissioner, a state senator, Governor, and U.S. Senator. On his way up he found ways of reducing the opposition to a set of shrill, impotent voices, and of manipulating the state legislature, the judiciary, and the local governments to do what he wanted. For all intents and purposes Louisiana was a dictatorship under Huey. And once he got into the U.S. Senate, he planned to spread his influence until he was in the White House, and could do the same thing there.

Therefore, his death by gunshot in the state capital building at Baton Rouge, La. on September 18, 1935, was a lucky break. Whether he was shot by Dr. Carl Austin Weiss (the son-in-law of an opponent who'd been racially smeared by Long) or by a trigger happy guard who was joining in the shooting of Weiss does not matter - he would have been bad news for American Democracy.

But here's the problem. Huey did not come from a state that had a history of two party democracy. Most of the states in the south were dominated for decades by the Democratic Party (which was opposed to big business in theory, but also highly racist towards African-Americans and minorities). So when he studied how to get higher in office, he learned how his predecessors did it. He also noted the success of others in other states at turning them into fiefdoms - like Senator Hiram Johnson of California.

Secondly, although his methods were crude and resembled fascist or communist models, Huey actually did do a lot of good for his state. One has to study the man's career in light of previous Democrats who were elected to public office. Huey came from the parishes - the back country, and knew the needs of the farmers (both white, Cajun, and black), and how they were neglected in favor of the large cities, particularly New Orleans and Baton Rouge. He was smart, and managed to get a college education, and eventually became a lawyer (a very good one - he actually argued before the U.S. Supreme Court). The Governors and the legislators and the judiciary were extremely conservative (the popular term in use was "Bourbons"). Huey, as he built up his machine, delivered services, such as roads and highways and power, to the countryside. He also improved school conditions for the countryside.

While still willing to use racial slurs (as with Dr. Weiss's father-in-law) Huey actually got more jobs going for the African-American community. He could also display anti-Semitism when he wished, but when someone pointed out that when he did that he resembled Hitler, Huey became furious: "Don't ever compare me to that son-of-a-bitch!", he yelled, "Every fool whose ever gone against those people has wrecked his state's economy!!" Not a comment of love, but obviously of sense.

Huey was an opportunist. To raise revenues in Louisiana he invited Lucky Luciano to install one armed bandits throughout the state. But he also could sacrifice for reasonable grounds. He signed a law reducing the cotton production from Louisiana to build up prices for the cotton outside the state.

So he is not an easy figure to totally condemn or admire. Ken Burns documentary on "the Kingfish" (Huey used that name, based on a character on the radio show AMOS AND ANDY, for himself) gives a fairly good balanced view. Burns shows what was frighteningly close to happening, but he does show that Huey was more than a power seeker or a buffoon (as some enemies suggested). While not as detailed as the Burns documentaries on THE CIVIL WAR, JAZZ, or BASEBALL, it is a good place to start studying this remarkable political career.

Ken Burns is properly regarded for the outstanding quality of his documentaries. This early work shows the exceptional qualities that would lead to better-known later works like "The Civil War", "Baseball" and "Jazz".

Burns examines Huey Long, Louisiana's Kingfish. Long rose from poverty and became one of the most powerful leaders in the nation's history. Long was an outstanding orator, hero of the common people, advocate of big government, revolutionary political strategist, and totalitarian. Utilizing corrupt practices that had been common in Louisiana since the end of Reconstruction, Long built a political machine that constructed thousands of miles of roads, hundreds of bridges, and millions of school books (every child, black or white, received free textbooks). Long's tenure provided much delayed lasting benefits for regular people in the midsts of the depression.

Secret police were used at first to thwart the illegal efforts of major business efforts opposed to his tax-and-spend programs, and later the political vendetta of his national political opponents, including fellow-Democrat FDR, who dubbed him the "the most dangerous man in America". And yes, his secret police did what secret police do.

Among Long's national causes was the development of Social Security. Long's "Share-Our-Wealth" clubs had millions of members, distributed weekly papers, had weekly radio addresses, and elected many political candidates (including the first woman Senator elected to a full term in her own right, Arkansas' Hattie Caraway in 1932). Huey reputedly planned to run against Roosevelt in 1936 as a leftist third-party candidate, and expected to throw the election to the Republicans, clearing the way for his own 1940 election. Instead, Huey was assassinated in 1935, and largely forgotten outside of his home state.

Long is a truly significant national figure from a pivotal time. He cannot be understood without considering his accomplishments, the force of his enemies and the conditions of 1920's and 1930's Louisiana in addition to Huey's terrible flaws and dangerous corruption. Films don't have much time, but Ken Burns manages to balance all of these issues, presenting a lyric, intimate tale.

You doubt me? You haven't even heard about the "deduct box". Check it out.

Ken Burns makes some wonderful documentaries, and this two hour special on one of America's most colourful politicians is first rate.

Huey Long was Governor and then a Senator of Louisiana in the 1920s and 30s. When he was assassinated in 1934 he had a complete stranglehold on the state legislature, controlling the state militia and several local police forces, as well as the board of education. He was also making plans to run in the next presidential elections against Franklin Roosevelt.

Burns not only documents these facts - he is a shrewd journalist and appreciates the need for balance. He interviews many people, many of whom believed Huey Long to be a good politician. He did take Louisianans out of the mud by building miles of roads and bridges over the Mississippi - all at public expense. He was the Keynesian economist's dream without knowing it, but would have hated being described as a Liberal.

But watch the film. It is a marvellous insight into the American political process, and shows how one man can exploit the system even though there are supposed to be measures in place to avoid this.

Ken Burns gives us as detailed a picture of "Huey Long" as he could in the time permitted, but I'm sure there was much more fascinating material that he had to leave out.

Long was one of the most complex, loved, and hated politicians of his day - sometimes all at once. A sturdy-looking man who became governor of Louisiana and later Senator, Long was a gifted speaker and thinker who could certainly cast a spell on people. And the people who loved him were the poor. Long did a great deal for the unemployed, undereducated, and underfed of that state. He was a populist with tinges of socialism that had tinges of communism. He was a great proponent of a "Share the Wealth" program in which money earned over a certain amount had to be paid to the people. It's a twist on Warren Buffett's Giving Pledge, in which billionaires pledge at least 50% of their wealth to philanthropy when they die.

The problem with Long, according to this documentary, is that he became greedy for more and more power and then misused his power. For instance, while he was in the Senate, he was still running the state with a puppet governor. His final goal was the White House, but somebody finally bumped him off in 1935. Many of FDR's New Deal plans, however, are often attributed to his attempts to "steal Long's thunder." Long was against big oil and their profits, and opposed the National Recovery Act as a sellout to big business.

This documentary, which has footage of Long speaking, interviews with citizens of Louisiana, political scholars, etc., shows that Long had some excellent ideas and in a way was ahead of his time - but he believed the end justified the means and went about getting what he wanted at any cost. Still, some of his ideas have merit and seem pretty timely to me.

A really fascinating documentary.

Oct. 2012

"Huey Long" (1985) by Ken Burns tried to defame and demonize Huey Long, but failed...Long was a "good guy," and this doc shows that.

U.S. Senator (and former Lousinana governor) Huey P. Long was an opponent of Franklin Roosevelt, and might have won the 1936 USA Presidentail election, but he was murdered in cold blood in front of dozens of people in September of 1935, the year before the 1936 election.

Revisionist history instructs us all (especially if we attended government schools, which always provide doctrinaire political viewpoints when USA history is taught) to revere President Franklin Roosevelt and all he did (nobody much now questions the USA entering World War II which killed half a million USA citizens in less than 4 years, even though most of pre-WWII America opposed entering the war, and many historians opine that Roosevelt engineered and manipulated USA entrance into that war...many state that entrance into WWII was neither desirable nor justified).

That same revisionist history demonized Sen. Huey P. Long, and anti-Long slogans from his opponents have made their way into post WWII history books and movies and become "respected facts." The Ken Burns "Huey Long" (1985) tries to be anti-Long, but fails.

Many anti-Long partisans, some very famous and influential, state the anti-Long case, but somehow, they are not believable.

What comes through in this documentary, in spite of the obvious bias of the filmmakers who present it, is that Sen. Huey P. Long was a man of astonishing ability and accomplishment who had goals many politicians of the 1930's and later stated they shared, but came much closer to delivering on his public promises than most others stating they shared his same "redistribute the wealth" agenda ever did.

Huey Long delivered.

That is the unmistakable message of this documentary.

The anti-Long sentiment and invective melts away in the face of that message, and the considerable evidence which supports it.

He was a good man who died young, and people hoping for good people part of politics in the USA's future can and should remember who he was, and how close he came to getting national leadership power, and using it well.

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Written by SAG Actor Tex (David) Allen.

Email to TexAllenRocketmail.Com

Visit WWW.IMDb.Me/TexAllen for movie actor credits and biography information.

This film, while very good, could have been so much better. Many issues in Huey's personal and political life were briefly covered (e.g. his 1932 campaign tour on behalf of Hattie Caraway for U.S. Senator from Arkansas), other issues were skimmed over (Huey's exercise of influence over the running of Louisiana State University) and still other issues not mentioned at all (the incident in the men's room at the Sands Point [N.Y.] Bath & Country Club; how'd Huey REALLY get that black eye?). Interviews with people who were there with Huey added much perspective.

Having grown in Baton Rouge, La. most of my life and visited the State Capitol, as a kid on a school field trip, where Huey Long was shot, I was very interested in seeing Ken Burns' documentary Huey Long despite airing on WLPB (our local PBS affiliate) opposite CBS' Two and a Half Men and The New Adventures of Old Christine as well as NBC's Heroes (shows I usually watch or tape around this time). As with many of Burns' subsequent films, Huey Long explores the state governor and senator's life through many still photos of his and Louisiana's history in the early 20th century. There's also many talking heads of various citizens of Louisiana, rich and poor, pro- and anti-Long, including Long's son Senator Russell Long, and Robert Penn Warren, whose book "All the King's Men" was a thinly veiled bio of Governor Long. Many of Long's exciting speeches have also been preserved here. Balance is provided of Long's good and bad points. But without him, Louisiana might have been worse off without the new school textbooks for all the undereducated kids he helped provide or the paved roads and bridges he helped build. So for anyone interested in the life and career of one of the most colorful figures in both Louisiana and American politics, I highly recommend Ken Burns' Huey Long.

Back in 1977, I watched a made for TV movie called "The Life and Assassination of the Kingfish". It starred Ed Asner and was a fascinating story of the life and death of Huey Long. I was 13 and had never heard of Long and was fascinated by the amazing power the man wielded--and how he could have very possibly been elected president if he hadn't been killed. Fascinating indeed. So, when I saw that Ken Burns did a biography of Long, I was excited to see it--an expert documentarian and a really interesting subject. It also helps that I've seen "All The King's Men" and "A Lion In The Streets"--two very fictionalized stories about a character who was obviously based on Long.

Huey Long was a socialist, though the term progressive is most often associated with him. His political philosophy was that the government should take care of the poor and that wealth should be limited to $10,000,000--anything more is wrong and would redistributed to the people. Pretty radical stuff back in the 1930s, but ideas that strongly resonated in Louisiana and the rest of the country due to the poverty of the Depression. He was powerful and also quite ruthless in exercising power. So, oddly, he was a great force for both good and evil--a very complex man. And, like the characters from "All The King's Men" and "A Lion In The Streets", he appeared to feel that the end surely justified the means. I loved how the film emphasized BOTH. Many in the film loved the man, some hated him and some had mixed feelings--and all that is very understandable.

The story is told using films footage of Long, photographs, interviews and some location shots. It's narrated by David McCullough--who had a wonderful voice and is a great historian. Now I rarely say this, but there is nothing I didn't like or admire about the film. It was expertly made, compelling and great viewing. I just wish all documentaries were this good!

This is really one very fine documentary. It presents lots of Louisianans who lived through his period of power and who give a wide range of views of him, from those who thought he was God's gift to the people to those who prayed for his early demise.

In the process it gives a great summary of how a modern dictator can engineer his rise to power. The film puts him in the context of Hitler and especially Mussolini. I wish it could have shown how Lindbergh would try something similar just a few years later.

Great use is made of contemporary newsreels and photos. Sometimes, when he is on a podium, Long looked like a caricature of himself. But evidently this did not bother his loyal followers, of whom there were many.

My only small objection: there are too many interviewees for at least me to keep track of, yet most were not identified again after their first appearance. I wish their name had been used every time they reappeared.

But that's a slight point. This is very well done, and I strongly recommend it for anyone interested in American history in the 1920s and 30s.