$12 General Admission, $9 Member
Doors Open for admissions 30 min. prior to screening Buy tickets at the Film Center or online now
In the summer of 1968, television news changed forever. Dead last in the ratings, ABC hired two towering public intellectuals to debate each other during the Democratic and Republican national conventions. William F. Buckley, Jr. was a leading light of the new conservative movement. A Democrat and cousin to Jackie Onassis, Gore Vidal was a leftist novelist and polemicist. Armed with deep-seated distrust and enmity, Vidal and Buckley believed each other’s political ideologies were dangerous for America. Like rounds in a heavyweight battle, they pummeled out policy and personal insult-cementing their opposing political positions. Their explosive exchanges devolved into vitriolic name-calling. It was unlike anything TV had ever broadcast, and all the more shocking because it was live and unscripted. Viewers were riveted. ABC News’ ratings skyrocketed. And a new era in public discourse was born – a highbrow blood sport that marked the dawn of pundit television as we know it today.
“For American viewers of an intellectual/historical persuasion, there could scarcely be any documentary more enticing, scintillating and downright fascinating than Best of Enemies.” — Tod McCarthy, Hollywood Reporter
“The on-camera clashes between William F. Buckley Jr. and Gore Vidal are vividly and entertainingly recounted in this fascinating documentary.” — Joe Leydon, Variety
