Hey folks, Harry here... I say that "Sure feels like Spielberg is courting Austin, Tx" because.. Well, obviously he's making Austin resident, Ernest Cline's READY PLAYER ONE... and even cast Austin's own Tye Sheridan in the Lead! But now it gets announced that somewhere in the Spielberg slate of future hopeful movies is a film based on a pitch from BRIDGE OF SPIES screenwriter, Matt Charman, that concerns Walter Cronkite's influence upon the Vietnam War. Why does that concern Austin? I like to think that the whole populace knows Walter Cronkite... I really hope everyone does. He's one of the greatest Newsmen in the history of the profession. His joy at the reporting of Neil Armstrong's walk on the moon is one of the greatest reflections of awe & joy at the majesty of human accomplishments... His sorrow when reporting the news of JFK's passing... But for many, he represents the best of what the profession of being a newsperson could be.
Cronkite graduated from the University of Texas here in Austin. If you watch College Sports, if you've ever seen the recruitment ad that usually plays for the LONGHORNS' Alma Mater, that's his voice telling you that "What starts here, changes the world!" Yeah, as an Austinite, I have to say I'm really quite happy about Spielberg's attention to our local celebrities! I also hope his film can remind folks about the power that journalists have with the facts and a conscience. To me, that epitimizes Walter Cronkite's Viet-Nam reporting. Can't imagine who Spielberg will get that could possibly nail that amazing voice of Cronkite's. This untitled movie could possibly be between 2-6 films away for Spielberg.
Here's Walter Cronkite's VIETNAM Reports... I hope to see his like again.
If you watch those videos - you can see the kind of film that they could attempt to capture.
That's telling em, Walter!
Keep it cool,
Harry
