Larry Schweikart's Blog, page 2

I finally got a chance to see Spielberg’s “Lincoln,” and it is excellent. This surprised me because going in I thought the time period that Spielberg chose was wrong—I thought he should have done 1863 for obvious reasons. But the masterful screenplay by Tony Kushner addressed that by, in the opening scene, having several soldiers quote back to Lincoln the Gettysburg Address, then ending the movie with a fade-back to Lincoln’s second inaugural speech.

In between, you get to see how politics really worked in the 1800s (and to some extent still works today). Called “the purest man who ever walked the earth” by Congressman Thaddeus Stevens, Lincoln bribed, cajoled, and strong-armed congressmen to provide the votes for the 13th Amendment. One of the key moments occurs when Tommie Lee Jones, as Stevens, has to lie about his true beliefs. He must say publicly that he ONLY supports equality “before the law,” when in fact he supports total equality. But this statement was necessary to swing a few Democrat fence sitters who finally made up the margin of victory.

Daniel Day-Lewis is absolutely brilliant as Lincoln. You find yourself laughing at his stories, now 150 years old. But he also captures Lincoln’s anger, not only with the Radical Republicans, but also with his wife and son—Mary, who is looking for an excuse to go into one of her depressive fits, and Robert, who defies his father by joining the Army of the Potomac. You see a human Lincoln, but a still heroic Lincoln.

If there was one weakness, surprisingly it was in the score by John Williams. This was uninspiring and in scenes where Spieldberg should have you bawling like a baby, the music lets the film down.

No film has ever dealt with the dry topic of legislation such as “Lincoln,” and it’s doubtful any actor will again capture Honest Abe as did this Englishman. Highly recommended.

All,

Just a quick update that “Rockin’ the Wall” is now available for viewing on PBS (www.rockinthewall.com). Check showtimes and listings at the website, and, if you like it, please get a copy—we’ll send you the “Director’s Cut” (the 83 minute version, which is even better than the PBS version).

Also, Patriot’s History of the Modern World, volume 1, is now out. I did a BOOK TV/C-SPAN event from the Heritage foundation that aired over the weekend. If you didn’t catch it, check listings for a re-broadcast.

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Hello all! It's been a while, as I've been completely immersed in the film company and in getting Patriot's History of the United States turned into a television series. That is moving along well. I may have some news within the month. In the meantime, we are steadily working toward completing an awesome trailer that I can't wait to post.

As you can see by the banner up top, the new book with David Dougherty, A Patriot's History of the Modern World, vol. 1, From America's Ascent to the Atomic Bombs will be available in November. We all wanted to wait until the election cleared so people can focus again on history! Volume 2 will be out approximately one year later, covering from 1945 to 2012 and, we hope, Obama's defeat (and I would add, landslide defeat) at the polls.

A Patriot's History Reader is slowly building steam as people realize what a great resource it is. Any of you homeschoolers should definitely look at this source.

"Rockin' the Wall" will have a NATIONAL PBS BROADCAST this October. Currently we are negotiating with some very big sponsors. Our sequel, "Other Walls 2 Fall," is still in production and we hope to have it wrapped by the release of "Rockin' the Wall." There are a number of other movie projects you can see at http://www.rockinthewallstudios.com.

Larry Schweikart will be speaking at the Cincinnati/Midwest Homeschool Convention in April, as always. Stay tuned.

We have published a great companion volume to A Patriot's History of the United States called A Patriot's History Reader, co-authored with Dave Dougherty, a superb researcher. This book contains over 60 of the top documents in American history and is the perfect supplement to those teaching from PHUSA.The Reader is available in audiobook, too.

We also continue work on a "junior" edition. We have finally found the writer we want, and will begin shopping this to publishers soon. And, we are looking into a Patriot's History of the United States calendar, which will be cool!!

Meanwhile, on the film side, "Other Walls 2 Fall" is about 3/4 complete. Most of our principal photography is done, and we have interviews with Clint Black, Yanni, Busta Rhymes, as well as Iranian heavy metal rockers "Sacrificed Squad" and the "Bob Dylan of Islam," Salman Ahmad. It will be quite a film.

If you haven't seen "Rockin' the Wall" yet, you need to see this movie—how rock and roll helped bring down the Iron Curtain! (www.rockinthewall.com). If you are a teacher in a public school, please order this from The Video Project (www.thevideoproject.com) as it's a wonderful teaching tool for music classes, history classes, and even political science studies.

Finally, Dave Dougherty and I have finished the first draft of the next blockbuster, A Patriot's History of the Modern World. It's possible this will be released in two parts, it's so big and comprehensive.

We have published a great companion volume to A Patriot’s History of the United States called A Patriot’s History Reader, co-authored with Dave Dougherty, a superb researcher. This book contains over 60 of the top documents in American history and is the perfect supplement to those teaching from PHUSA.The Reader is available in audiobook, too.

We also continue work on a “junior” edition. We have finally found the writer we want, and will begin shopping this to publishers soon. And, we are looking into a Patriot’s History of the United States calendar, which will be cool!!

Meanwhile, on the film side, “Other Walls 2 Fall” is about 3/4 complete. Most of our principal photography is done, and we have interviews with Clint Black, Yanni, Busta Rhymes, as well as Iranian heavy metal rockers “Sacrificed Squad” and the “Bob Dylan of Islam,” Salman Ahmad. It will be quite a film.

If you haven’t seen “Rockin’ the Wall” yet, you need to see this movie—how rock and roll helped bring down the Iron Curtain! (www.rockinthewall.com). If you are a teacher in a public school, please order this from The Video Project (www.thevideoproject.com) as it’s a wonderful teaching tool for music classes, history classes, and even political science studies.

Finally, Dave Dougherty and I have finished the first draft of the next blockbuster, A Patriot’s History of the Modern World. It’s possible this will be released in two parts, it’s so big and comprehensive.

Since 2005, A Patriot's History of the United States has become a modern classic for its defense of America as a unique country founded on principles of justice, equality, and freedom for all.

The Patriot's History Reader continues this tradition by going back to the original sources-the documents, speeches, and legal decisions that shaped our country into what it is today.

The authors explore both oft-cited documents-the Declaration of Independence, Emancipation Proclamation, and Roe v. Wade–as well as those that are less famous. Among these are George Washington's letter to Alexander Hamilton, which essentially outline America's military strategy for the next 150 years, and Herbert Hoover's speech on business ethics, which examines the government's role in regulating private enterprise.

By helping readers explore history at its source, this book sheds new light on the principles and personalities that have made America great.

Buy at Amazon! Buy from Borders Buy from Barnes & Noble Buy from Books-A-Million

Since 2005, A Patriot’s History of the United States has become a modern classic for its defense of America as a unique country founded on principles of justice, equality, and freedom for all.

The Patriot’s History Reader continues this tradition by going back to the original sources-the documents, speeches, and legal decisions that shaped our country into what it is today.

The authors explore both oft-cited documents-the Declaration of Independence, Emancipation Proclamation, and Roe v. Wade–as well as those that are less famous. Among these are George Washington’s letter to Alexander Hamilton, which essentially outline America’s military strategy for the next 150 years, and Herbert Hoover’s speech on business ethics, which examines the government’s role in regulating private enterprise.

By helping readers explore history at its source, this book sheds new light on the principles and personalities that have made America great.

Buy at Amazon! Buy from Borders Buy from Barnes & Noble Buy from Books-A-Million

Updates/appearances for Larry Schweikart:

*The Reagan Ranch, June 23-24, for addresses to Young America's Foundation

*July 2, booksigning event at Dayton International Airport

*July 8, Young America's Foundation, Chevy Chase, MD. Contact www.yaf.org

*July 25, Dayton Tea Party Forum, location TBA

*July 29-30, Atlanta homeschool expo/SE Homeschool, Cobb Galleria Center, Marietta/Atlanta, talk times TBA

*Aug. 5-6, Chicago Homeschool Expo, August 5-6, 2011, details TBA

*September 15, Constitution Day, Upper Arlington/Columbus Ohio

*September 17-18, National Heritage Center for Constitutional Studies, Portsmouth, NH, Sheraton Conference Center. Contact NHCCS (683) 679-2444 or www.nhccs.com

*October 15, Tennessee Eagle Forum, "On Eagles Wings," conference, Embassy Suites Airport, 10 Century Blvd, Nashville, TN. Times TBA.

*October 19, Miami Valley Venture Association (Dayton, OH)

*November 5, Wooster, OH, Buckeye Book Fair

"Dear Dr. Schweikart,

I teach Citizenship classes to Turkish and Middle Eastern immigrants. I noticed my class had a citizenship exam passing rate of less than 70% using State and Federal curriculum.

Back in October I started using A Patriot's History of the United States as our core resource. Since then, our passing rate and average score has surpassed 95%. What I have also noticed is the attitude shift the class participants have toward the United States. As of late they enter the class with an anti-American perception, only graduating with a sense of pride and humility that a nation as great as ours would welcome them.

Your book needs to be the foundation of every American history academic institution. What my students have taken away is a deep felt appreciation for the toil and sacrifice of those who made America.

Thank you again for your work,

Sincerely,

Bob"