I’m not a religious person, but if I was going to worship something – you can be sure that the writing of Aaron Sorkin would be high on the list and as we get closer and closer to his new program, The Newsroom, making its international debut…the tension for a die-hard Sorkin fan is high.
Chances are you’ve already seen some Sorkin’s work. His play A Few Good Men had its film rights snapped up before the curtain even rose on the first production. The film version starred Tom Cruise, Demi Moore and Jack Nicholson – who delivered one of the most memorable lines of dialogue in recent cinema history when he shouted, ‘You Can’t handle the truth!’
Sorkin continued on to writing the romantic comedy The American President and the chilling thriller Malice. Making a switch to television Sorkin created two seasons of the little seen Sports Night, a show set inside a cable sports news program. Its cast was first rate Felicity Huffman who went on to have success in Desperate Housewives, Josh Charles – who today is a lead in The Good Wife and William H Macy, who is currently starring in the US version of Shameless. The dialogue was great, the sexual tension appropriate, the comedy measured – but strangely each episode was only 30 minutes- unusual for a drama.
Before Sports Night had wrapped, Sorkin’s next show was on screen – and it went on to enjoy a seven year run and is often hailed as one of the best written television programs ever. The West Wing is a show where even the characters that appear for the briefest of scenes seem to have whole lives behind them. Following the working lives of the staff in the White House the show was filled with left wing optimism and patriotism.
Since the end of The West Wing Sorkin fans have had another TV show, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip – set inside the world of a Saturday Night Live styled sketch comedy show, lasted just one year. We’ve also enjoyed his writing in the films Charlie Wilson War, Money Ball and The Social Network.
But now the wait is over, a new Sorkin show is set to debut, the Newsroom is set inside the world of a cable TV news network – Sorkin’s third trip into a TV setting. The cast includes Jeff Daniels, Emily Mortimer, Slumdog Millionaire’s Dev Patel, Sam Waterson and the legendary Jane Fonda. So far three trailers have been put online, wetting our appetite for new witty banter, killer one-liners, and Sorkin’s trademark ‘walking and talking’ styled action.
Want to join my cult of Sorkin love? Hurry up and catch up, having seen all 45 episodes of Sports Night, 22 episodes of Studio 60 and 156 episodes of The West Wing are essential membership requirements.
The Newsroom premieres in the USA on June 24 and will screen on Foxtel’s Showcase channel in Australia.
Graeme Watson
