The butler book by wil haygood, lee daniels official publisher. If you like lee daniels the butler you are looking for emotional, touching and thought provoking movies about with racism, civil rights, butler, white house, blacks and whites, racial slur and injustice themes of biography and drama genre shot in usa. Lee daniels the butler the new movie lee daniels the butler stars forest whitaker and oprah winfrey in a story that took five years and 37 producers to bring to the screen. The butler, by lee daniels, focuses on the gaines family and its interaction with the various presidential families that the main character served in his time as the white house butler. Lee daniels the butler by lee daniels forest whitaker.
Lee daniels the butler movie trailer and videos tv guide. Lee daniels the butler looks at the life of a white house butler who served eight presidents from 1952 to 1986 and had a unique frontrow seat during a tumultu. Based on the incredible life of white house butler eugene allen, lee daniels the butler offers a portrait of an extraordinary man who served eight presidents. Watch lee daniels the butler starring forest whitaker in this drama on directv. A witness to history atlantic county library system. Lee daniels the butler is definitely one of the best screen motion picture i have seen. With forest whitaker, oprah winfrey, john cusack, jane fonda. Paul kengor, author of two books about the 40th president, says some scenes. Lee daniels the butler is the kind of oldfashioned oscar bait that academy members are drawn to.
Gaines has been taught that, as a butler, his job is to remain unnoticed and that when he. Theres a powerful and telling quote in this film about how the black help, historically, may seem subservient but are actually subversive, and i couldnt help but relate the point to how this movie may be perceived versus what it truly is. Lee daniels the butler film by daniels 20 britannica. The butler by danny strong final draft the weinstein company butler films, llc. However, it also chronicled the burgeoning movements of the civil rights era that were taken across the united states. The weinstein company had to alter the title from the more concise name, the butler, after warner bros. Director lee daniels precious teams up with emmy awardwinning screenwriter danny strong to tell the remarkable story of white house butler eugene allen played by oscarwinner forest whitaker. Forest whitaker, oprah winfrey, john cusack, jane fonda, as cecil gaines serves eight presidents during his tenure as a butler at the white house, the civil rights movement, vietnam, and other major events affect this mans life, family, and american society. What some might interpret as an ego boost for director lee daniels isnt really that. The tv series the crazy ones, in which he played the head of an ad agency, premiered later that year. Buy or rent lee daniels the butler movie now family video.
The film traces the dramatic changes that swept american society during this time, fro. The film focuses on african american historical events, with special concentration on the civil rights era. And finally, the fourth book could b about the making of the butler and all the. Wil haygood adds eugene allens chronicle to his impressive list of essential works on great figures in black and american history. Lee daniels the butler 20 trailers and clips moviefone. The original title of the film was just the butler until warner brothers claimed they owned the rights to. Haygood is an associate producer of lee daniels the butler. This mesmerizing companion book to the awardwinning film the butler traces the. It is inspired by wil haygoods washington post article a butler well served by this election. Williams then portrayed a man who attempts to reconcile with friends and family following a terminal. Lee daniels is writing a musical about lee daniels get excited for lee danielss lee daniels musical.
Cecil gaines worked for everything he has in his life, including his job as a butler serving the presidents at the white house. The life of a white house butler who served under eight presidents unfolds against a backdrop of unparalleled change in american history. The butler book by wil haygood, lee daniels official. Lee daniels the butler is one of the last films produced by the late laura ziskin, who passed away in 2011 after optioning the washington post article on which the film is based. During the presidencies of harry truman to ronald reagan, eugene allen was a butler in the most famous of. This mesmerizing companion book to the awardwinning film the butler traces the civil. Then you can start reading kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer no kindle device. A witness to history wil haygood, lee daniels isbn. Lee daniels the butler has been in theaters for several weeks now, but it continues to spark debate about its perspective on a seismic period in african american history. In the woodsman, kevin bacon plays a child molester freshlyreleased from prison. To help the set designers recreate the white house across multiple presidencies, the white house historical association provided images for set decoration and assisted with research inquiries.
He struck gold when he tracked down eugene allen, a butler who had served no fewer. Watch lee daniels the butler online stream full movie. How lee daniels made the butler his own filmmaker magazine. Lee daniels the butler, the highly anticipated film that stars six oscar. It was then that the author decided to see whether he could locate a black. While the movie the butler is set against historical events, the title. Lee daniels hit movie is an oscar hopeful like no other. Its available to watch on tv, online, tablets, phone. Back to gallery a few days after barack obama was elected president in 2008, the washington. It is also one of the best black motion i have seen.
Lee daniels the butler juxtapositionof a father and son, and of a countrycaptures some of the complex truth of racism and the civil rights movement. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Best movies like lee daniels the butler bestsimilar. A witness to history kindle edition by haygood, wil, daniels, lee. In the months after the publication of the original washington post article, allen received book offers and speaking requests, all of which he. Forest whitaker in lee daniels the butler the weinstein company lee daniels the butler. Following the story of cecil gaines, a black man who went from a slave to a butler in the white house, lee daniels the butler was a very exceptional film that depicted the hard truth of racism from the mid 1900s to the early 2000s. As cecil gaines serves eight presidents during his tenure as a butler at the white house, the civil rights movement, vietnam, and other major events affect this mans life, family, and american society. Unlike this weeks the bag man and recent, ridiculous parts like richard nixon in lee daniels the butler, john cusack finally takes a role that suits him with adult world. Lee louis daniels born december 24, 1959 is an american film and television writer, director, and producer. Weinstein appealed the decision and tried to get warner bros.
From the moment i read wil haygoods article about him in the washington post, i was very. The story is told in a chronological order, so that the viewer gets to see the world changing, particularly for african americans through the eyes of this butler. Join facebook to connect with daniel lee butler and others you may know. Buy or rent lee daniels the butler movie now family video javascript seems to be disabled in your browser. Best writing original screenplay danny strong for your consideration 20. Lee daniels the butler lee daniels 9292016 some lee daniels news. However, unlike some cynical attempts to court favor with the hollywood elite, its solidly crafted, strongly acted, and most excitingly it shows that daniels has evolved as. During the presidencies of harry truman to ronald reagan, eugene allen was a butler in the most famous of residences. Because the man worked so long in the white house, i expected far more information about his.
Lee daniels the butler is a biographical drama depicting the story of cecil gaines, a man who escaped a life of slavery and oppression to serve for eight presidents as a butler in the white house. After leaving the south as a young man and finding employment at an elite hotel in washington, d. An oscarworthy historical fable forest whitaker and oprah. View the profiles of people named daniel lee butler. In lee daniels the butler, cecil gaines gets his dream job, working at the white house, and the very first time he walks into the oval office, he finds president dwight eisenhower in a deep. Lee daniels has 14 books on goodreads with 243 ratings. New york pugilist known as much for his prowess in the ring as his elegant style outside of it. Watch lee daniels the butler trailers and video, including teasers, extended looks, exclusive clips, footage, sneak peeks, interviews, and more on moviefone. Lee daniels the butler 20 lee daniels the butler 20 biography drama. In lee daniels the butler, forest whitaker not pictured plays cecil gaines, a character inspired by reallife white house butler eugene allen.
Even when asked, not all actors and directors at the toronto international film festival tiff are engaging with reporters on questions about red carpet designer wear or what their shots are at getting an oscar nod. The butler is a 20 american historical drama film directed and coproduced by lee daniels and with a screenplay by danny strong. A witness to history, oscarnominated director lee daniels discusses the reallife story that made him want to direct the film adaptation. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the butler. Such films explore the sorrows of being a negro in america with a cornball earnestness that could make you snicker at a lynching or at the.
Lee daniels the butler when steve martin uttered i was born a poor black child in the movie the jerk, he was sending up a subgenre of american film a friend of mine dubbed the why we be black movie. Loosely based on the real life of eugene allen, who worked in the white. This mesmerizing companion book to the awardwinning film the butler traces the civil rights movement and explores crucial moments of twentieth century american history through the eyes of eugene allena white house butler who served eight presidents over the course of thirtyfour years. However, at the height of the civil rights movement, cecils son, louis, moves to the south to join other activists including martin luther king jr.