Apr 11, 2016
The search for the funniest president continues! FDR rewrote the rule book for presidential behavior ... including the use of humor. His deeply personal connections with voters, reporters and fellow world leaders produced a lot of laughs (and also a bunch of government programs, but who's counting?).
Bill Harris of the FDR Presidential Library and Museum helps us get inside Roosevelt's head. We talk about the origins of Roosevelt's sometimes corny humor, his willingness to be silly in serious settings, and his calculated use of laughter to control certain situations. Plus we break down two bits of comedy associated with FDR: the famous "Fala speech," and the Broadway musical "I'd Rather Be Right."
- FDR's press conferences (search for "laughter")
- The "Fala speech"
- Passing notes to Morgenthau
- William Harris on "I'd Rather Be Right"
MUSIC: Hail Columbia, "Happy Days Are Here Again" by the Casa Loma Orchestra, "Hyde Park" by Duke Ellington and his Orchestra.