# What Historical Book/Person/Topic would you like to see HBO do as a miniseries? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 16, 2008, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088 "2008-06-16T07:24:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2008, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/61 "2008-06-18T01:55:13Z")
[QUOTE=Slithy Tove] A biopic of Nikola Tesla, but not by Tim Burton, Ron Howard or Terry Gilliam. [/QUOTE] David Lynch? šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![RachelChristine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7ab992/32.png) [@RachelChristine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RachelChristine)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2008, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/62 "2008-06-18T01:55:17Z")
[QUOTE=Jess] See, right here is why this is a great message board. I have _never_, and I read my first Gwen Bristow book (_Jubilee Trail_, it was) in 1975, met another person whoā€™s read one. [/QUOTE] My mom had many of the books, so I first read them when I was like 10 or 12 (mid to late 80s). You are the second person I know of, because I met a lady on a listserv I was on once who had read _Celia Garth_, but no others. I just did a search of her and found out she wrote some mysteries too. I never knew that. Maybe I should try to find them for a decent price somewhere! ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2008, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/63 "2008-06-18T06:50:13Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] What ā€œperiod piecesā€ would you like to see them try? [/QUOTE] The Russian/Japanese naval battle at Tushima , or the Monitor versus the Virginia. Oh yeah , I almost forgot the spanish v american war Declan ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2008, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/64 "2008-06-18T10:41:12Z")
[QUOTE=Bridget Burke] Too bad the **Flashman** movie was a victim of 60ā€™s excess. A series of big budget Flashman adventures could give us real insight into several 19th century stories. And HBO could show all the racy bits! [/QUOTE] I came in here to mention Flashman. I cannot imagine any star, past or present, who fits the role of this scallywag, however. Because I am a sucker for all things Romantical, I think HBO should do a Jane Austen festival. (except they would probably Americanize it somehow and I would have to get all stabby.) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2008, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/65 "2008-06-18T11:44:18Z")
> [@](#): > > The Russian/Japanese naval battle at Tushima , or the Monitor versus the Virginia They did a melodroamatic TV-movie about the Monitor and the Virginia back in 1990 called **Ironclads** : [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102129/](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102129/) Don;'t hold your breath for a US movie on the Straits of Tsushima. But thereā€™s aa Japanese documentary on it, according to the iMDB: [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0072686/](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0072686/) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/66 "2008-06-18T20:38:35Z")
Iā€™d love to see a treatment of the Winter War [the USSRā€™s invasion of Finland, '39-'40], but I think it would be too difficult to structure it for dramatic purposes. The dominant personality involved is that of Stalin, and Iā€™d want it thoroughly grounded in Kremlin politics and strategizing ā€“ but that necessitates a Soviet P.O.V. and may inadvertently encourage some identification with Stalin. If you tell it from the Finnish P.O.V., the action more or less begins when the tanks roll in, and who do you identify with? The real heroes were the Finns as a whole (albeit with a few famous snipers, who would be the most appealing central protagonists on the Finn side). Much of the populace was beating strategic retreats, heading for the woods, taking up rifles and sniping at the Russians (and all without any meaningful international support) ā€“ the kind of stuff that is perhaps best conveyed by lengthy montage sequences in a mode of socialist realism, ironically enough. And in the end, despite exacting a 10-1 casualty ratio on the invaders, mostly through sniping and other guerrilla tactics, the sheer might of the Soviet war machine ground the Finns down to where they had to sue for peace in the spring and cede some territory. So youā€™d have a downer and inconclusive ending ā€“ considering the resumption of fighting in 1941, with the Finns enthusiastically cooperating with Nazi Germany to counter the Soviet threat. Come to think about it, we \*kind of \* have this movie alreadyā€¦ the ā€œIce Battle on the Planet Hothā€ sequence from **The Empire Strikes Back** , although the Soviets didnā€™t have Imperial Walkers (nor the Finns an air force). šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2008, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/67 "2008-06-19T00:29:25Z")
For those of you who love Roman Times, and who doesnā€™t? I would love to see the book series by [Lindsey Davis](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindsey_Davis) , I can easily picture HBO doing a bang up job on it with help from the BBC. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2008, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/68 "2008-06-19T00:43:36Z")
[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas] Stephen Kingā€™s story ā€œDolanā€™s Cadillacā€ is just begging to be a mini-series. [/QUOTE] [How about a movie?](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0963965/) I agree with Sampiroā€¦_Gone With the Wind_, with all three kids and Suellenā€™s husband and all the plantation neighbors and Archie. I wouldnā€™t mind a '30s-era Chicago gangster mini-series either, maybe with some spillover to Las Vegas. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2008, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/69 "2008-06-19T01:43:47Z")
[QUOTE=The Scrivener] Iā€™d love to see a treatment of the Winter War [the USSRā€™s invasion of Finland, '39-'40] [ā€¦] Come to think about it, we \*kind of \* have this movie alreadyā€¦ the ā€œIce Battle on the Planet Hothā€ sequence from **The Empire Strikes Back** , although the Soviets didnā€™t have Imperial Walkers (nor the Finns an air force). šŸ˜ƒ [/QUOTE] They didnā€™t need an air force. They had [Eino Luukkanen](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eino_Luukkanen). ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2008, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/70 "2008-06-19T03:35:19Z")
[QUOTE=MGibson] Why not a series about pirates in the early 18th century either during or after Queen Anneā€™s War? /QUOTE] [Calico Jack Rackham](http://www.turksheadmansion.com/history/pirates.htm) had quite a life-- he had two women on his ship (Mary Read and Anne Bonny) disguised as men,Anne Bonny he ā€œkidnappedā€ to help her out of a bad marriage. Mary Read had to reveal that she was a woman to fend off Anne Bonnyā€™s romantic advances. They were captured with him, but neither could be hanged because they were both pregnant. Rackham himself was hung and displayed in a gibbet in Port Royal. He provided some basic inspiration for Pirates of the Caribbean, but is a lot more interesting. The three of them would make great fodder for an HBO miniseries. ---
**Author:** ![AlmondJoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@AlmondJoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlmondJoy)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2008, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/71 "2008-06-19T14:35:40Z")
i would love to see a muppets mini series. i love that show and i think it has touched sooo many peopleā€™s lives ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2008, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/72 "2008-06-19T15:42:45Z")
[QUOTE=Shirley Ujest] For those of you who love Roman Times, and who doesnā€™t? I would love to see the book series by [Lindsey Davis](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindsey_Davis) , I can easily picture HBO doing a bang up job on it with help from the BBC. [/QUOTE] Better still: [John Maddox Robertsā€™](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Maddox_Roberts) _SPQR_ series! (But not Stephen Saylorā€™s [_Roma Sub Rosa,_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roma_Sub_Rosa) 'cause thatā€™s such a downer.) ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2008, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/73 "2008-06-19T16:43:35Z")
Theodore Roosevelt, pulling all the good stuff from Edmund Morrisā€™s _The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt_ and _Theodore Rex_, and Candice Millardā€™s _The River of Doubt_. Sickly kid to scrappy college boxer. Young dandy in Albany alternating with buckskin-wearing cowboy and hunter. NYC Police Commissioner making midnight strolls to poke cops sleeping on duty. Vice President because his partyā€™s machine kicked him upstairs, hating what he was doing as governor of NY. Rough Rider. Furor over inviting a black man to dinner at the White House. Convervationist. The White Fleet around the world. The Bull Moose party. Expedition down uncharted jungle river. Great stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2008, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/74 "2008-06-19T17:23:50Z")
[QUOTE=UncaStuart] Theodore Roosevelt, pulling all the good stuff from Edmund Morrisā€™s _The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt_ and _Theodore Rex_, and Candice Millardā€™s _The River of Doubt_. Sickly kid to scrappy college boxer. Young dandy in Albany alternating with buckskin-wearing cowboy and hunter. NYC Police Commissioner making midnight strolls to poke cops sleeping on duty. Vice President because his partyā€™s machine kicked him upstairs, hating what he was doing as governor of NY. Rough Rider. Furor over inviting a black man to dinner at the White House. Convervationist. The White Fleet around the world. The Bull Moose party. Expedition down uncharted jungle river. Great stuff. [/QUOTE] First wife and his mother dying on the same day. ā˜¹ ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2008, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/75 "2008-06-20T22:13:11Z")
[QUOTE=Baker] First wife and his mother dying on the same day. ā˜¹ [/QUOTE] Yes, his life has a lot of stories that folks might think were added for dramatic effect if a miniseries were made. E.g., Gives a speech with a bullet in his chest :eek: after an assassination attempt, the bullet having been slowed down by passing through his thick speech notes and glasses case. Unarmed, punches out a rowdy cowboy shooting up a saloon. ---
**Author:** ![Marlitharn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/779978/32.png) [@Marlitharn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marlitharn)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/76 "2008-06-21T02:15:00Z")
_Njalā€™s Saga_ would make an awesome mini-series. Spanning several decades of Icelandic history, itā€™s got family feuds and cool Viking duals and some raiding and some ambushing and some backstabbing and some religion-converting and some law-debating and a big olā€™ fire at the end. Thereā€™s even a brief interlude with a Viking zombie in there somewhere. Viking. Zombie. Hell yeah. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/77 "2008-06-21T02:54:03Z")
The rise and fall of Rhodesia and especially the Rhodesian Bush War, with a major focus on the horse-mounted units like the Greyā€™s Scouts and special forces like the Rhodesian SAS and the Selous Scouts. The series would show how the fall of the Rhodesian government would lead to the collapse of law and order and the nightmare that is Mugabeā€™s Zimbabwe. Unfortunately I think this is way too un-PC to ever get made, but I can fantasize anyway. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/78 "2008-06-21T03:15:11Z")
Stanley and Livingston. Clout: the Miniseries, an adaptation of the Royko book re the first Mayor Daley. It would cover all manner of things: JFK, the 1968 riots, the building of the city etc. Millard Filmore: Best President Ever or Americaā€™s Cipher? Lewis and Clark (wasnā€™t this done or is coming out or something?) The Fountain of Youth guy (canā€™t recall nameā€“P something) The favorite dishes of American Presidents (and what the First Ladiesā€™ dished up!)\* \*ok, so that oneā€™s not real serious. But I bet it would get made. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/79 "2008-06-21T03:18:32Z")
Also: A biographical series on the great bassist Jaco Pastorius. I donā€™t know who on earth would play him, though, and I donā€™t know how they would ever be able to portray him on stage or in the studio, playing. His style was that unique. The story of [Meir Kahane,](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meir_Kahane) a Rabbi who was like the Jewish version of Malcolm X, and founded the JDL (Jewish Defense League.) I mean, with the Jew-controlled Hollywood, they could definitely get this one made. I think Robert Downey Jr. should play him. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088/80 "2008-06-21T04:05:43Z")
How about a miniseries on the [Algonquin Round Table](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algonquin_Round_Table) of the 1920s? Tons of fascinating characters ā€“ Dorothy Parker, George S. Kaufman, Alexander Woollcott, Harpo Marx, Robert Benchley ā€“ plenty of laughs, tragedy, and and some sex. The film, _Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle_ is, AFAIK, the only fictional depiction of it. Although itā€™s been done on film a few times, Iā€™d love to see a serious and accurate long-form treatment of the Manhattan Project. The life of Senator Joe McCarthy could be fascinating. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-historical-book-person-topic-would-you-like-to-see-hbo-do-as-a-miniseries/453088.md?page=5)