Frost\Nixon Page #2

Well, how would you expect me to look?

I spent yesterday evening watching

you interview the Bee Gees.

Weren't they terrific?

Come on, John, we've done

political interviews before.

So, okay, so what kind of interview?

A full, extensive look-back

over his life, his presidency.

And?

And what? Come on, David.

Surely the only thing

that would interest anyone

about Richard Nixon

would be a confession.

A full, no-holds-barred

confession.

Well, we'll get that, too.

From Richard Nixon?

Come on, John.

Just think of the numbers it would get.

Do you know how many people watched

his farewell speech in the White House?

Four hundred million.

But in the end, David heard nothing.

And soon after arriving in California,

Nixon was rushed to hospital

with an acute attack of phlebitis.

I think it was around

this time that Gerald Ford,

who was the new President,

and who was desperate to move

the agenda on from Watergate,

gave Nixon a full, free

and absolute pardon.

Now therefore, I, Gerald R. Ford,

President of the United States,

have granted, and by

these presents do grant,

a full, free and absolute pardon

unto Richard Nixon for all

offenses against the United States.

It meant that the man who had

committed the greatest felony

in American political history

would never stand trial.

It was like he slipped

out the back door.

A public opinion poll indicates

a two-to-one disapproval of

the pardoning of Richard Nixon.

One telegram from Virginia said,

"Roosevelt had his New Deal,

"Truman had his Fair Deal, now

Ford has his crooked deal. "

There was no deal, period.

I don't think the truth

will ever come out.

The American people

need to know the truth,

and I don't think it will

ever now be fully known.

So how do we want to

address the college protests?

Well, do we want to lift some quotes

from the "stand up and be

counted" speech in 1970?

Sir? You know, maybe

we're just better off

using the whole Lincoln Memorial memo.

Just include the whole thing.

Mr. President, Swifty Lazar is here.

Okay. No, no, stick around.

You're gonna get a kick out of this.

This is my literary

agent from Hollywood.

Hygiene obsessive.

Mr. President, good to see you.

Nice to see you.

These are folks helping me with my book.

Diane Sawyer, Frank

Gannon, Irving Lazar.

Nice to meet you. Miss Sawyer.

Pleasure. Mr. Gannon.

Okay, that's it. I'll

see you after lunch.

So how you feeling, sir?

I'm better, thank you. Though

not yet well enough to golf,

thank God. I despise that game.

Imagine, six weeks out of office

as President of the United States,

and they'd have me putting

in my hospital room.

Never retire, Mr. Lazar.

To me, the unhappiest people

of the world are retired.

No purpose.

What makes life mean

something is purpose.

A goal. A battle. A struggle.

Well, even if you don't win it.

When my doctor declared me unfit

to give testimony in

the Watergate trial,

everybody thought I'd be relieved.

Well, they were wrong.

That was the lowest I got.

Well, if it's a challenge you

want, here's one you might enjoy.

How to spend $2 million,

It's what I got for your memoirs.

Well, thank you.

Eh...

It might be a little

short of what I wanted,

but let me assure you, it's a

whole lot more than they wanted.

That book is important to me.

It's probably the only chance I'm

gonna get to put the record straight

and remind people the

Nixon years weren't all bad.

You know, if you're trying

to put the record straight,

I'd at least talk to him.

Who?

David Frost. English talk show guy.

Why would I want to talk to David Frost?

Well, a while back, he wrote

asking for an interview.

No.

Well, we didn't get back to him.

Frankly, we didn't find him appropriate.

Well, I thought that we

were doing one with CBS.

We are. I just figured

doing it with Frost

would be a whole lot easier

than doing it with Mike Wallace.

It would, but it would have a

lot less, you know, credibility.

True, true. Could

probably get more money.

Really? Look.

We'll always have 350

on the table from CBS.

But if I could get Frost to pay

more and secure better terms,

it might be a shame to pass.

It'd be interesting to

know where he is right now.

We tied him to railway

tracks, and he escaped.

We buried him alive, and he walked free.

Today we're lowering escape artist

Derek Harrison into the water

to see if he can miraculously

cheat death once more.

Good evening, and

welcome to Great Escapes.

My name is David Frost.

Okay, that is a cut.

Thank you.

In any deal, you need to know

your opponent's breaking point.

To assess that, you might call them

late at night or at the weekend.

If they take the call,

you know they're desperate.

And from that moment on, you

know you have the upper hand.

Hello?

Mr. Frost? Irving Lazar.

Who?

Swifty Lazar. I

represent President Nixon.

What time is it?

Bad time?

No! Not at all.

I'm calling with regard to

your request for an interview

and to say, having considered it,

my client is not necessarily

opposed to the idea.

Really? Well, that's terrific news!

For God's sake.

I got $500,000.

Is that good?

Mr. President, it's a half a

million dollars for a news interview.

It's unprecedented.

Yeah? Well, what's the catch?

With Frost? None.

It'll be a big wet kiss.

This guy'll be so grateful

to be getting it at all,

he'll pitch puffballs all night

and pay a half a million

dollars for the privilege.

Well, you think you could get 550?

I got 6.

David, how could you

have done that? What?

$600,000. That's a fortune.

Don't worry about the money.

My God. Most Americans

think he belongs in jail.

You're making him a rich man.

Plus, by outbidding them,

you've already made enemies

of the networks. They're just jealous.

They're already sounding off

about checkbook journalism.

And if the networks are against you,

syndication's always

going to be a struggle.

No syndication, no advance sales.

No advance sales, no commercials.

No commercials, no revenue.

And here's the bigger question,

why do it? You don't need it.

Your career's in great shape.

This will just spread you

across three continents,

jeopardize the other shows.

Isn't it true that

Channel Nine in Australia

want you to do another season

of your talk show for them?

Yes. And London, too?

Yes, but that would be

London and Australia.

This would be... What?

You wouldn't understand, John.

You were never part of

the show in New York,

but it's indescribable.

Success in America is

unlike success anywhere else.

And the emptiness when it's gone.

And the sickening thought

that it may never come back.

You know, there's a restaurant

in New York called Sardi's.

Ordinary mortals can't get a table.

John, the place was my canteen!

You know, I'd be happier

if I heard some kind of vision

that you had for this interview.

Excuse me, Mr. Frost.

I'd heard you were going to be here.

Would you mind? Of course.

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