George Clooney in Good Night, and Good Luck. (Photo: Emilio Madrid)

Good Night, and Good Luck

By Deirdre Donovan

George Clooney and Grant Heslov's new play, Good Night, and Good Luck, an adaptation of their 2005 film, arrives on Broadway with plenty of buzz. Directed by David Cromer, this production doesn't disappoint, largely due to Clooney's charisma and his affecting portrayal of the revered broadcast journalist, Edward R. Murrow.

 

Describing Good Night, and Good Luck is no easy task. It's not a biodrama. Rather this is strictly the story of Murrow's bold confrontation with the iniquitous Senator Joseph McCarthy during a few months in 1953 when McCarthy's communist witch hunt and the climate of fear he created became unbearable for Murrow. Since McCarthy's infamous 1950 speech in Wheeling, West Virginia, where he asserted that 205 card-carrying communists were employed by the State Department, he had intimidated everyone from the President on down.

 

This modern-day David-and-Goliath story unfolds in the control room of Studio 41 at CBS headquarters in New York. News anchor Murrow and his producer and head writer, Fred W. Friendly (the superb Glenn Fleshler), are the engines behind the interpretive newsmagazine "See It Now." Murrow and Friendly are determined to unmask McCarthy on their program, in hopes that if they reveal his bullying tactics and lack of evidence in his investigations, the public would see him in his true colors. Indeed, they not only succeeded, they brought down the demagogue with a thud that would ring down the ages.

 

Glenn Fleshler, George Clooney (Photo: Emilio Madrid)

 

Murrow and Friendly begin their head-on confrontation of McCarthy with a program on the suspension of an air force officer who had been discharged without any public hearing because of his father's associations with leftist groups. The controversial program sparks a heated conflict with CBS president William F. Paley (Paul Gross), concerning editorializing the news, offending sponsors, and alienating viewers. In fact, Paley informs Murrow that his airing of his first McCarthy broadcast had just cost CBS their sponsorship from Alcoa.

 

This stage version conveys the immediacy of those early live television broadcasts, a quality that can only be truly captured in front of a live audience. One sees the hustle-bustle in the bullpen as news anchors, writers, and reporters work on scripts, not to mention the madhouse of preparation as editors, cameramen, and assistants scramble to prepare for the next show. Scott Pask's set, abetted by David Bengali's projection design (with archival clips) superbly replicates a television studio.

 

Georgia Heers and a four-man combo liven up the production with some jazz standards, with Cole Porter's "I've Got My Eyes on You" chillingly performed to underscore the dangers of surveillance. A more upbeat selection, Irving Berlin's "Let's Face the Music and Dance," amplifies the play's themes of courage and the challenges faced by journalists during the McCarthy era. And Morgan Lewis and Nancy Hamilton's "How High the Moon" teases viewers about things beyond reach, perfectly reflecting how truth and justice also seemed out of reach during the Red Scare. While the songs reinforce thematic content, they also offer some good old-fashioned entertainment during the 90-minute show.

 

Clooney makes his Broadway debut with Good Night, and Good Luck. Indeed, one can only admire the renowned film star for braving the glare of the Great White Way when he could be cherry-picking his next movie project. That said, Clooney clearly delivers the dramatic goods with his impersonation of Murrow. His hair is dyed an inky black. His expensive-looking gray suit (costumes by Brenda Abbandandolo) is in sync with Heather Gilbert's cinematic grayscale lighting. But what truly makes Clooney convincing as Murrow is his confident and sincere manner as the host of "See It Now" and his down-to-earth interactions with the CBS team.

 

The show isn't flawless. Prior to Murrow delivering his famous "wires and lights in a box" speech at the show's end, there is a history of TV played out in sound bites, beginning with Kennedy being shot, John John's salute, Vietnam, and so forth. However well-intentioned, it connects the dots for an audience who surely can connect the dots for themselves.

 

George Clooney (Photo: Emilio Madrid)

 

"Good night, and good luck" was the phrase Murrow used as his sign off for his radio and television programs. Reportedly, he chose it as a way to convey a sense of sincerity and warmth to his audience. Murrow believed that the phrase encapsulated both a friendly farewell and a recognition of the challenges people faced, particularly during the turbulent times of the Cold War and McCarthyism. He was right on the money.

 

Good Night, and Good Luck is not light fare. But it shines a light on a fearless journalist who took a demagogue down and scored a victory for democracy.

 

Good Night, and Good Luck

 

At the Winter Garden, Manhattan.

Tickets: www.goodnightgoodluckbroadway.com.

Running time: 1 hour; 30 minutes with no intermission.

Through June 8.