Tail Gunner Joe (1977)

Directed by

Jud Taylor

Genre

biographical film

Country

United States

Runtime

2h 25m

Rating

6.0 of 10 from 4 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This TV movie dramatizes the life of Senator Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s. It shows his rise to power by claiming communists had infiltrated the U.S. government.

dramatichistoricalsombertensepoliticalintrospectivemeasuredcautionary

What happens

Tail Gunner Joe is a 1977 television movie dramatizing the life of U.S. Senator Joseph R. McCarthy, a Wisconsin Republican who claimed knowledge of communist infiltration of the U.S. government during the 1950s. The film was broadcast on NBC. It was nominated for six Emmy awards and won two: best writing and best supporting actor for Burgess Meredith's portrayal of attorney Joseph N. Welch. It starred Peter Boyle (as McCarthy) and John Forsythe. Robert F. Simon appeared as journalist Drew Pearson. The nickname 'Tail Gunner Joe' is a derisive term for the Senator that originated from his exaggerated claims of the number of times flying as a tail gunner on American dive bombers during World War II. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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