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WHITE HOUSE
Ajournal published by the White House Historical Association Washington
President Ronald Reagan, seen here in a vide,o appearance at the 53rd-annual Academy Awards ceremony, once reflected, "I've heard the question: How could an actor be president? I've sometimes wondered how you could be president and not be an actor."
During his acceptance speech, President Ronald Reagan gestures at the podium of the Dallas Conyention Center in the jinalsessiii_ri of the 1984 Republican National Convention, as a large format screen image of him appears in barkground.
Presidential Stardust: Fame, Power, and the Culture of Celebrity 43
The three versions of the Oval Office that appear in the film very specifically match its appear ance during the historical moments reenacted within. An elaborate timeline was created to track the many changes. Of these, the change in draperies and iconic oval rug was the defining factor. Eisenhower's Oval Office was a carryover from President Harry Truman. His curtains were blue-green with a band of braided gold trim and a matching blue-green oval rug with a thick gold border. Lack of pattern marked the unas suming decor-white walls, solid red upholstery, and blue-green textiles. Careful attention was made in matching my favorite piece of set dressing in this room, the line of small flags on the mantel, representing the countries in the United Nations. A console television sits to the left of the president's desk. The 1969 Oval Office of R ichard Nixon's first years used the same decor as Lyndon Johnson's. The pale white curtains with blue banding and blue center rug were both carryovers from previous administrations. The simple white drapes were so singular, and the design of the edge banding was so specific, that I was especially con cerned. I felt a particular sense of victory when I found a similar edge banding in a castaway bin at an old fabric shop. The Reagan Oval Office in the film is the carry over of Jimmy Carter's office with its strong pump kin and gold drapes and florette-laden oval rug. Reproducing that rug was an expensive endeavor. Just as the White House recycles furnishings from previous administrations, so did we, as we reused set dressing from set to set of each president. One essen tial piece of furniture was an incredibly detailed copy of the Resolute desk, used by every president since Rutherford B. Hayes, with the exception of Johnson, Nixon, Gerald Ford, and George H. W Bush. Successful sets are the auspicious confluence of myriad components, and I am always relieved when one comes together and the camera is rolling. The reward of months spent holding my breath and 62 WHITE HOUSE HISTORY (Number 39)
crossing my fingers was the gratification of being part of the amazing team that created the world of Lee Daniels' The Butler. I would never otherwise have become so intimately aware of the rich history of the majestic building that stands at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. To experience the history of the White House is to experience the history of America, and I will always be proud to have had a share in the telling of the story of a life, a building, and a country.
The job of a Hollywood set decorator' would be simplified if the production crew could simply pull their vans up to the North Portico, as was the case in December 1926 when a film was made during the Coolidge administration ( oppo site) or in 1939 when the press filmed inside the house dur ing one of Roosevelt's Fireside Chats (above). NOTES I. 2.
Quoted in Derek Jensen, "The Birth of a Nation-1915," The White House in Movies & TV, The White House Museum, www.whitehousemuseum.org. Ibid.
3.
Patrick Phillips, "Wilson-1944," in ibid.
5.
Bosley Crowther, "'Wilson,' an Impressive Screen Biography, in Which Alex. Knox Is the Star, Has its World Premiere at the Roxy," New York Times, August 2, 1944, www.nytimes.com.
4.
6.
Patrick Phillips-Schrock, The White House: An Illustrated Architectural History (Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2013). Phillips-Schrock, White House.
Sets and Locations: The White House Re-created 63
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