Reviews
The Murder of Mary Phagan (1988)
Excellent mini-series
Leo Frank was born in Cuero, Texas on April 17, 1884, but his family soon moved to Brooklyn, NY, where he attended Pratt Institute; he was graduated from Cornell University in 1906 with a B.S. degree in mechanical engineering.
In 1908, he became the head of a pencil factory in Atlanta started by his uncle Moses Frank. He married Lucille Selig, a local girl, in November of 1910.
Mary Phagan had been employed at the National Pencil Co for a little over a year. She returned for her $1.20 pay that Saturday (because of the holiday) and was never seen again alive. At almost 14 years of age, she earned $4.05 for a 55-hr. week.
One of the many puzzles is why Newt Lee, the watchman at the factory, was sent away when he first reported for duty on April 26, 1913. His schedule had been set the day before by Mr. Frank.
Some new documents have begun to surface on this case, and they can be viewed at: www.leofrankcase.com. To this day, no one knows what eventually happened to Jim Conley, who was last sighted in 1941. Leo's lawyers found his testimony incredible and challenged his character and truthfulness, but he was able to stay employed for over two years.
This mini-series is available on VHS tape, and hopefully will be re- released on DVD. It is definitely worth a viewing.
Profiles in Courage: Governor John M. Slaton (1964)
An intriguing view of history
This episode does not appear in JFK's original Profiles in Courage, but was added (and written) later. It is not generally available in print form, although others were gathered in a subsequent paperback.
Of course, the role of John Slaton was not "paid by Walter Matthau" but "played." Thomas Watson's role in the original conviction was minimal, since he did not enter the fray until about a year after the crime (1914).
This famous trial, and its sad aftermath, is still much debated today. The 1964 TV version of events is still worth watching, although Matthau doesn't look very much like Governor Slaton. When Theodore Sorenson vetted this script, he called attention to the problem of how a dead girl could bleed in the elevator. Will we ever know what really happened on Confederate Memorial Day in 1913? Why was the watchman Newt Lee sent away from the factory at 4pm? Where was Leo Frank when Montine Stover appeared between 12:05 - 12:10pm and his office was empty? There is no final certainty, even in the original black and white.
Anyway, this episode is a reminder of how history can be viewed, and even recycled, over time. Who ultimately will be well regarded - Hugh Dorsey or John Slaton? Such incidents are always instructive, especially when they were, and still are, so controversial. We will have to await the analysis of the recently discovered documents relating to April 26, 1913.