If this season of Fox TV's hit drama 24 is any indication, this year's weekly cliffhangers are shaping up to be the best yet. But it won't be just the non-stop twists and turns that face Keifer Sutherland's back-from-the-dead counter-terror agent Jack Bauer, that keep me on the edge of my seat.
Nope. The guy who I'll be keeping my eye on is the character of President Charles Logan. You see, I first noticed this when then Vice-President Logan assumed the presidency on the tightly wound drama last season... The guy playing President Logan (actor Gregory Itzin for those keeping score) is a dead ringer for Richard Nixon.
That's right. THAT Nixon. Seriously, it's uncanny.
He's got it all. The jowls. The beady, shifty eyes. The slicked back hair receding from each side of his face. The Drabby Suit...
I fully expect to see beads of sweat dripping from just above his upper lip on future 24 episodes, just as Nixon's so famously did like clockwork in his own televised speeches ("I Am Not A Crook"), as the Watergate scandal slowly closed in on his presidency.
Well it seems somebody on the writing staff of 24 has also noticed the resemblance. Because on this season of 24, the writers have apparently decided to run the Nixon thing right up the ol' flagpole. The first signs are subtle...things like the fact that the Logan character is keenly mindful of his legacy and his place in history.
He pursues his own version of detente with a Russian counterpart (in the form of an anti-terrorist accord) as the ultimate photo-op...even as a former President has just been assassinated and terrorists are publicly executing civilians in an airport on national TV.
"I realize that I'm ambitious", Logan remarks matter of factly, "But I didn't think civilians would be killed." Which immediately brought back memories for me of those damn Nixon Watergate tapes:
"We could raise the money," Nixon said in one breath, referring to paying hush money to the Watergate burglars. And in the very next, always mindful of covering his tracks, came the qualifying statement, "...But it would be wrong."
Article comments
1 - Victor Lana
Great post, Glenn! I'm waiting for the sweaty upper lip. I know it's coming.
2 - Pat Fish
I just started watching "24" and I never thought of the Nixon angle.
Fell in love with the show first viewing.
Can't stand that first lady. Why does she always get involved in things?
There's another guy on the show what looks like Dick Cheney. Not sure who he is but I noticed the resemblence right away.
And Keifer Sutherland looks EXACTLY like my younger brother. Not that this means anything but you know?
3 - Al Barger
Oh yeah, tonight Logan wanted his aid to get down on his knees and pray with him, as per stories about Nixon and Kissinger.
I'm also thinking Logan and Al Gore. I could imagine the mealy mouthed indecision, the scrambling away from making real decisions. That might just be me, though.
4 - Mary K. Williams
Hey Glen - welcome to the 24 group. Much hilarity will ensue!
5 - Victor Lana
Does anyone remember the classic scene on Saturday Night Live when Ackroyd as Nixon and Belushi as Kissinger replayed that "praying" scene? Just thought of it when I read comment #3.
6 - Mary K. Williams
Does anyone remember the classic scene on Saturday Night Live when Ackroyd as Nixon and Belushi as Kissinger replayed that "praying" scene? Just thought of it when I read comment #3.
No Victor - but I'm sure it was funny. The praying last night killed me - but can't say more, saving it for my post : )
7 - Jeff
An interesting analysis...
8 - Andrey
You were right - Logan was the bad guy all along.