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Published 11/6/03 in The Post-Star newspaper Network television station showing some taste, or lack of it COMMENTARY What could be more disgusting than ripping someone to shreds after they're dead and gone? Why, ripping someone to shreds while they're dying, of course. That's basically what CBS proposed when they scheduled the Nov. 16 miniseries "The Reagans." The two-part movie centers largely around the two terms Ronald Reagan spent in office as president of the United States with wife Nancy at his side. Early buzz on the movie was that it painted the couple in an unflattering light to say the least. On Tuesday, it was announced by CBS that the network would not air the movie as planned. Instead, "The Reagans" will be shipped over to one of the premium channels. Political biopics are nothing new -- remember Oliver Stone's "Nixon" and the innumerable made-for-television movies on the Kennedy dynasty? The problem with "The Reagans" is that the main character has spent the last nine years of his life in seclusion, slowly dying from a degenerative disease. To say CBS has displayed poor judgment is an understatement. Just ask anyone who's kept a ghoulish vigil to Alzheimer's, or any other progressive fatal disease. The baggage from dealing with such a drawn-out process is considerable, as Glens Falls resident Catherine Gericke knows all too well. Her husband, Stanley, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease five years ago. "It's very painful to watch," she said. "It's a slow progression." After several years of living under Catherine's care, Stanley now resides at the Pleasant Valley Infirmary in Argyle, no longer able to walk, with both his short- and long-term memory all but gone. When Catherine heard the buzz about the Reagan miniseries, she questioned the timing of it. "I was surprised; usually you wait until after someone's passed to either eulogize or villify them," she said. "That's what we're brought to expect." Stanley's chosen career was a musical one. He was a professional trumpet player and head of the music department at Glens Falls High School for many years. It's a field far less controversial than politics, but if an unflattering biopic were made on her husband's life and was set to air next week on television, Catherine would be the last one to watch it. "I'd be like Nancy Reagan and not want to see it," she said. "It would be very difficult to watch; the day-to-day dealing with it is difficult enough." Like a lot of movies and biographies, where there's smoke, there's fire. And maybe there is some truth to Ronald Reagan's more bumbling moments and the glimpses of Nancy as a seething control freak. But the time to let it all hang out is not now. There are reports that the movie was pulled because of political pressure from the conservative right. Frankly, I don't care why it was pulled -- the only thing that matters is it was. For once, Hollywood should opt for basic decency over its relentless quest for freedom of expression. "It has nothing to do with politics," Catherine said. "I know exactly what Nancy Reagan is going through and I think any caretaker who has a loved one would feel the same way. "I think (not airing the mini-series) was a wise decision because it would be so hurtful to so many, not only to them but to all those who have loved ones with Alzheimer's."
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