The Watergate scandal, involving the FBI, former CIA officials, the DNC (Democratic National Committee) and President Richard Nixon, was one of the biggest scandals in US history. The journalists responsible for the exposé, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, wrote a book about the whole affair: All the President’s Men. Soon Alan J Pakula made a film of the same name, with Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman playing the two men. After Redford’s tragic passing on September 16, the two trailblazing gentlemen recalled how the actor convinced them for the film and how he knew details about the case that no one else did.
Talking about the film and the actor, Bob told journalist Anderson Cooper that Redford was the one who approached them for the film. “Robert had more than a hand in the making of the film. He called me and Carl up while we were working on the story, and quite frankly I didn’t think it was him. He said, ‘The way to tell this story is through the relationship between you and Carl.’ He had the kind of energy and intelligence that you normally don’t associate with Hollywood actors,” said Bob.
He added that Carl wasn’t very convinced with the idea and said, “I remember going to Carl and saying, ‘Robert Redford called, and he thinks that the story of Watergate is the rapport and relationship we share.’” He said, ‘Jesus, you can’t be talking to a Hollywood star about this; we will be crushed if someone finds out about this.’” Carl agreed with this story and said, “I said that, absolutely. We would have been in big trouble if the White House found out about it. The book had not come out yet, and I told him to hang up the phone immediately. I maintained that position right until Nixon resigned.”
Cooper then asked him whether Redford ever asked him the identity of ‘Deep Throat’ (prime witness of the scandal, Mark Felt). Bob answered, “He did ask me a lot about the sources, and Carl and I kept those secrets for decades, but I think we shared it with Redford.” While Carl was a little taken aback that Bob had told Redford about the former Deputy Director of the FBI being the main informant, he continued his praise for Redford and said, “Redford was committed to not just accuracy, but he listened to us. We told him that if there needs to be a film, it has to follow the book, and it has to be completely accurate. It’s a film about journalism and the process of breaking the story, and it needed to be shown that way.”
Directed by Pakula, the cast included Redford, Hoffman, Jack Warden, Martin Balsam, Hal Holbrook, and Jason Robards. Due to the Watergate scandal, a US president resigned from office for the first time in the history of the nation. Gerald Ford was sworn in as the next president.
