On CBS Sunday Morning April 28, longtime anchor Ted Koppel took a closer look at Broadway’s Network. Adapted from the 1976 Paddy Chayefsky film, the stage adaptation from Lee Hall and director Ivo van Hove stars Tony winner Bryan Cranston (All The Way) as news anchor Howard Beale.
Back in the ’70s, the story of Beale's unexpected rise in fame (after he had first been fired and threatened to kill himself on the air) was a satire. But Cranston has been speaking of the play’s timeliness since it officially bowed in December.
“What makes it so relevant is Howard Beale rails against his audience's addiction to the tube, even as he draws them in,” said Cranston.
Koppel also gathered a panel today’s broadcast journalists—Dick Wald, one-time president of NBC News, CNN’s Greta Van Susteren, and Vox’s Carlos Maza—to reflect on the play. (Wald was the inspiration for the character Max Schumacher.)
Watch the full video interview above.
