Great Series!!
I just wish that it were available on DVD.
shareWhats it all about though
shareWhats it all about though
It is a four-part mini-series concerning the case of Alger Hiss.
In 1948, Whittaker Chambers, a senior editor of Time magazine, himself a former Communist, accused Hiss of being a communist before the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC). Hiss appeared before HUAC to deny the charges and later on Meet the Press Chambers repeated the charge and Hiss sued him for libel.
To defend against the charge of libel Chambers produced photocopies of handwritten classified State Department documents and handwriting experts confirmed that they were in Hiss's handwriting. (At one point, Hiss was an official of the State Department) These indicated that Hiss was also involved espionage There were also photocopies of typewritten documents that Chambers produced.
Hiss went before a federal grand jury and denied that he met with Chambers after a certain date, but he was indicted for perjury. After two trials, he was convicted and served a prison sentence in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.
He died in the 1990's loudly proclaiming his innocence, and claiming that Chambers, HUAC member Richard Nixon, and the FBI had framed him. This is the premise that this mini-series takes, and it is also one that I don't agree with.
It was, in spite of the very shaky premise, an excellent drama and I don't know of any other efforts to put this story on film tape or whatever.
Anyway, I hope this was helpful. share