Tag: Tom Mankiewicz

If you happened to tune into Turner Classic Movies over the weekend, you had the pleasure of watching a father and son discuss two family passions – movies and politics.

Host Ben Mankiewicz chatted with his dad, Frank Mankiewicz, former president of NPR and press secretary to Robert F. Kennedy. It was the elder Mankiewicz who announced Kennedy’s death in 1968.

The films they chose for the Father’s Day program were “Citizen Kane,” “The Last Hurrah” and “Smokey and the Bandit.”

If one of those titles seems not like the others, it’s because a young Ben Mankiewicz went to see Smokey with his dad – several times.

The Mankiewiczes have been addicted to the screen for generations.

Frank Mankiewicz’s father, Herman, was a screenwriter for “Citizen Kane” and such other classics as “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” and “The Wizard of Oz.”

His uncle, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, was a writer, producer and director whose credits include “Cleopatra” and “All About Eve.”

Tom Mankiewicz, Joseph’s son, was also in the business, writing scripts for several James Bond films.

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