First the Sarah Palin movie, now this. On Monday, it was reported that HBO is developing a miniseries about former Vice President Dick Cheney. The premium cable channel has optioned Barton Gellman's award-winning book Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency. The series, to be written by "Six Feet Under" scribe Rick Cleveland, will also be based on the "Frontline" documentary The Dark Side, and will retell Cheney's story from his early days with Donald Rumsfeld in the Nixon Administration to his stint under George W. Bush. Given Cheney's notoriously un-telegenic presence, commentators are cracking wise. Here, a brief sampling:
A charmed life
"Though 'The Kennedys' had terrible luck finding a cable home," says Kyle Buchanan at New York, "HBO is developing a new political mini-series that may be better received — and why wouldn't it, since it's about friendly, sympathetic former Vice-President Dick Cheney?"
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Midseason replacement
"With 'Entourage' coming to a close, HBO needs to act fast if they want to remain the go-to cable source for shows about guys I'd like to punch. Enter Dick Cheney," says Wookie Johnson at Screen Junkies. "No word yet on when Charlie Sheen will be cast for the role."
Casting conflicts
Who should play Dick Cheney..." asks Jen Chaney at The Washington Post, "bearing in mind that Lionel Barrymore passed away in 1954 and is therefore unavailable?"
Natural progression
"HBO has done gangsters, vampires, and demonic carnies — so what resource will they mine entertainment next?" asks Eric Alt at NBC Bay Area. "How about the GOP?"
Liberal bias
"It looks as though HBO's decided to double down" just in time for Obama's reelection bid, says John Nolte at Big Hollywood. "Don't hold your breath for any kind of election-timed docu-drama titled... Obama: The Lost College Years the Media Isn't Interested in Investigating."
