International System of Currency

In late 1976, a Hollywood film satire about television and its power came to theaters across America. The film – “Network” – was written by Paddy Chayefsky and directed by Sidney Lumet. It portrayed a fictional television network, UBS, and its struggle with poor ratings. Among its stars were Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch, Robert Duvall, Wesley Addy, Ned Beatty and Beatrice Straight.

“Network” received widespread critical acclaim, with particular praise for the performances of its actors. It received 10 Oscar nominations, including “Best Picture” (though losing to “Rocky”). The film was a commercial success and won four Academy Awards – Best Actor (Finch), Best Actress (Dunaway), Best Supporting Actress (Straight), and Best Original Screenplay (Chayefsky).

In 2000, the U.S. Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry for its cultural significance.

But apart from the kudos, among its most enduring and memorable scenes – and there are several – is one in which an imposing corporate executive, Arthur Jensen, played impressively by Ned Beatty, proceeds to lecture and excoriate recently rising network news star, Howard Beale, who has riled up the nation with his populist rantings. But before sharing that scene and its articulate, instructive speech, a bit of background is in order.

Howard Beale, played by Peter Finch, is the longtime anchor of the Evening News show for the UBS TV network. Described as “the grand old man of news,” Beale, for many years, was a network stalwart with high ratings and good audience share. But in later years, his fortunes began to decline, and his ratings fell. His wife also died, and he became depressed and drank heavily as his audience share continued to slide.

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