THOUGHTS ON FORMAT & APPLICATION

There is strong potential for this story to play in both the fiction and non-fiction spaces. We are currently in talks on both fronts.

NARRATIVE LIMITED SERIES

We envision that FOOL THEM ONCE will be told in the form of a scripted, narrative, historical drama limited series for television and online streaming.  Through approximately 10 hour-long episodes, it will take audiences from inside the halls of the U.S. government, through the trenches with Albert's publishing team as they battle against great odds, and into the home of the Kahn family as they attempt to survive a siege of government intimidation and public death threats.  Predominantly, the action will revolve around the efforts to write and publish Harvey's book, and the government's counter-efforts to prevent False Witness from seeing the light of day.

Additional sections of this pitch bible outline potential plot points and character development over 10 episodes of scripted television.

DOCUMENTARY AND/OR PODCAST

The twists and turns of this story are compelling enough by themselves.  But when examined in the context of present political events, they reveal themselves to collectively form an origin story for today's climate.  Holding the two eras up against each other for comparison yields uncanny and disturbing parallels. Not only has polarizing rhetoric and demagoguery returned to the center stage of American politics, but some of the very people at the heart of FOOL THEM ONCE were responsible for molding the individuals who now steer our national discourse.  Donald Trump’s attacks are right out of Cohn’s playbook. Entire passages from the congressional questioning of Michael Cohen seem lifted straight from the grillings that Senate subcommittees gave Albert and Harvey.

Inverse to how O.J. MADE IN AMERICA demonstrated a wide history of cultural and racial conflicts breeding a singular event, we propose a documentary which uses the gripping parable of FOOL THEM ONCE as a way to understand how our country has found its way back to dark days, and debate what tact, if any, we want to take to change the future.

With a wealth of archival material at the disposal of the creative team behind this project (a significant amount of which they own outright), FOOL THEM ONCE has the potential to be a rich viewing experience.  They have catalogued thousands of letters, diaries, photographs, transcripts, audio reels, and film footage in an extensive cross-referenced database.  The audio assets available include never-before-heard interviews between Albert Kahn and Harvey Matusow conducted both in 1954 and the mid-1970s, along with present-day interviews the creative team has conducted with the surviving Kahn family and historians. Creator Ben Kahn has showcased many of the research materials at his disposal in a video teaser depicting the world and tone of FOOL THEM ONCE.

Tim Kahn, and his brothers Steve Kahn and Brian Kahn, all of whom lived through the Matusow episode (sons of Albert and Riette Kahn), are all still living and offer a tapestry of recollections and opinions of this era.

Additionally, through the process of researching the story, the creative team has cultivated relationships with experts and scholars across the country who can bring this story to life.

TOPICS, QUESTIONS & MORE

“What if I told you that in October, 1954, the most wanted man in America was an overweight former clown, criss-crossing Texas and New Mexico on a rusty bicycle with nothing more than a canteen, a knife, and a sack full of puppets? That a race was underway to control him and his lies, lies which held the power to upend American politics and free the innocent from prison? And that, thanks to the courage of a blacklisted journalist and his rag-tag publishing team, the clown came clean — but that they all unwittingly enabled the rise of this country’s most notorious political monster?”

ALT: “How did an ex-soldier, failed children’s entertainer, and part-time communist go from barfly, to political celebrity millionaire, to America’s most wanted man, to vagabond whistle-blower all in four years — when he was just 26 years old? And why is his story the most-overlooked key to the Trump presidency?”

ALT: “How did a blacklisted journalist and his rag-tag team of publishers in 1955 convince a con man to come clean about his lies on behalf of the government, thereby putting the final nail in the coffin of McCarthyism and setting the innocent free from prison? And what’s more, how did they unwittingly enable the rise of America’s most notorious political monster and pave the way for the Trump presidency?”

PROSPECTIVE PODCAST EPISODE: Salt Of The Earth
“How did a 1951 mine strike in New Mexico change public perception of American unions and set the stage for Matusow’s rise — and McCarthy’s fall?”

PROSPECTIVE PODCAST EPISODE: Why Lying Works
“What does Harvey Matusow’s story tell us about how con men operate and how they can push entire nations to the brink with words alone?”

PROSPECTIVE PODCAST EPISODE: The Cohn Doctrine
“How does a gay man, raised into a liberal Jewish household, wind up spending his life persecuting gays and liberal Jews? And how does he win the presidency from beyond the grave?”

PROSPECTIVE PODCAST EPISODE: The Lavender Scare
“Would it surprise you to know that during the Red Scare of the 1950’s there was another, lesser-know, public hysteria? One which arguably ruined more lives?”

PROSPECTIVE PODCAST EPISODE: The New Age of the FBI
“How far was Hoover willing to go to protect the reputation of his Bureau? And how far would his agents go to meet his demands?”

PROSPECTIVE PODCAST EPISODE: Speaking Truth to Power
“What happens when true believers from opposite sides finally meet? How do you know your truth is The truth?”

PROSPECTIVE EPISODE DETAILS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST