Documentary Now!

Good evening.

I'm Helen Mirren,

and you're watching "Documentary Now" season 51.

In 1992, filmmaker RC Baumgartner

set out for Ohio to chronicle a gubernatorial campaign.

While the intended focus was the candidates,

it soon shifted to those behind the scenes.

Through Baumgartner's lens, the world was introduced

to political operators Teddy Redbones

and Alvin Panagoulious

in the campaign classic, "The Bunker."

That's right.

As a former councilman, I care very much about Ohio.

Yes.

And I think it's important to run

and give Ohioans a choice.

That's right.

I run as a...

as a kindness, you might say.

Okay.

Well, you have a good afternoon

and then a good night.

Now, that is fun.

Talking on the telephone to reporters.

Hey, listen to this.

"Modest though he is,

"Ben Herndon yesterday handed his campaign

"over to a rogue's gallery of political gurus

"including Teddy Redbones,

"the so-called Mississippi Machiavelli,

and Alvin Panagoulious, the boy-hunk..."

Wow... "of the Beltway."

Huh, you think I'm a cute hunk?

I feel like I'm shy.

- No, they always write the same stuff about me.

A Mississippi Machiavelli or Sunburnt Succubus or...

what's the other one? Suspected arsonist.

- Uh-huh. Yeah?

- But, uh, you know what they always leave out?

Undefeated. That's right.

Undefeated.

- Did you fellas forget to take your shoes off?

Oh, sorry.

Apologies.

I mean, my goal is to have an office

that just has a lot of open communication,

so any messages for the candidate

can go through me.

If there are any phone calls for the candidate,

this all goes through me.

Everything's streamlined so it goes through me.

Just faster that way, and...

I don't know who put these up,

but this one is a nine,

and this wall should be all tens.

You know, blondes, brunettes.

Tasteful. Just tens.

It's a little thing but it just affects everything, so...

- Okay. - All right, thanks.

- And let's please make sure on all the flyers

that the name is spelled correctly.

It's H-E-R-N-D-O-N, Herndon.

And now let's hear from the man of the campaign, Mr...

- Get out of my way. Out of my way.

- Teddy Redbones. - Get out of my way.

Let me tell you what this election's about, okay?

Let me tell you why I wake up at 4:30 in the morning so angry.

Because Governor Lester with his head of hair

and his perfect suits and his "jogging,"

well, he thinks he's got

this re-election in the bag, right?

What, because our guy ain't James Dean?

Well, let me tell you something.

We've all been the most unpopular guy in the room.

Yeah?

We've all been the person at the wedding

no one wants to speak to during passed appetizers, yeah?

And now we're up against Mr. Popular.

Okay?

Governor Lester with his... his perfect record

and his money and his $10 family,

well, let me tell you something.

Even the shiniest, most beautiful apple

has something mushy and brown underneath.

Now, we got to find whatever weird, mushy brownness

we can on Governor Lester, all right?

So let's get this goin'. Come on.

- So I guess the question is, how do you get excited

about a candidate who says he is only running

as a "kindness to the voters,"

and who has publicly praised

Governor Lester's first term in office?

- He praised it publicly, exactly, to be nice.

It's kind of like when you meet someone's wife

and you say she's a ten when really she's a true five.

I mean, I don't think I'm speaking out of turn

when I say that. We all do that.

- And that's your political strategy?

Rating women?

Ah. - You could see it that way.

Okay. Okay.

I'm Luanne Maltley with "Politics Now."

We'll be right back.

I think it went very well.

I understand that you're new to our style,

but it's very effective, I assure you.

Don't worry.

Not gonna do anything

that makes you feel uncomfortable.

Oh, jackass alert right here.

"Re-elect Lester."

All right, hold up.

A lawn jockey?

It's 1992.

What kind of people are th-these Lester supporters?

- Our man's a little nervous about our tactics,

but he just needs to see that we've got it under control.

- Yeah, I'm not worried about our man.

No, what I'm worried about is, uh,

we don't have any honest-to-God dirt

on Governor Lester.

Oh, here's another one.

Uh-huh.

Whoo!

It's why I love Ohio,

because you can't say it without saying, "Oh, hi."

And I want to say "Oh, hi" to all the voters

on election day.

And maybe the voters would like a change.

We have had a lot of Governor Lester

and his cronies in the toll authority.

- That's right, you go for the jugular, fat man.

- I appreciate your support and thank you all for being here

and, uh, let's... let's win this thing.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Is that my jacket?

It's the room's jacket.

- Um, our man's a little nervous that the new TV ad is negative.

We have it?

Mary Beth, we have it? - Mm-hmm.

- Put it in. Let's see it.

Come on. Let's go.

- This Sunday is Governor Lester's birthday.

Let's hope...

It's his last.

On election day vote for Ben Herndon.

- Okay, our biggest problem, as usual, is time,

so this is running 18 seconds.

Local TV will run it twice as long

if we get it done at 11.

- Now can we add kids singing "Happy Birthday"

all spooky-like?

That will just add more time.

Right.

Am I the only one that's concerned

that this spot plays

like we want Governor Lester to die?

Wow, I don't understand.

W... walk me through that.

I feel like you're saying,

"We hope it's your last birthday."

In office.

We hope that Governor Lester will celebrate

his last birthday in office

because we've got the right guy with the right ideas

who loves his state.

We're not only saying, uh,

"Happy birthday, Governor Lester."

We're also saying,

"Hope you don't have to work

on your birthday next year."

I mean, it's two different types of nice.

It's a death threat.

It's clear, it's a death threat.

- I know how we can shave off five seconds.

Go.

What if we take out

"This election, vote for Ben Herndon?"

- Yes, just say, "Hope it's your last."

Cut to spooky kids singing, "Happy birthday."

Spooky as shit.

Freeze frame, x-ray on the photo.

- Okay, you just added 15 more seconds.

Goddamn it, Mary Beth.

In one hour I got to go meet with a forger

to try to change Governor Lester's

high school yearbook quote, you understand?

So I've got to be able to leave here

knowing that this ad plays without you coming

and pinching out the waist about ten seconds.

Okay?

I can't work like that.

- I trust you. It'll be okay. - Mm-hmm.

Figure it out!

- Mr. Redbones, "The Cleveland Plain Dealer"

wrote today that Herndon is

"wildly unfit to be governor."