Citizen Cohn

Citizen Cohn is a 1992 made-for-TV movie covering the life of Joseph McCarthy's controversial chief counsel Roy Cohn. James Woods, who starred as Cohn, was nominated for both an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his performance. Citizen Cohn also stars Joe Don Baker (as McCarthy), Ed Flanders (as Cohn's courtroom nemesis Joseph Welch), Frederic Forrest (as writer Dashiell Hammett), and Pat Hingle (as Cohn's onetime mentor J. Edgar Hoover). It was directed by Frank Pierson. The movie was based on the 1988 book of the same name by Nicholas von Hoffman;^[1] it was filmed on location in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Citizen Cohn
Genre	Drama
Based on	Citizen Cohn by Nicholas von Hoffman
Written by	David Franzoni
Directed by	Frank Pierson
Starring	James Woods
Music by	Thomas Newman
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Executive producers	Linda Gottlieb Mark Rosenberg Paula Weinstein
Producers	Doro Bachrach Cynthia Fitzpatrick
Production locations	Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh
Cinematography	Paul Elliott
Editor	Peter Zinner
Running time	111 minutes
Production companies	Breakheart Films Spring Creek Productions HBO Pictures
Original release
Network	HBO
Release	August 22, 1992 (1992-08-22)

Synopsis

The film spans Cohn's life from childhood through his initial rise to power as McCarthy's right-hand man in the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations hearings and his eventual public discrediting a month before his death in 1986 from AIDS. It is told mostly in flashback as Cohn lies dying at a hospital in Bethesda, Maryland, hallucinating that his many enemies (from Robert F. Kennedy to Ethel Rosenberg, a convicted Communist spy he sent to the electric chair) are haunting him. It concerns aspects of Cohn's life such as his closeted homosexuality and the measure of his culpability in the "Red Scare" of the 1950s. While the movie portrays Cohn in a decidedly unsympathetic light, it also depicts episodes in his life, such as the death of his beloved mother, in which he showed a more humane, compassionate side.

Cast

The real Roy Marcus Cohn (right) with Joseph McCarthy

• James Woods as Roy Cohn
• Joe Don Baker as Senator Joseph McCarthy
• Joseph Bologna as Walter Winchell
• Ed Flanders as Joseph N. Welch
• Jeffrey Nordling as G. David Schine
• Frederic Forrest as Dashiell Hammett
• Lee Grant as Dora Cohn
• Pat Hingle as J. Edgar Hoover
• John McMartin as 'Older Doctor'
• Karen Ludwig as Ethel Rosenberg
• Josef Sommer as Albert C. Cohn
• Daniel Benzali as Cardinal Francis Spellman
• Tovah Feldshuh as Iva Schlesinger
• John Finn as Senator Charles Potter
• Fritz Weaver as Senator Everett Dirksen
• Frances Foster as 'First Annie Lee Moss'
• Novella Nelson as 'Second Annie Lee Moss'
• Allen Garfield as Abe Feller
• David Marshall Grant as Robert F. Kennedy
• Daniel von Bargen as Clyde Tolson
• Lester Hoffman as Executioner #1

Score

Thomas Newman composed the largely minimalist film score.

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
1992	Peabody Awards		Home Box Office	Won	[2]
1993	American Cinema Editors Awards	Best Edited Television Special	Peter Zinner	Won	[3]
	American Society of Cinematographers Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in a Movie of the Week or Pilot	Paul Elliott	Nominated	[4]
	Artios Awards	Best Casting for TV Movie of the Week	Mary Colquhoun	Won	[5]
	CableACE Awards	Movie or Miniseries	Mark Rosenberg, Paula Weinstein, Doro Bachrach, Frank Pierson, and David Franzoni	Won	[6]
		Actor in a Movie or Miniseries	James Woods	Nominated
		Directing for a Movie or Miniseries	Frank Pierson	Won
		Writing a Movie or Miniseries	David Franzoni	Nominated
		Art Direction in a Dramatic Special or Series/Theatrical Special/Movie or Miniseries	Gary Kosko	Nominated
		Direction of Photography and/or Lighting Direction in a Dramatic or Theatrical Special/Movie or Miniseries	Paul Elliott	Nominated
		Editing a Dramatic Special or Series/Theatrical Special/Movie or Mini-Series	Peter Zinner	Nominated
		Make-Up	Deborah La Mia Denaver and Matthew W. Mungle	Nominated
	Directors Guild of America Awards	Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Specials	Frank Pierson	Nominated	[7]
	Golden Globe Awards	Best Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television		Nominated	[8]
		Best Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television	James Woods	Nominated
	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Made for Television Movie	Mark Rosenberg, Paula Weinstein, Linda Gottlieb, and Doro Bachrach	Nominated	[9]
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Special	James Woods	Nominated
		Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special	Lee Grant	Nominated
		Outstanding Individual Achievement in Directing for a Miniseries or a Special	Frank Pierson	Nominated
		Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing for a Miniseries or a Special	David Franzoni	Nominated
		Outstanding Individual Achievement in Art Direction for a Miniseries or a Special	Stephen Marsh, Gary Kosko, and Diana Stoughton	Nominated
		Outstanding Individual Achievement in Casting for a Miniseries or a Special	Mary Colquhoun and Donna Belajac	Won
		Outstanding Individual Achievement in Costume Design for a Miniseries or a Special	Jill M. Ohanneson	Nominated
		Outstanding Individual Achievement in Editing for a Miniseries or a Special – Single Camera Production	Peter Zinner	Won
		Outstanding Individual Achievement in Hairstyling for a Miniseries or a Special	Mona Orr	Nominated
		Outstanding Individual Achievement in Makeup for a Miniseries or a Special	Lynne K. Eagan, Matthew W. Mungle, John E. Jackson, and Deborah La Mia Denaver	Won
		Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Drama Miniseries or a Special	John Pritchett, Dan Wallin, Anna Behlmer, and Richard Portman	Nominated

See also

• Angels in America