It's a Date - The Attempted Assassination of Theodore Roosevelt - October 14th, 1912
INTERVIEW EXCERPT #1
WE ONLY HEAR FROM THE INTERVIEWEE
THERE IS ALWAYS A ONE-LINE INTRO - EG “Jane Smith is a professor of american history at Milwaukee University with a particular interest in the political landscape at the start of the 20th century”
IN THIS CASE, THE INTERVIEWEE IS ASKED TO PROVIDE DETAIL ABOUT WHAT TYPE OF PERSON, CHARACTER ETC. ROOSEVELT WAS - AND HOW HE WAS POSITIONING HIMSELF IN US POLITICS AT THE TIME
So, here we have someone who, to many Americans - especially the working classes - was a heroic figure of fearless leadership. But, among his critics, Roosevelt was painted as reckless, egotistical, and even dangerously radical. The eventual emergence of John Schrank as Roosevelt’s would-be assassin isn’t quite so straight-forward as Schrank simply disliking Roosevelt’s policies, however. And, in fact, Schrank’s leading inspiration in trying to kill Roosevelt was altogether more mysterious and spiritual.
In the build-up to the assassination attempt, Schrank - a native of Bavaria, Germany who had moved to America as a child - had followed his target all around the country, on the campaign trail. Schrank had long been obsessed with Roosevelt, believing that he had been complicit in the 1901 murder of former President William McKinley - who Roosevelt had previously been Vice President to and, again, who Roosevelt succeeded as President following McKinley’s death in 1901.
Between the years 1901 and 1912, John Schrank claimed to have experienced dreams and visions during which the ghost of William McKinley appeared to him… urging him to avenge his death, and implying that Roosevelt truly had been to blame. In reality, there is no historical suggestion that Roosevelt was involved, but in Schrank’s mind the case against him was clear. So much so that Schrank believed that he was on a mission from God to take Roosevelt out. On September 14th 1912, exactly one month before his assasination attempt, Schrank claimed to have had his final major visitation from McKinley, who allegedly told him not to let a murderer serve as President for a third term.
The winding paths walked by Roosevelt and Schrank do, of course, eventually cross. On October 14th, 1912 when, as Roosevelt appears on the steps of the Gilpatrick Hotel, Schrank is waiting amongst the crowd at the bottom of those same steps.
INTERVIEW EXCERPT #2
WE ONLY HEAR FROM THE INTERVIEWEE
IN THIS CASE, THE INTERVIEWEE IS ASKED TO PROVIDE FURTHER DETAIL ABOUT WHAT TYPE OF PERSON, CHARACTER ETC. SCHRANK WAS - AND TO REFLECT ON HOW HIS ACTIONS WERE THE PRODUCT OF HIS OWN MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES, BUT ALSO A REFLECTION OF JUST HOW POLARIZING US POLITICS HAD BECOME AT THE TIME
But, again, Roosevelt doesn’t die. No matter the motive behind the attack on his life, he leaves the scene with his life intact. And it’s mostly due to some extreme good fortune. The bullet fired by Schrank does hit Roosevelt in the chest. But, in doing so, it passes through a thick, steel glasses case in Roosevelt’s pocket, and then through the folded, fifty-page speech that (remember) he was due to deliver later that day. The exact placement of these two objects slowed Schrank’s bullet down just enough that it didn’t quite reach (nor penetrate) Roosevelt’s lung. Instead, it lodged in the surrounding muscle across his chest.
Roosevelt may have been hurt but, remarkably, he carried on. He stayed standing before the crowd, and even persuaded them not to lynch Schrank there and then, following Schrank’s almost immediate capture. Roosevelt was clearly opposed to violence against his attempted assassin as a punishment.
The wounded campaigner did then leave the scene, but only to travel to the auditorium he was due at. There, Roosevelt spoke for about 50 minutes, with blood all the while seeping through his shirt. Only after meeting his public commitments did Roosevelt accept medical help. The decision was made not to extract the bullet from his chest, and so he lived the rest of his life with a constant reminder. That reminder apparently didn’t bother Roosevelt himself, though, as he likened it to simply having something in his waistcoat pocket.
In the end, although thankfully alive and safe, Theodore Roosevelt was unsuccessful in his run for the 1912 election. The Democratic nominee Woodrow Wilson claimed victory, comfortably defeating both him and Taft. Roosevelt died in his sleep just a few years later, in January 1919, aged 60. John Schrank lived for decades more, dying in September 1943, aged 67 - but he spent all his remaining time institutionalized in hospitals for the criminally insane.
The attempt against Roosevelt’s life in the run-up to a then-vital election remains a dark and disturbing moment in US history. At the same time, his insistence that the shooting shouldn’t derail him has become the stuff of legend as, after literally being shot in the chest, Roosevelt famously opened his speech to the masses with an iconic line. “Friends, I shall ask you to be as quiet as possible,” he said. “I don't know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot - but it takes more than that to kill a bull moose”.
STANDARD OUTRO - JINGLE / VISUAL
