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daily nebraskan
Wednesday, march 28, 1980
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'Delight ful' film comments on TV's role in society
By Jennifer Dauman
Television has the means to teach its viewers every
aspect of life. Even a complete idiot can learn the right
behavior to contribute to society. Taken even further, this
proposition implies that the idiot, schooled in the ways of
the media, can rise to a position of social prominence.
This is the case for Chauncey Gardiner (Peter Sellers)
in Being There. Chauncey began life as "Chance," so
named because he arrived by chance. Brought up as the
gardener for a wealthy man, he never stepped outside of
the house his whole life.
Through the years radio and then television provided
his only contacts with the outside world. Gardening is
Chance's only skill, and the broadcast media are his only
teachers. When the owner dies the house is closed up and
dance suddenly must make his way in the real world.
Facing the 'real world
Chance is innocent intellectually, sexually, socially and
politically. He doesn't have any idea how to take care of
himself. On his fust day out he stops an old woman carry
ing a bag of groceries to ask her if she can give him some
thing to eat; Louise the maid has always taken care of his
meals before. When he is threatened by a group of teen
age boys, he responds by flicking at them with his remote
television control, because life for Chance consists of
changing channels.
In spite of these shaky beginnings, Chance is taken in
by a wealthy industrialist and his wife, Ben and Eve Rand.
Misunderstood as saying his name is Chauncey Gardiner in-
J tot ; u -V sX
Photo by Jerry McBride
Singer guitarist David Bromberg will perform in the Omaha Music Hall, Friday, April 4 at 8 p.m. Tickets
are currently on sale at $6 and S7 the day of the show.
Other concerts in the OmahaLincoln area include: Graham Nash, April 5, in Omaha; REO Speed wagon,
April 5, in Lincoln; John Denver, April 6, in Omaha; The Oak Ridge Boys, April 8, in Omaha; Frank Zappa,
April 12, in Omaha; and Linda Ronstadt, April 23, in Omaha.
In addition, The Who will play several concert dates in the Midwest, including an April 26 concert in Kan
sas City at the Kemper Arena.
stead of "Chance the gardner he emerges into the world
with a new identity.
Idiot makes good
In line with the initial proposition of Being There.
Chauncey soon finds himself in the limelight. He becomes
known as an important financial adviser to Ben Rand,
talks to and is quoted by the President of the United
States (Jack Warden), appears on a nationally televised
talk show and generally hobnobs with the Capitol Hill
crowd.
With a less skillful group of actors, all of this could
have become tedious, but Being There maintains its fluid
ity right up to three minutes before the end. Sellers
Chauncey pulls a marvelously blank expression, occasion
ally breaking into a small grin when he is pleased by some
thing he sees on TV. His performance is as fine as that of
James Caan as a brain-damaged ex-athlete in Vie Rain
People. Instead of being stock patsy characters, Ben and
Eve Rand (Melvyn Douglas and Shirley MacLaine) come
across as fully individualized personalities. This is largely
due to the subtlety and empathy that the two actors
bring to their roles.
Being There is an adaptation of Jerzy Kosinski's 1971
novel. Kosinski's film screenplay exhibits great sensitiv
ity for the types of alterations necessary in the transition
between artistic media.
'Square peg movies
Director Hal Ashby's projects have tended to deal with
square-peg-in-the-round-hole characters: a love affair be
tween an elderly woman and a teenage boy in Harold and
Maude: a wandering Depression-era songwriter in Bound
for Glory'; Vietnam war veterans adjusting to life in the
States in Coming Home. Once again Ashby works with a
character who is "different," but the tragedy of Chaun
cey 's maladjustment is lessened by Society Vinimediate
acceptance of him. Chauncey 's particular brand of non
conformity, his dim mental ability, is obscured by his
association with acceptable behavior from television pro
grams. - . . -- - -
' In one way, the story is heartening: this poor guy who
is really quite likable manages to survive. But the more
frightening side of Being Tliere shows that the means for
attaining great power in the U.S. are hf the hands of any
one with access to a television set. The people around
Chauncey are so immersed in the media that they fail to
recognize his moronic nature.
If the media can school and market an idiot, can it not
do the same for even worse products? And if the masses
saturated by the media are such puppets that they allow
this to happen, then what? If mass media consumers are
made so passive and indiscriminating that they fail to
intelligently criticise the media, then the corporate in
terests that control it will have virtually unlimited power.
On the surface, the story of Chauncey Gardiner isde-
lightful entertainment. But underlying this, Being Tliere
raises important issues to be reckoned with.
Being Tliere is showing at the Plaza 4 Theater, 12th
and P Streets.
Excel
lencelF..
Continued from Page I
The plan continues: "The office for
Student Affairs and the Division of Contin
uing Studies have been cooperating to
develop new admission, registration, and
advising procedures designed especially for
the non -traditional student. Efforts to pro
vide convenience as well as excellence of
educational opportunity will continue over
the five-year period."
Ware said advising procedures designed
particularly for the non-traditional student
means that the advising department should
take a strong look at how it advises Native
American students," especially those from
reservations who may have little or no idea
what education is all about.
. Roach said if the regents are really con
cerned about inequities at the professional
level, a special advising program needs to
be set up for minority students.
Ware said that many students come to
UNL unaware of class requirements and
meet with failure.
Roach said that he is aware that all
students face problems "but because of
the limited number of Native American
students, we can't afford to lose any."
Regent Ed Schwartzkopf said "non
traditional" students doesn't refer to
Indian students. Schwartzkopf interpreted
"non-traditional" as a way of studying
not a type of student.
Schwartzkopf said Centennial College is
the answer for non-traditional students
because it has a flexible and non-traditional
type of education.
The regents' affirmative action program
is cited for improvement and expansion.
Roach pointed out one paragraph:
"The intensified recruitment and con
sideration of minority group members and
women to insure that students, candidates
and employees with appropriate qualifi
cations, potential, and responsibilities are
afforded equal opportunity for selection,
training, promotion, and compensation
without disadvantage to race, age, color,
religion, sex, disability, or national origin."
About recruiting minorities, Schwartz
kopf said that it is difficult to recruit
minorities when they don't graduate from
high school. He said that a lot of the effort
has to come from minority families, in
supporting education .
Schwartzkopf said he doesn't think
there is a lack of recruiting effort at UNL
Another goal of the plan is:
"Thus the university will attempt to ex
pand the range of students it serves both in
terms of their ages and location in the
state; it will offer these students alternative
educational programs suited to their needs,
interests and life styles; and it will strive to
make the intellectual, artistic, cultural and
practical resources of the university more
accessible to Nebraskans in all walks of
life."
Ware said that UNL cultural activities
must include minorities. The Russian ballet
is not the only type of cultural activity in
the world, he said.
TV missing from Selleck
A lounge in Selleck Quadrangle was
broken into Sunday morning and a 19-inch
color television and its wooden stand was
taken, said Bob Fey, UNL police investi
gator. The items, valued at $500, were stolen
between 3 ajn. and 10:30 ajn he said.
The burglar entered by prying open and
crawling through a lounge window.
Although there are no suspects in the
case. Fey said he thinks someone would
have seen the thief carry the stolen items
out the door. He added that more than one
person may have been involved.