Richard Schiff of 'West Wing': TV as the image of government
Toby Ziegler, White House communications director on The West Wing, was one of the most earnest characters in television (especially for a political animal). With a solemn and subtle severity, Toby fought for decency in democracy. If Sam Seaborn was the looker, and Josh Lyman the charisma of the operation, Toby was the Bartlet administration's moral compass.
Toby Ziegler, White House communications director on The West Wing, was one of the most earnest characters in television (especially for a political animal). With a solemn and subtle severity, Toby fought for decency in democracy. If Sam Seaborn was the looker, and Josh Lyman the charisma of the operation, Toby was the Bartlet administration's moral compass.
"He was much smarter than I am, although I am much better looking," joked actor Richard Schiff, who brought Toby to life on screen.
As part of PoliticalFest, Schiff stopped by the National Constitution Center this week to talk about his role on The West Wing and to compete in show-theme trivia against co-star Melissa Fitzgerald (Carol Fitzpatrick on The West Wing). Fitzgerald won, thanks mostly to super-fans on her team who knew all the answers. Both actors phoned friends, making calls to Dulé Hill, Allison Janney, Bradley Whitford, and Joshua Malina.
Schiff spoke with the Inquirer about how celebrities can use their status for social good. He mentioned an audience member who asked him a question at the PoliticalFest Q&A session on Tuesday. This man was a veteran who had been in therapy because of trauma, and who had lived in Sandy Hook, Conn., during the massacre in 2012. He wondered how Schiff would effect change. His response: by giving others a platform to share their stories. Here is a video of the entire interview:
"If the spotlight is coming on me just because I'm an actor, let me move the spotlight to someone like that gentleman," Schiff said. "Let me move the spotlight to people . . . who've been through the experiences, so we can hear it on a very real level."
That said, he understands why people would hesitate to take political advice from an actor. Schiff isn't your typical star: Before making it big, he was in nine different unions with jobs as diverse as taxi driver and electrician. When he was younger, he remembers watching Charlton Heston as president of the National Rifle Association and wondering what qualified him for such a position, except that he pretended to be a cowboy on film.
"I get the reflex," Schiff said. "And I think it's our obligation to get past that and try to find a way to speak to people that makes sense."
In some ways, he's already achieved that through Toby.
"Here at the convention, a hundred people a day will come up to me and say, 'You're the reason I'm a speechwriter' or, 'You're the reason I got involved with this,' " Schiff said. "And my reaction is, 'I'm so sorry,' because you have no money in your pocket and you're working 18 hours a day."
In 2008, he flew to Iowa to support then-presidential candidate Joe Biden. There, he met young Barack Obama campaigners. They told him they had volunteered because of The West Wing, and as he watched Obama win caucus states because of the efforts of their generation, he realized the show had truly made an impact.
"When he won election, it suddenly dawned on me that The West Wing might have had an effect on who became president of the United States," he said.
The show has interpreted government for many people. An episode in Season One titled "Mr. Willis of Ohio" tackled the U.S. Census. After it aired, a senator praised Schiff for explaining in 60 minutes what he himself had failed to explain to his constituents for 25 years. Officials often wrote the actors to thank them, or to point out errors. One letter-writer sent Schiff a detailed explanation of why Toby's Social Security plan could never work in the United States. It was signed by Hillary Rodham Clinton, then a senator from New York.
But Schiff denied that The West Wing didn't fit reality, pointing to the flaws of its most prominent figures. "I think why people idealize them is because they are characters that wanted to leave the world . . . better than when they came into office," he said. "Their heart and their minds were in the right place. They made mistakes. They didn't achieve a whole lot, if you actually look at the accomplishments of the Bartlet administration. But it was the effort, and the fact that they were heroic in their effort.
"I don't find the real world that much different, to be honest," he csaid. "It's just that they don't have as good of lighting as we do. We don't forgive them as easily. They're under a much more discerning microscope than we are. We're storytellers, and so we could end it and pull a tear out of your eye."
Mike Newall writes about participating in the West Wing trivia contest here. Here is a video of the entire contest:
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