That's along the lines of why I like Aaron Sorkin. He writes people and dialogue how I would like to be/talk in the real world. It's not realistic dialogue, but it works so well.
My Dad passed away last week. He taught middle school English for 30 years. Past students used to call our house and give him updates about their lives.
@@linzzyy Thanks. I was fortunate enough to make enough money to help them out financially in their later years. Many days of my childhood were spent reading mythology books in my Dad's bedroom while he graded papers and / or did lesson plans for his classes. Several years ago, I took a few weeks off from work and we took a trip to Europe to see the ancient ruins in Italy and Greece. It gave me a sense of quiet satisfaction for him to be able to visit places where he read and taught from books. Haha, a small payback for all the trouble I caused in my teenage years.
I am so sorry for your loss because it is our loss because teachers impart more than just knowledge. my fifth grade teacher MRS Revis a African American taught me to look beyond myself and to care about the rights and liberty of others in her class of 1969 and I am Mexican American. in 1970 my science teacher Mrs Coffer taught us climate science and to respect all life. In 1972 my Military science instructor Colonel John Trojan taught me through his sacrifice of being a pow in WW2 and Korea and Vietnam what courage and faith was all about. in 1974 thru 1976 my Naval science instructor master chief Ollie Lovett taught me that color was not a barrier to excellence and he inspired me to serve in the U.S.A.F. your father lives on just as these people who helped to shape me they have all passed on to Glory but they live still
HKim0072 The legacy that your father has passed down is more than just for you, although you are so greatly blessed by it. A good teacher, a good leader, a person who touches your life at a critical moment, becomes part of the fabric that is one's life. For all time. Your father touched countless lives. With a little luck, that legacy can be passed on to others who never knew your father. In my case, I try to share knowledge and perspectives with younger folks that were imparted to me by the men and women I have been blessed to have come into my life, even briefly. I cannot help but think of the movie Mr Holland's Opus, specifically the end scene where his dream becomes reality, even for a few fleeting moments. Some of the lives he touched were playing for him right there, for all the world to see. You also have the blessings of beautiful memories. As for any troubles you may have caused as a teenager, well, just about everyone can relate to that. Thank you for sharing with us a small piece of your life.
ArcaneAzmadi I had emailed a high school teacher about an event I was holding and I hadn’t seen her in 22 years. I reminded her of some of her lessons and mentioned them, reminded her of my project on Da Vinci, and she said she *of course* remembered me. She said it was the biggest compliment when a student remembers her lessons. I remembered the Habsburgs and the Romanovs. The “Willie-Nicki” letters, the Holy Roman Empire, and more. She was very happy to hear from me and flattered I remembered my lessons after all those years.
There was a Mrs. Morello at my high school. She taught African Studies and World History. She was excellent, the favorite teacher of a couple of my friends. I graduated in 1969, and I'm delighted to know that Mrs. Morello is still alive! Her son Tom Morello started a band.
I still remember my English Literature teacher. I kept my "Paradise Lost" book from that class for a long time. It was one of my absolute favorite classes. Trust me. Someone out there, one of your students, will remember you and will credit you (maybe not personally) for shaping them in some way into the person they became. I'm sorry for mixing tenses in the same sentence. If I can recommend some "medicine" for an exhausted and fed up teacher, here's a Twilight Zone Radio episode that is a tribute to teachers. th-cam.com/video/1eUBxgXeQU0/w-d-xo.html
Janel Moloney does;t get enough credit for Donna. Yes it was a stellar cast and Allison Janney hoovered up all the Emmys because she was excellent but I do think Moloney should've picked up at least one. I love characters that develop from nowhere, Donna was a small supporting role and the sheer chemistry between Moloney and Whitford barged Mandy out of the way and got Donna a full cast role, which she never lost. Its a great story arc.
Janel did a great job on TWW and I agree that she should've gotten a nomination along the way. But I don't think she necessarily had to win the Emmy to get validation. They only give out one Emmy per category every year and just being nominated is a great accomplishment. There is a lot of amazing actors out there who do great work and never get nominated for anything.
@@GaryM67-71 You don't know which war zones, you don't even know if he was a fighter. He could have been a doctor without border or red cross or part of an NGO, but no you didn't think for a second and jumped onto the first unoriginal cliché what you call your mind came up with.
@@arthurbriand2175 I don't care which war zones, or what his job was. My hatred of those who arrange these wars extends to anyone that gets involved in any capacity. And you all fall for the war propaganda schtick too. You'll soon see how God is going to punish the whole planet for its lawlessness, famines, plagues and earthquakes and much worse are coming, and His day of wrath on 7th September 2032. Time soon for the meek to inherit the earth.
Tom (for the life of me I can't remember his last name because he hated me using it). I had to attend night school because my father got sick my junior year of high school and I had to drop out to take care of my family. He taught history and civics. He loved it when I argued with him about politics or interpretation of history especially when we had opposite views. The day I earned my degree from college he was waiting for me with my family after the graduation ceremony. He had been in touch with my mother for years and made it a point to be there.
No probably about it. Every aspect, the writing, the acting, the music and so much more was absolutely amazing. The WW wasn't a show to me, it was a best friend. It had the power to move me, pick me up, and at times break me down. I will forever be grateful that it was in my life.
There are so many great scenes in this series. This one, The scene from the Stackhouse filibuster where they get the senator to answer a question, the scene where Leo tells Josh the story about the guy falling down the hole. The Butterball Turkey Hotline. There are so many which exemplifies what a terrific show this was. I miss it a lot.
+dms0627 I go to my local library and check out the season DVD's of West Wing about once a year.....I dig them just as much as the first time I watched.....Salute
+dms0627 I would add Charlie receiving the letter written to FDR when he was president, whose mail code Bartlet had copied ("For the hundredth time, it was an homage!") whose author is invited to the White House with his son - and asked to eat with the President, who's genuinely excited to hear from him about FDR's speech.
And this is a little different, but when the man at the hotel bar starts talking to Toby - not knowing who he is - about how he's been visiting colleges with his daughter ("My boss went to Notre Dame") and how he didn't think, as he and his wife both worked, that it would be so hard to pay for college, it should be just a little easier . . . "I'm sorry; I'm Matt Kelly." "Toby Ziegler . . . I work at the White House." (Signals Josh over.) "You have a minute to talk? We'd like to buy you a beer." I just love that scene - that whole episode, 20 Hours in America.
The West Wing has been my favorite show for a long time. I was a high school guidance counselor for 25 years and could totally relate to that scene. I took an early retirement to relocate to Michigan a few years ago, and just recently got back into public education. Sure there are lots of jobs and careers that are lucrative and have meaning. To me, there will never be anything that takes the place of education.
My husband taught school for 42 years, and nothing made him any more sure of his choice of career than when a former student came back and told a success story. Several thanked him for his influence.
I've been a teacher for 20 years now (just typing that makes me feel old!), and occasionally my old students will come by to say hello, or send me an email about their lives. It fills me with joy to know them happy and well. As teachers, we can only hope our charges feel understood, encouraged and believed in; we want the best for you. Please, if there was a teacher who made you feel like you were important, that inspired you, send your teacher a message. It gives us strength.
I wish I could, but he died a few months after I graduated, when I was still in Basic Training. I never saw him after I left. But, I've decided to dedicate my first book to him, as he was an English teacher and constantly supported my work.
Damn. This has to be in the top ten best written shows ever. Its sharp, crisp, witty and intelligent, and the words on the page do exactly what they intend to do, every time every episode.
My English teacher made Shakespeare come alive and without her I wouldn't have gone on to study literature at college - If I could thank her now, I would, but she died a few years back, so this scene helped me remember the fun we had in her lessons - This is for you Mrs. Fenning - thank you :)
+Mike “Arminius” Fluegel aww so nice i pulled people bodes of woods and do that when not be beat up by 200 p man there cool what good dose do if you dead ! some of us learn things u done lke to live cant learn of all think about is if you not going to be a live i learn to shoot guns fight with knifes and im dum realy keep in mind i was 14 then its time you sumg ass get a tast of it if could see how u do would u live
I've seen this a half dozen times and I still tear up. "I'm in the Oval Office with the President of the United States and it's because of you." Thank you teachers indeed. They cut away just when Jed starts talking about Shakespeare. I'm a sucker for Shakespeare so it gets me every time. I wanna stay in the Oval with Donna but The Show Must Go On.
If all the world was a stage then Aaron Sorkin and the rest of the cast and crew would be running the planet right now. And even though I’m conservative, I think that be just fine. Competent left/right centrist is better than an incompetent or incomprehensible radical.
I've been a retired teacher for 21 years now (I joke that even my retirement can legally drink!) but this scene gets me every time. If there is a teacher who meant something to your life, don't wait until it's too late to thank them. We love hearing from "our kids". I am still in the small town where I taught and run into my formers all the time. It was bad enough when I was introduced to their kids but I am now meeting their grands and it's just depressing!
After every time I watch Trump's press conference on T.V., I have to watch a snippet from West wing for my head to stop spinning. I need this fiction to reduce the suffering inflicted by reality.
"What a thing to say!"... that's every amazing teacher i've ever had. Loath to take credit, and an unspoken mission to always keep shoving the kids forward.
Just a brilliant scene. To call one of your favourite teachers and tell them you are standing in a particular place with a very important person, who then talks directly to that teacher...That would be priceless.
How many more times will Aaron Sorkin manage to meld our hearts with our minds. The combination of the writing with the ensemble cast is beyond amazing.
One of my favorite HS teachers was an English teacher. I had her for American Lit as a junior (slacking off so badly she couldn't believe I was the same student in her senior English class. For the record, I did apologize and told her I was going to make it up. She graded on a curve. I did so well that she had to throw my grades out or half the class would have failed. (I thanked her for that. I did want to be responsible for THAT,) After graduation went off and became a military linguist. The first 5 weeks were basically a review of that senior English class. Before heading to my first duty station I went back home and visited the school. It mush have been Spring Break, but she was in. I made it a point to thank her in person. Mrs. Mitchell, Carson HS, Carson, CA. I was Class of 1980. So that visit was just over 40 years ago now.
Too precious few of us had a teacher like this -- the one who did so much more than perform a job, going far beyond text book lessons and helping to mould us into the people we are. And they lived for a comment like Donna's.
My brother taught high school English for 30 years. He's still in contact with many of his former students to this day....many of whom went on to successful careers in all areas of life. There are teachers in my past for whom I still have the greatest affection and gratitude. Men and women I hold in the very highest esteem. Teaching is a truly noble profession. Considering the kind of shit teachers take from politicians who should know better, (to say nothing of the long hours and lousey pay) it's amazing any decent candidates are still willing to aspire to it. If you can think critically? Thank a teacher.
Loved the show when it came out and watched every single episode diligently. When the series came out on disc, bought it and watched every episode...again. Now, I have it on my computer/tv/all available platforms and I STILL watch episodes. This series somehow gets more relevant with the passing of time. It's truly one of the greatest shows to ever be made and personally, I think President Bartlet is the best President ever, fictional or not.
This scene always makes me work harder because there are teachers who I want to tell this to one day because it was their dedication and guidance that pushed me towards politics
You need to be a teacher, for over 10 years, to really appreciate the depth of this scene. And if you taught English, you will laugh every time you hear "we are going to call that the James Bond version" Damned Martin! He owns pretty much every scene he was in!!
When I graduated with my doctoral degree back in 2015, I only wish I could have shared my success with them like she shared with her teacher. The last I had heard one of my favorite teachers died of cancer. Lots of good memories.
I would have many that I would have to thank(Including several professors) if I were in the same boat. I got lucky with many passionate, and compassionate teachers over my educational journey.
This scene means alot because there are a few teachers that I remember to this day and they left a lasting imprint on my life. It sounds funny, but my kindergarten teacher was one of them. She stayed in touch over the years even when I moved out of state in high school. She even attended my mother's funeral when I was in the military. Never underestimate the impact a great teacher can have on a child.
I had a couple of teachers like that. One was an English teacher who knew how to make Shakespeare come alive-to not just go over the words, but _why_ the characters said and did what they did, and how the motivations of the people to act a certain way weren't just relics of the Elizabethan era-that people have the same motivations that people due today. The other was my high-school civics teacher. By the discussions we had in class, he'd pretty much figured out who in class was liberal and who was conservative. A couple of times from that point, we'd need to write a paper about a particular subject, but from the other side's POV. So if you were a strong believer in a largely unfettered 2nd Amendment, you'd need to write a pro-gun control paper, and the kids who supported gun control would need to write about why there should be minimal restrictions on 2nd Amendment rights. I ran into him a few years later and asked him why he did that. He said it wasn't to change anybody's mind, but to at least make them think about the other side of the argument (and there is _always_ another side). As he explained "If you only read stuff you already agree with, you never learn anything"
Just one of the many many many scenes that show why I absolutely love The West Wing and why it 's one of the best things EVER MADE. This scene is especially special for me as I had a Molly Morello and that was my high school music teacher Kaye Routcliffe.
Mine was Jim Andy Caudill of Fairview High School, Ashland, Kentucky ...not only a great music teacher and musician ...but a lover of learning. Thanks Mr. Caudill!
My eleventh grade English teacher, Mrs. Blood, taught us The Crucible. From the moment we opened that play, she was Goody Blood to us, and no one could change our minds. What a wonderful human being.
Mrs. Wood, wherever you are ...just wanted you to know that I'm so grateful for your mentoring, your teaching, for your humor and for your love of words and meaning. We did have some fun didn't we.
As an English Teacher, I can't help but love this scene. It makes me well up every time. I also can't help but correct him...that Beowulf was originally written in Old English, not Middle English. But that almost makes the scene sweeter; it gives me a little inside joke to chuckle about.
But Bartlett mispronounced "cavalry" (military term) and said "Calvary" (religious term, location in the New Testament). I wish that had been corrected before the scene made the final cut. That error ruined the whole scene for me, and I'm an avid fan of teachers, an English major, history buff (connected with my genealogy, had an ancestor in the Revolutionary War) and a bibliophile with the largest private library of anyone I know.
Jessica Cooper. I kept scrolling until I found this comment (correcting the Middle English blunder), hoping I wouldn't have to make it myself. So I'm happy to give you your first upvote.
@@issadad Yup. Retired English teacher here. I can't believe Sorkin and the rest of the braintrust dropped the ball on that. Pres. Bartlet for sure would know! (And probably could read the Anglo-Saxon 🙂
Great Scene! Teachers are national treasures who can and do inspire and shape young minds to go on to do great things with their lives. We owe teachers a great deal and a debt that can never really truly be repaid!
Great scene. What would any of us give to have an affirmation at the end of our careers that we did something that made a difference. I love this show.
It was truly one of the best series ever created. Sadly, such a series could never find an audience of thinking, literate, viewers outside of perhaps a specialized streaming service. Once there were cable channels like A&E or The History Channel, but they have sadly turned to rubbish these days 😢
I'd like to think that Mrs. Morello and her husband made it to D.C. on one of those travels in the new year, where they came to see Donna, then Donna arranged for a tour of TWW after 10 pm when Bartlet had left the Oval, only for someone (cough -Josh-couch) to have told him about the said visit and Bartlet surprising them all with a drop in somewhere along that route, with added visit to the Oval. Because doing that sort of thing, that's just in Bartlet's spirit.
Had an English Literature teacher made us read Romeo and Juliet. Now we're just bored teenagers reading the parts that were assigned on any given day. One day I caught her smothering a laugh. So that night I reread what we had done that day. Slowly it dawned on me that Shakespeare was a dirty old goat. Next day after class I asked her if certain passages meant what I thought they did and she confirmed it. Turns out I wasn't the only one to figure it out. A little over a dozen of all her students had. On Wednesday afternoon and Saturday mornings she gave us a more in-depth literature studies. She was a gem. Because of her I enjoy everything from classics to modern fiction. Sometimes I even can catch a newer author using certain techniques from the classics.
:-) Yes, Shakespeare and other Renaissance writers were a LOT bawdier than anyone would suspect! (Yes, I studied Shakespeare and other Renaissance writers in college which I didn't attend until I was in my early 40s and was in the Honors program.) Watch the movie "Shakespeare in Love." The lines and plot situations are straight out of Shakespeare's scripts, and rollicking funny! You'll find out why the movie had to be set in 1593 (Marlowe was, in fact, killed that year), and if you compare names and details and look them up in Wikipedia, you'll find the movie's plot structure used many actual historical facts and people who knew Shakespeare. I wore out my VHS version of the movie and still re-watch the DVD often.
There were a few teachers I remember really well helped me, especially in high school. Ms. Loube (math) and Mr. Moffitt (business) being two of the best. I like to think it was because of their encouragement I went on to become a teacher myself.
The only original surviving copy of Beowulf is in Old English and is absolutely impossible to read without a translation unless you actually know Old English. I would have expected Sorkin to know that. But yeah, I was tearing up when Donna told her where she was.
You can't pick it up and read it, but it's a lot easier for an English speaker to pick up enough Old English to struggle through Beowulf than it is to, say, pick up enough Russian to get through Tolstoy.
I don't know about Beowulf in Old English but if that is the case, don't you think it's the president making a joke? Seems much more likely to me to be honest :)
I speak both rather well and did not find it much easier. It has its own set of problems, not the least of which is a vocab steeped in a long-gone culture that we can only partially reconstruct. It's glutted with [pretentious word alert!] "hapax legomena" -- words that ONLY appear once in a language, so it's difficult to translate. On the other hand, I took Russian with the specific dream of reading "War & Peace". Imagine my surprise the first time I picked up a copy and found great swatches written in French! Here's the opening lines: "Eh bien, mon prince. Gênes et Lucques ne sont plus que des apanages, des поместья, de la famille Buonaparte. Non, je vous préviens que si vous ne me dites pas que nous avons la guerre, si vous vous permettez encore de pallier toutes les infamies, toutes les atrocités de cet Antichrist (ma parole, j'y crois) - je ne vous connais plus, vous n'êtes plus mon ami, vous n'êtes plus мой верный раб, comme vous dites. Ну, здравствуйте, здравствуйте. Je vois que je vous fais peur, садитесь и рассказывайте."
This is a person who reads bible passage in Latin and, cusses out God in Latin. I'm sure he would be able to read Old English. Pretty sure that was sarcasm though
First of all, I'm crying, that was beautiful. Second of all, Beowulf is in old English, not Middle English, and is 100% impossible to read without translation for a native English speaker with no knowledge of old English
As fantastic as this scene is, and i am writing this finding once again a tear in my eye due to it's beauty, it has to be said Beowulf was written in old not middle english, which is a massive difference.
My 6th grade teacher Mrs.Beeson, the bulk of my Jr. High School Teachers, and the bulk of my High School Teachers, and my Teachers at ASU in Boone N.C. Thank You Very Much
I've often wondered if Molly Morello was a nod to Mary Morello, teacher, activist, and mother to Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello. Ms. Morello taught social studies at my HS. She founded Parents for Rock and Rap, an anti-censorship counterpoint to Tipper Gore's Parents' Music Resource Center.
My cousin retired from teaching secondary (high) school three or so years back after more than 10 years at the same school. The students (particularly the girls) from her first senior class often stop her in the supermarket to tell her how their lives are going and to introduce her to their children. Teaching is a profession we need to recognise in a greater more forceful way. Higher salaries would help.
Beowulf is actually written in Old English, not Middle English, which is essentially another language. My stepdaughter was talking yesterday about translating it at university as part of her linguistics degree. There is no way school students could read it in the original, unless Old English was part of the curriculum.
Donna is one, if not my all-time, favorite characters in all of television. Most of the other members of the staff, excluding Charlie (who is also up there on my list) were Ivy-Legaue educated political operatives who sometimes lost sight of the bigger picture. But Donna, a woman who basically walked into the campaign office and started answering phones, offering to sell her car to pay her way, would worry about the inconsequential things and remind the people around her, especially Josh, about the reasons they are doing the work they do. And as the series went on, she grew more sure of herself and grew into a valuable member not only of the administration but a Presidential campaign. Janel did a wonderful job with her.
I tear up everytime I see this seen. I had an English and Drama teacher in high school, Sue Milner, that was the same kind of influence on me. She was like the mother I never had. Any success I've had has been because of her. And BTW, Beowulf isn't in Middle English. It's Old English, and as such usually only taught in the original language in college classes. He might be thinking of Chaucer instead.
Thank you Mr. Youngs, 9th grade English, And I got an A that year, ME! barely a C student in English got an A. The Tempest opened my eyes to reading, I also still have that old copy of Anthem (Ayn Rand) you mailed me the following summer.
Nothing personal here....but 'Anthem' is a perfectly dreadful book. As a writer, Ms. Rand was....well let's just say...she needed to keep the day job.......
You want to know what is slightly messed up about this scene. When Bartlett calls her teaching of Beowulf with a translation 'the James Bond' version he is actually mocking her with a personally joke that she has no understanding of and she thinks its praise when it really isn't.
I watch The West Wing on an endless loop because it's the world I *want* to live in.
100% if politicians were truly like this, we'd be a much better country.
I work in municipal government and sometimes I listen to clips in the background while I work when I need inspiration and hope!
That's along the lines of why I like Aaron Sorkin. He writes people and dialogue how I would like to be/talk in the real world. It's not realistic dialogue, but it works so well.
The best line is when the President whispers "Tell her where you are." because that's the essence of the scene.
Its very nearly the essence of the show
My Dad passed away last week. He taught middle school English for 30 years. Past students used to call our house and give him updates about their lives.
so sorry for your loss
@@linzzyy Thanks. I was fortunate enough to make enough money to help them out financially in their later years. Many days of my childhood were spent reading mythology books in my Dad's bedroom while he graded papers and / or did lesson plans for his classes. Several years ago, I took a few weeks off from work and we took a trip to Europe to see the ancient ruins in Italy and Greece. It gave me a sense of quiet satisfaction for him to be able to visit places where he read and taught from books. Haha, a small payback for all the trouble I caused in my teenage years.
@@HKim0072 I would have loved to have met your Dad, clearly he was a good and noble teacher ...and father. Bless your heart!
I am so sorry for your loss because it is our loss because teachers impart more than just knowledge.
my fifth grade teacher MRS Revis a African American taught me to look beyond myself and to care about the rights and liberty of others in her class of 1969 and I am Mexican American.
in 1970 my science teacher Mrs Coffer taught us climate science and to respect all life.
In 1972 my Military science instructor Colonel John Trojan taught me through his sacrifice of being a pow in WW2 and Korea and Vietnam what courage and faith was all about.
in 1974 thru 1976 my Naval science instructor master chief Ollie Lovett taught me that color was not a barrier to
excellence and he inspired me to serve in the U.S.A.F.
your father lives on just as these people who helped to shape me they have all passed on to Glory but they live still
HKim0072 The legacy that your father has passed down is more than just for you, although you are so greatly blessed by it. A good teacher, a good leader, a person who touches your life at a critical moment, becomes part of the fabric that is one's life. For all time. Your father touched countless lives. With a little luck, that legacy can be passed on to others who never knew your father. In my case, I try to share knowledge and perspectives with younger folks that were imparted to me by the men and women I have been blessed to have come into my life, even briefly.
I cannot help but think of the movie Mr Holland's Opus, specifically the end scene where his dream becomes reality, even for a few fleeting moments. Some of the lives he touched were playing for him right there, for all the world to see.
You also have the blessings of beautiful memories.
As for any troubles you may have caused as a teenager, well, just about everyone can relate to that.
Thank you for sharing with us a small piece of your life.
This scene, in particular that line 'I'm standing in the Oval Office...and its because of you' always makes me cry.
Same!
I know the feeling...
Me too.
It's what _every_ teacher (every good teacher anyway) wants to hear- that all their efforts bore fruit, that the children they taught found success.
ArcaneAzmadi I had emailed a high school teacher about an event I was holding and I hadn’t seen her in 22 years. I reminded her of some of her lessons and mentioned them, reminded her of my project on Da Vinci, and she said she *of course* remembered me.
She said it was the biggest compliment when a student remembers her lessons.
I remembered the Habsburgs and the Romanovs. The “Willie-Nicki” letters, the Holy Roman Empire, and more.
She was very happy to hear from me and flattered I remembered my lessons after all those years.
There was a Mrs. Morello at my high school. She taught African Studies and World History. She was excellent, the favorite teacher of a couple of my friends. I graduated in 1969, and I'm delighted to know that Mrs. Morello is still alive! Her son Tom Morello started a band.
This comment should have more likes.
@@MisterGaryCooperIt has a like from me now.
@@MisterGaryCooper Is your name really Gary Cooper?
@@rkstevenson5448 Depends on whom is asking. ;-)
Good for her and good for her son. I hope his band does well
I'm an exhausted and fed up teacher and I probably haven't thought of this scene in years. It's medicine I needed. Crying like a baby.
Thank you for putting up with kids and their so called Parents
I still remember my English Literature teacher. I kept my "Paradise Lost" book from that class for a long time. It was one of my absolute favorite classes. Trust me. Someone out there, one of your students, will remember you and will credit you (maybe not personally) for shaping them in some way into the person they became. I'm sorry for mixing tenses in the same sentence. If I can recommend some "medicine" for an exhausted and fed up teacher, here's a Twilight Zone Radio episode that is a tribute to teachers. th-cam.com/video/1eUBxgXeQU0/w-d-xo.html
Janel Moloney does;t get enough credit for Donna. Yes it was a stellar cast and Allison Janney hoovered up all the Emmys because she was excellent but I do think Moloney should've picked up at least one. I love characters that develop from nowhere, Donna was a small supporting role and the sheer chemistry between Moloney and Whitford barged Mandy out of the way and got Donna a full cast role, which she never lost. Its a great story arc.
+David Rendall Well put!!
David Rendall well her career just started sometime people get screwed
She was also great in her appearances on Sports Night.
I’m glad she got Mandy out of the way. Mandy sucked
Janel did a great job on TWW and I agree that she should've gotten a nomination along the way. But I don't think she necessarily had to win the Emmy to get validation. They only give out one Emmy per category every year and just being nominated is a great accomplishment. There is a lot of amazing actors out there who do great work and never get nominated for anything.
shit... I am a 67 year old man who has been in three war zones... and this makes me cry.
It's in no small part due to you being in 3 war zones that you can appreciate the significance of this kind of moment.
Sucker fighting for ...the oil and the money men. Sucker again falling for this schtick.
Thank you for your service!
@@GaryM67-71 You don't know which war zones, you don't even know if he was a fighter. He could have been a doctor without border or red cross or part of an NGO, but no you didn't think for a second and jumped onto the first unoriginal cliché what you call your mind came up with.
@@arthurbriand2175 I don't care which war zones, or what his job was. My hatred of those who arrange these wars extends to anyone that gets involved in any capacity. And you all fall for the war propaganda schtick too. You'll soon see how God is going to punish the whole planet for its lawlessness, famines, plagues and earthquakes and much worse are coming, and His day of wrath on 7th September 2032. Time soon for the meek to inherit the earth.
this is one of my favorite scenes from the series. everyone has that one teacher from school who inspired them, what a touching moment.
Mine was my 10th grade English teacher...he changed my life
Meh, 3 bachelors, 2 master's, and a doctorate later, and I still can't name a single "inspiring" teacher from my academic career.
Tom (for the life of me I can't remember his last name because he hated me using it). I had to attend night school because my father got sick my junior year of high school and I had to drop out to take care of my family. He taught history and civics. He loved it when I argued with him about politics or interpretation of history especially when we had opposite views. The day I earned my degree from college he was waiting for me with my family after the graduation ceremony. He had been in touch with my mother for years and made it a point to be there.
Probably the finest casting and writing of a tv production ever transmitted to the small screen.
Amen!!!
No probably about it. Every aspect, the writing, the acting, the music and so much more was absolutely amazing. The WW wasn't a show to me, it was a best friend. It had the power to move me, pick me up, and at times break me down. I will forever be grateful that it was in my life.
There are so many great scenes in this series. This one, The scene from the Stackhouse filibuster where they get the senator to answer a question, the scene where Leo tells Josh the story about the guy falling down the hole. The Butterball Turkey Hotline. There are so many which exemplifies what a terrific show this was. I miss it a lot.
+dms0627 I go to my local library and check out the season DVD's of West Wing about once a year.....I dig them just as much as the first time I watched.....Salute
+dms0627 I would add Charlie receiving the letter written to FDR when he was president, whose mail code Bartlet had copied ("For the hundredth time, it was an homage!") whose author is invited to the White House with his son - and asked to eat with the President, who's genuinely excited to hear from him about FDR's speech.
And this is a little different, but when the man at the hotel bar starts talking to Toby - not knowing who he is - about how he's been visiting colleges with his daughter ("My boss went to Notre Dame") and how he didn't think, as he and his wife both worked, that it would be so hard to pay for college, it should be just a little easier . . . "I'm sorry; I'm Matt Kelly." "Toby Ziegler . . . I work at the White House." (Signals Josh over.) "You have a minute to talk? We'd like to buy you a beer." I just love that scene - that whole episode, 20 Hours in America.
Salice McCool Wonderful scene with Toby and Josh and that father visiting College's with his daughter !! Cheers
+The Stuport 🍻!
The West Wing has been my favorite show for a long time. I was a high school guidance counselor for 25 years and could totally relate to that scene. I took an early retirement to relocate to Michigan a few years ago, and just recently got back into public education. Sure there are lots of jobs and careers that are lucrative and have meaning. To me, there will never be anything that takes the place of education.
7 seasons packed with magnificent vignettes like this. Boy, do I miss this show.
Just another example of why this was one of the best shows ever made.
indeed
My husband taught school for 42 years, and nothing made him any more sure of his choice of career than when a former student came back and told a success story. Several thanked him for his influence.
I've been a teacher for 20 years now (just typing that makes me feel old!), and occasionally my old students will come by to say hello, or send me an email about their lives. It fills me with joy to know them happy and well. As teachers, we can only hope our charges feel understood, encouraged and believed in; we want the best for you. Please, if there was a teacher who made you feel like you were important, that inspired you, send your teacher a message. It gives us strength.
I wish I could, but he died a few months after I graduated, when I was still in Basic Training. I never saw him after I left. But, I've decided to dedicate my first book to him, as he was an English teacher and constantly supported my work.
This is legendary writing. They gave someone like Donna Moss, some very emotional scenes. What a scene. You don't see such writing now
Damn. This has to be in the top ten best written shows ever. Its sharp, crisp, witty and intelligent, and the words on the page do exactly what they intend to do, every time every episode.
Agreed!!!!!
I'd have to say top 5. There aren't too many shows out there I think are written on this level.
My English teacher made Shakespeare come alive and without her I wouldn't have gone on to study literature at college - If I could thank her now, I would, but she died a few years back, so this scene helped me remember the fun we had in her lessons - This is for you Mrs. Fenning - thank you :)
+Mike “Arminius” Fluegel aww so nice i pulled people bodes of woods and do that when not be beat up by 200 p man there cool what good dose do if you dead ! some of us learn things u done lke to live cant learn of all think about is if you not going to be a live i learn to shoot guns fight with knifes and im dum realy keep in mind i was 14 then its time you sumg ass get a tast of it if could see how u do would u live
Donna "Josh wrote you a memo on Molly Merello?"
Bartlett "Yeah, cause all I had tonight was a nuclear spill in Idaho"
Hey! You have the same name as me 😊
"Donatella"........Love how Martin say's that line
A TV series about a President that was literate and read books.
and was very eloquent, and got along with the other party.
Any president that wants to talk about twelfth night has my damn attention for sure. Thanks
He cared about people and wanted to bring them together.....[SIGH]
You mean, you don't think President Trump talks about books in the Oval Office?
My Name Maybe “Everybody Poops” and “One fish, Two fish.”
I've seen this a half dozen times and I still tear up. "I'm in the Oval Office with the President of the United States and it's because of you." Thank you teachers indeed. They cut away just when Jed starts talking about Shakespeare. I'm a sucker for Shakespeare so it gets me every time. I wanna stay in the Oval with Donna but The Show Must Go On.
If all the world was a stage then Aaron Sorkin and the rest of the cast and crew would be running the planet right now. And even though I’m conservative, I think that be just fine.
Competent left/right centrist is better than an incompetent or incomprehensible radical.
I've seen it over a dozen, not counting the five times I've watched the entire series. It is one of the most underrated scenes from the West Wing.
Every time.
I've been a retired teacher for 21 years now (I joke that even my retirement can legally drink!) but this scene gets me every time. If there is a teacher who meant something to your life, don't wait until it's too late to thank them. We love hearing from "our kids". I am still in the small town where I taught and run into my formers all the time. It was bad enough when I was introduced to their kids but I am now meeting their grands and it's just depressing!
After every time I watch Trump's press conference on T.V., I have to watch a snippet from West wing for my head to stop spinning.
I need this fiction to reduce the suffering inflicted by reality.
"What a thing to say!"... that's every amazing teacher i've ever had. Loath to take credit, and an unspoken mission to always keep shoving the kids forward.
The best possible thing Donna could have said. Wonderful scene
Just a brilliant scene. To call one of your favourite teachers and tell them you are standing in a particular place with a very important person, who then talks directly to that teacher...That would be priceless.
+malcs0 Agreed....so much fun to see this again!!
How many more times will Aaron Sorkin manage to meld our hearts with our minds. The combination of the writing with the ensemble cast is beyond amazing.
Sometimes I worry that I lost my soul, then I watch this and when I hit the line "tell her where you are". That's how I know I still have one.
One of my favorite HS teachers was an English teacher. I had her for American Lit as a junior (slacking off so badly she couldn't believe I was the same student in her senior English class. For the record, I did apologize and told her I was going to make it up. She graded on a curve. I did so well that she had to throw my grades out or half the class would have failed. (I thanked her for that. I did want to be responsible for THAT,)
After graduation went off and became a military linguist. The first 5 weeks were basically a review of that senior English class. Before heading to my first duty station I went back home and visited the school. It mush have been Spring Break, but she was in. I made it a point to thank her in person. Mrs. Mitchell, Carson HS, Carson, CA. I was Class of 1980. So that visit was just over 40 years ago now.
Ughhhh one of many cute moments between Jed and his adopted West Wing children. 😊😊😊😊
I just got into Georgetown and emailed my 4th grade teacher to thank her and immediately thought of this scene
Hoya Saxa!
This scene always makes me tear up a little, as I remember the wonderful teachers I had.
damn people cutting onions in my room
musbe a vent leading to my room
@ratliff2006 You sound like a nice guy. Why don't you shudddddup!
Too precious few of us had a teacher like this -- the one who did so much more than perform a job, going far beyond text book lessons and helping to mould us into the people we are. And they lived for a comment like Donna's.
My brother taught high school English for 30 years. He's still in contact with many of his former students to this day....many of whom went on to successful careers in all areas of life. There are teachers in my past for whom I still have the greatest affection and gratitude. Men and women I hold in the very highest esteem. Teaching is a truly noble profession. Considering the kind of shit teachers take from politicians who should know better, (to say nothing of the long hours and lousey pay) it's amazing any decent candidates are still willing to aspire to it. If you can think critically? Thank a teacher.
Loved the show when it came out and watched every single episode diligently. When the series came out on disc, bought it and watched every episode...again. Now, I have it on my computer/tv/all available platforms and I STILL watch episodes. This series somehow gets more relevant with the passing of time. It's truly one of the greatest shows to ever be made and personally, I think President Bartlet is the best President ever, fictional or not.
This scene always makes me work harder because there are teachers who I want to tell this to one day because it was their dedication and guidance that pushed me towards politics
And anyone that lucky would just love that you thought of them.
This show never fails to bring tears at the right moments.
You need to be a teacher, for over 10 years, to really appreciate the depth of this scene.
And if you taught English, you will laugh every time you hear "we are going to call that the James Bond version"
Damned Martin! He owns pretty much every scene he was in!!
When I graduated with my doctoral degree back in 2015, I only wish I could have shared my success with them like she shared with her teacher. The last I had heard one of my favorite teachers died of cancer. Lots of good memories.
I would have many that I would have to thank(Including several professors) if I were in the same boat. I got lucky with many passionate, and compassionate teachers over my educational journey.
This scene means alot because there are a few teachers that I remember to this day and they left a lasting imprint on my life. It sounds funny, but my kindergarten teacher was one of them. She stayed in touch over the years even when I moved out of state in high school. She even attended my mother's funeral when I was in the military. Never underestimate the impact a great teacher can have on a child.
I had a couple of teachers like that. One was an English teacher who knew how to make Shakespeare come alive-to not just go over the words, but _why_ the characters said and did what they did, and how the motivations of the people to act a certain way weren't just relics of the Elizabethan era-that people have the same motivations that people due today.
The other was my high-school civics teacher. By the discussions we had in class, he'd pretty much figured out who in class was liberal and who was conservative. A couple of times from that point, we'd need to write a paper about a particular subject, but from the other side's POV. So if you were a strong believer in a largely unfettered 2nd Amendment, you'd need to write a pro-gun control paper, and the kids who supported gun control would need to write about why there should be minimal restrictions on 2nd Amendment rights.
I ran into him a few years later and asked him why he did that. He said it wasn't to change anybody's mind, but to at least make them think about the other side of the argument (and there is _always_ another side). As he explained "If you only read stuff you already agree with, you never learn anything"
And that is precisely the problem with social media!
Don't let anyone ever tell you that ignorance is not contagious 😮
Teachers! The best of them we should always honour and thank for their support!
Just one of the many many many scenes that show why I absolutely love The West Wing and why it 's one of the best things EVER MADE. This scene is especially special for me as I had a Molly Morello and that was my high school music teacher Kaye Routcliffe.
Mine was Jim Andy Caudill of Fairview High School, Ashland, Kentucky ...not only a great music teacher and musician ...but a lover of learning. Thanks Mr. Caudill!
Mine was Miss Christian, Scotchtown School Goshen, NY
My eleventh grade English teacher, Mrs. Blood, taught us The Crucible. From the moment we opened that play, she was Goody Blood to us, and no one could change our minds. What a wonderful human being.
This president we wish we could have, a far difference from the one we are stuck with.
Couldn't have said it better myself.
Or the last one.
trump saved u from having hillary
@@prospero4183 Compared to Trump, I am not really sure that qualifies as "saved".
Dennis Gillich a number of people said they didn’t want Trump to win, they wanted Hillary to lose.
Mrs. Wood, wherever you are ...just wanted you to know that I'm so grateful for your mentoring, your teaching, for your humor and for your love of words and meaning. We did have some fun didn't we.
As an English Teacher, I can't help but love this scene. It makes me well up every time.
I also can't help but correct him...that Beowulf was originally written in Old English, not Middle English.
But that almost makes the scene sweeter; it gives me a little inside joke to chuckle about.
But Bartlett mispronounced "cavalry" (military term) and said "Calvary" (religious term, location in the New Testament). I wish that had been corrected before the scene made the final cut. That error ruined the whole scene for me, and I'm an avid fan of teachers, an English major, history buff (connected with my genealogy, had an ancestor in the Revolutionary War) and a bibliophile with the largest private library of anyone I know.
Jessica Cooper. I kept scrolling until I found this comment (correcting the Middle English blunder), hoping I wouldn't have to make it myself. So I'm happy to give you your first upvote.
@@issadad Yup. Retired English teacher here. I can't believe Sorkin and the rest of the braintrust dropped the ball on that. Pres. Bartlet for sure would know! (And probably could read the Anglo-Saxon 🙂
@@paulzotos1628 Nobody's perfect, certainly not screen play writers. Or actors for that matter........let's not be overly pedantic, eh?
Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t. Cry.
Do. Not. Cry.
**happy cries until I have no tears left**
Great Scene! Teachers are national treasures who can and do inspire and shape young minds to go on to do great things with their lives. We owe teachers a great deal and a debt that can never really truly be repaid!
Great scene. What would any of us give to have an affirmation at the end of our careers that we did something that made a difference. I love this show.
Pppp
It was truly one of the best series ever created.
Sadly, such a series could never find an audience of thinking, literate, viewers outside of perhaps a specialized streaming service.
Once there were cable channels like A&E or The History Channel, but they have sadly turned to rubbish these days 😢
I'd like to think that Mrs. Morello and her husband made it to D.C. on one of those travels in the new year, where they came to see Donna, then Donna arranged for a tour of TWW after 10 pm when Bartlet had left the Oval, only for someone (cough -Josh-couch) to have told him about the said visit and Bartlet surprising them all with a drop in somewhere along that route, with added visit to the Oval. Because doing that sort of thing, that's just in Bartlet's spirit.
That pause. So masterful. it gets me every time
Had an English Literature teacher made us read Romeo and Juliet. Now we're just bored teenagers reading the parts that were assigned on any given day. One day I caught her smothering a laugh. So that night I reread what we had done that day. Slowly it dawned on me that Shakespeare was a dirty old goat. Next day after class I asked her if certain passages meant what I thought they did and she confirmed it. Turns out I wasn't the only one to figure it out. A little over a dozen of all her students had. On Wednesday afternoon and Saturday mornings she gave us a more in-depth literature studies. She was a gem. Because of her I enjoy everything from classics to modern fiction. Sometimes I even can catch a newer author using certain techniques from the classics.
:-) Yes, Shakespeare and other Renaissance writers were a LOT bawdier than anyone would suspect! (Yes, I studied Shakespeare and other Renaissance writers in college which I didn't attend until I was in my early 40s and was in the Honors program.) Watch the movie "Shakespeare in Love." The lines and plot situations are straight out of Shakespeare's scripts, and rollicking funny! You'll find out why the movie had to be set in 1593 (Marlowe was, in fact, killed that year), and if you compare names and details and look them up in Wikipedia, you'll find the movie's plot structure used many actual historical facts and people who knew Shakespeare. I wore out my VHS version of the movie and still re-watch the DVD often.
I miss this show and all it represented. They should bring it back
Too late. The wokerati cancel culture would change history to suit their purposes now.
There were a few teachers I remember really well helped me, especially in high school. Ms. Loube (math) and Mr. Moffitt (business) being two of the best. I like to think it was because of their encouragement I went on to become a teacher myself.
The only original surviving copy of Beowulf is in Old English and is absolutely impossible to read without a translation unless you actually know Old English. I would have expected Sorkin to know that. But yeah, I was tearing up when Donna told her where she was.
You can't pick it up and read it, but it's a lot easier for an English speaker to pick up enough Old English to struggle through Beowulf than it is to, say, pick up enough Russian to get through Tolstoy.
I don't know about Beowulf in Old English but if that is the case, don't you think it's the president making a joke? Seems much more likely to me to be honest :)
I speak both rather well and did not find it much easier. It has its own set of problems, not the least of which is a vocab steeped in a long-gone culture that we can only partially reconstruct. It's glutted with [pretentious word alert!] "hapax legomena" -- words that ONLY appear once in a language, so it's difficult to translate.
On the other hand, I took Russian with the specific dream of reading "War & Peace". Imagine my surprise the first time I picked up a copy and found great swatches written in French! Here's the opening lines:
"Eh bien, mon prince. Gênes et Lucques ne sont plus que des apanages, des поместья, de la famille Buonaparte. Non, je vous préviens que si vous ne me dites pas que nous avons la guerre, si vous vous permettez encore de pallier toutes les infamies, toutes les atrocités de cet Antichrist (ma parole, j'y crois) - je ne vous connais plus, vous n'êtes plus mon ami, vous n'êtes plus мой верный раб, comme vous dites. Ну, здравствуйте, здравствуйте. Je vois que je vous fais peur, садитесь и рассказывайте."
This is a person who reads bible passage in Latin and, cusses out God in Latin.
I'm sure he would be able to read Old English.
Pretty sure that was sarcasm though
I studied Old English in grad school. It’s closer to German than English. Most high schoolers read it translated into Middle English.
If there wasn’t Donna in this TV series, the West Wing wouldn’t have gotten me so much like watching whole season over and over again.
My teacher made us read it in both. He made the language come alive.
Best English teacher I ever had, in retrospect.
First of all, I'm crying, that was beautiful. Second of all, Beowulf is in old English, not Middle English, and is 100% impossible to read without translation for a native English speaker with no knowledge of old English
Hwæt ever do you mean? :p
@@funstuff2006 this made my day :)
As fantastic as this scene is, and i am writing this finding once again a tear in my eye due to it's beauty, it has to be said Beowulf was written in old not middle english, which is a massive difference.
My 6th grade teacher Mrs.Beeson, the bulk of my Jr. High School Teachers, and the bulk of my High School Teachers, and my Teachers at ASU in Boone N.C. Thank You Very Much
“We’re all very proud of you Donna” I’ll sob
I honestly don't know how anyone could watch this scene and not need a box of tissues.
I've often wondered if Molly Morello was a nod to Mary Morello, teacher, activist, and mother to Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello. Ms. Morello taught social studies at my HS. She founded Parents for Rock and Rap, an anti-censorship counterpoint to Tipper Gore's Parents' Music Resource Center.
This is such a sweet scene.
My cousin retired from teaching secondary (high) school three or so years back after more than 10 years at the same school. The students (particularly the girls) from her first senior class often stop her in the supermarket to tell her how their lives are going and to introduce her to their children. Teaching is a profession we need to recognise in a greater more forceful way. Higher salaries would help.
My mom and dad were both teachers. They’ve gotten calls like this. The look on their faces when that happens is indescribable.
Great scene. Makes me think of my AP history teacher. Nobody prepared me for college and grad school more than he did. Forever grateful.
Goddamn onions screwing with my eyes.
I love the blocking of this scene. The President directed her to stand behind the Resolute Desk to take the call while he moved away to the front.
Peak west wing writing, even peak tv writing level. even the west wing music frames the scene
Beowulf is actually written in Old English, not Middle English, which is essentially another language. My stepdaughter was talking yesterday about translating it at university as part of her linguistics degree. There is no way school students could read it in the original, unless Old English was part of the curriculum.
My one wish after 57years on this planet is that at least once I have been an inspiration to someone like Ms. Morello.
A president who wants to talk about Twelfth Night with a teacher - love that!
One of the best scenes in television.....ever!!!
My favorite moment in the entire series.
Donna is one, if not my all-time, favorite characters in all of television. Most of the other members of the staff, excluding Charlie (who is also up there on my list) were Ivy-Legaue educated political operatives who sometimes lost sight of the bigger picture. But Donna, a woman who basically walked into the campaign office and started answering phones, offering to sell her car to pay her way, would worry about the inconsequential things and remind the people around her, especially Josh, about the reasons they are doing the work they do. And as the series went on, she grew more sure of herself and grew into a valuable member not only of the administration but a Presidential campaign. Janel did a wonderful job with her.
Scenes like this are exactly why I love this show
This Sean is one of biggest reasons why I love this show
The best scene in the entire series. I’m not sure that Mrs. Morello would be that proud when Donna went to work in getting Bingo Bob elected.
I tear up everytime I see this seen. I had an English and Drama teacher in high school, Sue Milner, that was the same kind of influence on me. She was like the mother I never had. Any success I've had has been because of her. And BTW, Beowulf isn't in Middle English. It's Old English, and as such usually only taught in the original language in college classes. He might be thinking of Chaucer instead.
Thank you Mr. Youngs, 9th grade English, And I got an A that year, ME! barely a C student in English got an A. The Tempest opened my eyes to reading, I also still have that old copy of Anthem (Ayn Rand) you mailed me the following summer.
Nothing personal here....but 'Anthem' is a perfectly dreadful book. As a writer, Ms. Rand was....well let's just say...she needed to keep the day job.......
For the record, Beowulf was originally written in Old English, not Middle English. I wonder if Mrs. Morello ever called him out on that.
I think 1000 of these views are just from me. right in the feels
How cool and respectful is President Bartlett. He is the president and yet calls her Mrs. Very sweet. Great scene
I miss my teachers from school!
one of my favorite scenes from the show
Surely Sorkin knew that Beowulf is in Old English, not Middle English.
This inspired me to send an email to my favorite teacher.
you're all wrong. It's written in Italian. I know. I bought a copy of Beowulf in Rome, and the ENTIRE thing was in Italian. Swear to god.
You haven't experienced it until you've read it in the original Klingon.
Or better yet, heard it in Klingon. Say what you will about SFF fans are a very literate bunch who will demand to hear Shakespeare et al at every con.
"Tell her where you are." A perfect prompt from the president.
The *GREATEST* show in the _HISTORY_ of television.
This one of my favorite scenes from the show.
You want to know what is slightly messed up about this scene. When Bartlett calls her teaching of Beowulf with a translation 'the James Bond' version he is actually mocking her with a personally joke that she has no understanding of and she thinks its praise when it really isn't.
You’re an idiot.
By far the best scene in the series
Just another small story line from the west wing that makes me feel wonderful.