Product Description

The American historian Henry Adams has gone on record as saying that the president "resembles the commander of a ship at sea. He must have a helm to grasp, a course to steer, a port to seek." And it is true that every incumbent of the White House has put his own individual mark on the course of American history. This course, of course, has always been dependent on how each president viewed the exalted office he held. There have been monumental hits and equally monumental misses. There have been presidents who redefined America in a remarkably positive way; there have also been ones who the nation could probably have done without. Most unfortunately, there have been presidents who came with a bang and disappeared with a whimper.

Be that as it may, none of their manifestos and proclamations could be faulted to begin with - which is why they rose to the presidency in the first place. Most of their speeches, debates and even offhand remarks have been carefully transcribed, recorded and interpreted for between-the-lines meaning (especially from the historical perspective). It is therefore always refreshing and enlightening, for a variety of reasons, to watch them in verbal action. On these grounds, I can highly commend this fascinating set of DVDs from A2ZCDS - this is live presidential history, and depicts some of our more notable Chief Executives as they were - or hoped to be.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #68920 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-10-03
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Black & White, Color, DVD, Flash, Full length, Full Screen, Original recording remastered, Restored, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 121 minutes

From the Studio
Historic reflections on the most powerful men on earth ... You may or may not agree with the cliché that the American Presidency is a ‘glorious burden’. However, it takes a high degree of indifference to ignore the magnitude of this office. The White House has had its share of incumbents - some are remembered kindly, even with reverence. Others are forgotten, ignored or actively derided. In the motherland of free opinion, our presidents have some rather high and ever changing expectations to live up to. How do we remember them? By their successes? By their political Waterloos? By their photogenic stage presence? It pays to bear in mind that almost all of this rather controversial lot attained office on the basis of what they promised in their speeches. It was only in hindsight that we could judge whether they delivered or reneged on these promises. We elect and support our presidents on the strength of the spoken word. This makes the presidential a historic figure in his or her own right. This innovative 2-DVD Set from the A2ZCDS archives presents a carefully compiled set of historic presidential speeches, as well as live footage from landmark events in some remarkable presidential tenures. Witness first-hand the presidential speeches and debates that have, for better or worse, gone down in the annals of American history. These and other historic audiovisual gems from the A2ZCDS archives wait you in the revolutionary History of U.S. Presidents: America’s Greatest Leaders 2-DVD Set.

About the Actor
A2ZCDS is the world's largest and fastest growing innovative multi-media library. Through its vast and unique distribution network, the company provides historical and educational CDs and DVDs covering thousands of topics to every corner of the globe. The ceaseless research and polling process at A2ZCDS constantly identifies and responds to existing and emergent areas of interests. As a result of constant innovation, exemplary products and outstanding customer service, A2ZCDS is quickly becoming a household name. It numbers amongst the most trusted, efficient and user-friendly sources of educational and entertainment media on the market today.

Customer Reviews

Great Speeches & Clips
These DVDs contain some of the most influencial and moving speeches and clips I have ever seen. The John Kennedy speech alone makes this product worth owning. If you have only heard of these speeches and have never actually watched or listened to them, you must buy this DVD. I got goosebumps.

Great Research Material
Like a lot of the stuff I buy from Amazon I got this to help with research for a class and it delivered the goods.

I got a good collection of films of American presidents from the early 20th Century up through JFK and was able to take quotes from them to use for a paper that I did well on.

It would have taken me much longer to find similar information in the library and I would not have been able to compare and contrast quite as well as I was here. One of the m ost interesting things was seeing how various leaders got better at dealing with the camera.

Looking Back
It's funny to think of the contrast between what our former presidents promised during their campaigns and what they actually delivered. Surely this should be part of their legacy, but it often gets lost in the shuffle. Hence, why I enjoyed watching the film clips anc commentary on this DVD. It shows you word for word what these guys said they would do and then contrasts it with what actually happened. I also felt a bit of patriotism watching JFK and Reagan at the height of their oratorial skills. Spot on.