ANGLO-AMERICANS - Wilsons, Obamas, Monroes, Carters & Support

PATHWAY OF THE POLITICIAN AS OTHERWORLDLY MAN-OF-THE-WORLD:
Storyline: The professorial crypto-pope and reformer finally descends from his longtime ivory tower to the nitty-gritty of the real world, as he continues to work out his own conflicting tensions between the spiritual and the secular, and his desire to be a force in both.
Michael Eric Dyson (1958) - American writer, minister and academic. Outer: Of African-American descent. Mother was a teacher’s aide in the Detroit public schools. Father was an autoworker. Initially raised in a poor section of town, where he was a voracious reader at the local library. After his parents divorced, his mother later married a corporate worker who adopted him. Grew up in middle-class comfort from then on, and was disassociated from the Civil Rights movement as a youngster, only hearing about Martin Luther King at the time of his death, despite growing up in an entirely African-American environment. Gave addresses at his local Baptist Church, which showed him his innate sense of oratorical power, and won a scholarship to a well-regarded Michigan boarding school. To his surprise, he was treated with racial contempt by his white classmates, and fought back which caused him to be promptly expelled. In reaction, he jumped into street life, becoming a gang member and hustler, only to entrap himself by fathering a son and going on welfare to support him, while also taking a series of jobs around the auto industry, from which he was ultimately fired. In 1978, he married a model, dancer and actress, later divorced. Saved from his own perdition through the support of the Baptist Church. With church help, he became a Baptist minister in 1979, and decided to better himself through education. Went to divinity school at Knoxville College, then transferred to Carson-Newman College in Tennessee, graduating magna cum laude in 1982. Became a freelance journalist afterwards, to help his younger brother, who was in prison for second-degree murder. Spent three years covering African-American culture and icons for a variety of magazines and newspapers, and then received his MA and Ph.D. from Princeton Univ. on a fellowship, while teaching there and at two seminaries. Following Princeton, he took on a series of Ivy League professorships, as well as other schools, while building up a reputation as a media go-to guy on hip-hop culture, via both frequent appearances on both radio and TV, and in magazines ranging from “Christian Century” to “Rolling Stone.” Deliberately focused on pop culture so as not to be a dry academic, and widely-read periodicals as a reviewer and commentator in order to reach the widest mainstream audience possible. A collection of his various essays formed his first book in 1993, and since then he has crafted a goodly number of well-received tomes, which cover topics from Malcolm X to gangsta rap to African-American women to critiques of black critics of inner city life. After fathering a daughter, he divorced and married again in 1992 to Marcia Louise, a public relations specialist, with whom he had a son. Had a daily syndicated radio show from 2006 to 2007, while also serving as an ofttimes guest on National Public Radio, and cable TV entertainment and new shows. Coined the terms “Afristocracy” and “Ghettocracy” to limn the economic highs and lows of black American life. In 2007, he became a University Professor at Georgetown Univ., in theology and African-American studies, and continues as a highly public voice treading America’s ever precarious racial divides. Inner: Strong identification with the Baptist Church as central to who is. Harbors an abiding sense of Christian concern for those without power, and a great need to redress society’s imbalances from his own perspective. Also feels he symbolically encapsulates all of black experience within himself, through his own soulful transmigration. Axe me a question lifetime of finally and totally dipping into the great mass he had long ruled or preached to, as a means of literally reintegrated himself with humanity-at-large, after many a go-round of living far above it, to the detriment of his sharp vision and extremely well-honed verbal skills. Thomas Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924) - American president. Outer: Of Scotch-Irish and English descent. Father was a distinguished Presbyterian churchman who believed in public service. His English-born mother, the daughter of a Presbyterian minister, was also intensely religious, as well as dour on the outside, and soft on the inside, close connection with both. Had two older sisters and one younger brother, with one of each living long enough to see him president. 5’11”, lean, high voiced, with a frail body. Graduated Princeton, then studied law at the Univ. of Virginia, before being admitted to the bar in 1882. Only practiced briefly in Atlanta, before entering Johns Hopkins Univ., where he received his Ph.D. in political science, becoming a pioneer in that field, and the first and only president with that academic degree. Taught his/story and government at Bryn Mawr and Wesleyan, before winding up for 12 years at his alma mater, Princeton. In 1885, he married Ellen Axson (Michelle Obama), an energetic woman whom he loved dearly, 3 daughters, including Margaret (Malia Obama), Jessie (Sally Quinn), and Eleanor (Sasha Obama). His father and her grandfather were the officiating ministers at the ceremony. Very close to family, albeit aloof to everyone else. Preferred the company of women to men, and wrote a number of his/story books, proving to be an adept analyst and interpreter. Appointed president of Princeton in 1902, where he reformed the curriculum and teaching methods, forcing students to have one selected major, and then breaking down classes to include small group discussions to supplement lectures, although his later efforts to institute social change forced him to resign his post in 1910. Despite his earlier effectiveness, his high-handed strident ways won him few friends. Had his career ended at this point, he would have been looked at as a noted educator who transformed the American scholastic system. That same year, he was elected governor of New Jersey as a Democrat, where he proved to be a mild reformer. After 46 ballots, he was selected as the Democratic nominee in 1912 for the presidency. Thanks to a split in the Republican Party, where Theodore Roosevelt (Kathleen Kennedy) siphoned off votes from the incumbent, William Howard Taft (Bill Clinton), he was elected president, advocating a “New Freedom,” where the economic playing-field would be more leveled. Oversaw the creation of the Federal Reserve System, while both income taxes and passports began under him. Able to enact initial measures, while denouncing the ‘dollar diplomacy,’ of his predecessors, preferring a strong moral basis for foreign policy. Restored the presidency to its full executive power by molding public opinion and offering moral leadership, while remaining largely austere and removed. Effectively shielded the Mexican Revolution from outside intervention, allowing it to run its full course, while attacking what he perceived as bandit incursions onto American soil. His wife died in the middle of his first term, and he became besotted the following spring with the widowed Edith Bolling Galt (Michelle Bernard), showing such obsession with her, it unnerved his aides. The pair wed in 1915. Despite his non-warrior stance, he was forced to deal with World War I on the European continent, initially adopting a position of neutrality, only to become the greatest interventionist in U.S. his/story. Re-elected in 1916 over Charles Evans Hughes (John Roberts), on the promise of non-involvement in WW I, he, nevertheless, plunged America into it in its final year, thereby taking the country out of the Western Hemisphere and into the arena of world politics, after earlier stretching his long righteous arm into Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. An effective wartime leader, looking for ‘peace without victory,’ while seeing America as a potentially world-transforming nation, through his role as an ultimate arbiter of the terms of peace. Mobilized the entire economy for war, creating a permanent sense of big government for the country, while egregiously violating civil liberties. Paid Russia’s provisional government to remain in the war, which would lead to its overthrow by Bolshevik revolutionaries. Offered a 14 point plan in its final year, including a League of Nations to peacefully resolve international disputes. Attended the Versailles Peace Conference, but could not persuade Congress to ratify the final treaty, which placed such harsh penalties on Germany, that it inadvertantly led to a second world war a generation later. Pursued his vision of the League of Nations afterwards, but that and the peace process broke his health, as he became more arrogant, irascible and unwilling to compromise, virtually willing himself into ill health. Became wheel-chair bound after a stroke, while his wife Edith effectively became president during his last year in office. Left office, physically broken in 1920, and died a few years later of a 2nd stroke. Inner: Gentle, scholarly, self-critical. Generous and loyal, but also vain, self-righteous, remote and extremely rigid. Well-read, with acute his/storical sensibilities, a man of both thought and action, although beholden to a body that couldn’t bear failure, and far more the theorist than the practical activist. World-building lifetime of turning his deep sense of moral faith and political vision into direct action, while trying to re-integrate the globe from the vantage of an unintegrated body and an unbending moral view of my high way or the low way. James Madison (1751-1836) - American president. Outer: Father of the same name was an important landowner, with 4000 acres and 100 slaves, and a determination for his son’s success. Oldest of 9 with four brothers and four sisters, several of whom were short-lived, with only one brother living long enough to see him president. Born while his mother was visiting her mother. Spent five years at a boarding school, then two more of home schooling, before completing 3 years of Princeton in two in 1771. 5’4”, 130 lbs., with a high voice, that was barely audible. His frailty exempted him from military service, allowing him to put his passion into politics. A scholar at heart, he was extremely well-read, with a facility for both the theoretical and the practical. Helped draft the Virginia Constitution, then served in the Continental Congress for 3 years beginning in 1780, after which he was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates for 2 more years. Although a slave-owner, he was considered the father of Constitution, as one of its main framers, although it differed significantly from his original precepts. In addition, his notes on the deliberations of the delegates are considered the most important record of the crafting of that seminal document. Also wrote model treatises on the art of government, drafted the amendments that would become the Bill of Rights, crafted George Washington’s (George Marshall) inaugural address, and naysayed the term “highness,” in addressing him, symbolically inaugurating republican democracy with that gesture. In the 1790s, he became one of the founders of the Democratic-Republican Party, which ultimately fused into the Democratic Party. Served in the House of Representatives for 8 years, and became one of the leaders of the anti-Federalists. A bachelor until the age of 43, when he married widow Dorothea ‘Dolley’ Payne (Michelle Bernard). Shorter than his wife by a full head, no children from the union. The pair were an extremely popular couple, thanks to DM’s highly developed social skills. Retired briefly from politics to his estate, Montpelier, after the death of his brother, then returned to Washington in 1802. Served as Secretary of State for Thomas Jefferson’s 2 terms, where he was accused of weakness in dealing with England and France, then succeeded him in 1808 as a Democratic-Republican, beating Federalist Charles Pinckney (Daniel P. Moynihan), to also become a two-term President, although he was far less effective as an executive than as a legislator. Beat Dewitt Clinton (Kathleen Kennedy) to win his second term, after an initial run that was marked by growing tensions with Great Britain, bringing criticism from both his and the opposition party. The contretemps ultimately occasioned a martial outbreak between the two countries. Unable to create a consistent foreign policy or to be a capable war leader during the subsequent War of 1812, which came to be known as Mr. Madison’s War, and dominated his presidency. Exercised caution and moderation, while refusing to impose martial law, restrict the press, or round up dissidents, as other later presidents did during times of armed conflict. Aging generals from the Revolution oversaw defeat after defeat on land, until he allowed younger men to act in their stead, turning the war’s tide, with the help of a powerful navy. Also slow to discharge incompetent underlings, he was eventually forced to flee the capital, which was devastated by British forces. The White House was reconstructed afterwards, and was given its name during his administration, while the treaty at war’s end resolved none of the issues that began it. 2 vice-presidents died under him. Demilitarized the U.S.-Canadian border, as his one lasting foreign policy initiative. Following his retirement, he spent the rest of his life in Virginia, tending his 5000 acre farm, and working to abolish slavery. Ended his career as rector of the Univ. of Virginia, succeeding Jefferson, as he did with the presidency. Spent his last years in bed, barely able to bend his rheumatic fingers, and died of debility at breakfast, the last of the original Constitutional framers to die. Inner: Good-humored, scholarly, humble, shy and retiring. Persuasive, republican at heart, with a strong belief in government by consent, and the responsible use of power. Nation-building lifetime of making his mental energy manifest by integrating governmental theory with a practical legal basis, although his failures as chief executive would necessitate another go-round in pursuit of high office to try to gain a better sense of completion with it, which he ultimately could not do. Francois Fenelon (Francois de Salignac de La Mothe Fenelon) (1651-1715) - French cleric, educator and writer. Outer: From a noble but poor old Gascon family. Sensitive, mystical and idealistic as a child, he was destined for a church career, and studied at Saint-Sulpice in Paris before being ordained at the age of 24. Tall, thin and pallid. 3 years later he was appointed the superior of a convent which trained young women who had been newly converted to Catholicism. Wrote a popular treatise on education, which emphasized health, hygiene and domestic economy, and came to the attention to both the French church, particularly Jacques Bossuet (Barack Obama), who later become his enemy, and the French court. Sent on ecclesiastical missions to try to convert the Huguenots, where he proved quite tolerant. Through Mme. de Maintenon (Simone de Beauvoir), the mistress and later the wife of Louis XIV (Charles de Gaulle), he became tutor to the king’s grandson and heir, who never lived long enough to succeed him. Able to instill both discipline and a liberal sense of monarchy into the unruly boy, while criticizing Louis’s reign in his writings, which later fed into his downfall. His most famous book, Telemaque, a veiled critique of the king’s reign, proposed a monarch who treasured peace, wisdom and simplicity. Elected to the French Academy in 1693, and was made archbishop of a wealthy see 2 years later. Through his platonic attachment to Jeanne-Marie Guyon (Michelle Obama), a believer in Quietism, an extremely passive renunciation of the world, he found a system that appealed to his spiritual sensibilities, and became her public defender through his writings, much to the displeasure of his royal patrons. Ordered to remain in his diocese, while she was carted off to prison, he had his defense condemned by the pope in 1699, although his gentle character saved him from more severe punishment. Remained in touch with his devout followers at court, but his hopes of being returned to favor were dashed when his former pupil and heir died. Spent his last years doing parish work and died a well-loved figure, although unpardoned. Inner: Unoriginal, and not particularly noteworthy as a writer, far more so as a gentle, spiritual human being. Tolerant, charming, and generous. Shrewd, witty, modest and graceful. Humane, affectionate, aristocratic in tastes and ideas, a blend of both politician and priest. Sidebar lifetime of exploring his otherworldly side, while evincing the same intelligence and noble characteristics that he would in his more active lives in the realm of worldly affairs. Jacques Lefevre d’Etaples (c1455-1536) - French theologian. Outer: Received his education at the Univ. of Paris, and graduated as a master of arts. Traveled to Italy in order to study the works of Aristotle (J. Robert Oppenheimer). After being ordained a priest, he taught philosophy in Paris from about 1490 to 1507, and also wrote on a variety of subjects, in an attempt to modernize religious thought from its medieval Scholastic hold. In addition to penning treatises on the sciences, he annotated translations of Aristotle on ethics, metaphysics and politics. During that time, he made 2 visits to Italy, where he studied Greek classics and Neoplatonist mysticism, and became a central figure of the church reform movement, after undergoing a spiritual crisis in 1505, where he turned towards mysticism to answer his underlying questions on the nature of nature. In 1507, he became associated with the Saint-Germain-des-Pres Abbey in Paris, where his former pupil Guillaume Briconnet (Eliot Spitzer) was abbot, and wrote five Latin versions of the Psalms, along with a commentary on the letters of St. Paul, which had an influence on reformer Martin Luther (Martin Luther King). Remained there until 1520, while assiduously studying the Bible. In 1521, his contention that the 3 Marys of the Gospels were not one person, earned him the condemnation of the Sorbonne. After Briconnet was appointed bishop of Meaux in 1516, the former made him his vicar general in 1523 to help implement reforms he had outlined. 2 years later, the clergy of the diocese fell under the suspicion of Protestantism, and he was forced to move to Strasbourg, before later returning to Blois under the protection of Francois I (David Lloyd George). Translated the entire Bible into French from the Vulgate in 1530, in an attempt to employ the vernacular as a more accessible spiritual language, although his reforms were looked on with extreme suspicion during this early period of the Reformation, particularly since his works began having an enormous influence on younger scholars. In 1531, he fled to Nerac, where he was supported by the humanist Margaret of Angouleme (Eleanor Roosevelt), the queen of Navarre, and spent the rest of his life there. Inner: Cerebral humanist, with a gift for exposition, and an unswerving desire to bring the Church and its scriptural base out of medievalia and into the brave new world of the Reformation, although always remained a Roman Catholic. Ink-stained hands lifetime of putting his considerable theological intelligence into reforming the way the Church’s canonical base was viewed by the generation of scholars who followed him. Louis IX (1214-1270) - King of France. Known as Saint Louis for his piety. Outer: Of the Capetian line. Father was Louis VIII (Joschka Fischer), mother was Blanche (Maria Shriver), daughter of the King of Castile. Eldest surviving son, albeit 4th child. His mother gave him his religious instruction, and although he was a boisterous, temperamental teenager, he learned to channel his energies into a pious sense of duty. Succeeded to the throne at the age of 12. His possessive mother remained his chief adviser and sometime regent until her death in 1252. Tall, thin, slightly stooped, with a pleasing, kindly expression. Effected simple dress. At 20, he married Margarite (Michele Bernard), the daughter of a French count, 11 children, including his successor Philippe III (Eliot Spitzer). Close relationship with his wife although he abstained from sex during Lent and Advent. Popular and just, he often administered justice personally, while slowly bringing the 100 years war with England towards its ultimate conclusion with a series of truces. After falling seriously ill with malaria and recovering, he joined the 7th Crusade in 1248, was defeated, captured by the Egyptians, ransomed, and returned home at the death of his mother, although was able to turn a military disaster into a diplomatic coup by making advantageous alliances. Good administrator and effective diplomat, who was so trusted, he occasionally arbitrated disputes outside of France. A reformer at home, he imposed his own sense of morality on the customs of the time, while strengthening royal justice and administration and creating a base for commercial growth. Also patronized art, architecture and literature. Obsessed about the Holy Land throughout the latter part of his reign, he eventually returned there in 1270, only to die of the plague, lying on a bed of ashes with his arms crossed. When his body was brought back to France, crowds gathered and knelt as his procession passed. The Inquisition as well as tales of the Grail appeared during his reign. Canonized soon after his death. Inner: Scholarly, pious, acting out a self-idealization of the exemplary Christian monarch, with a strong religious fervor. Adhered to strict moral principles, but kindly. Also quick-tempered and occasionally violent, with a sense of gluttony, which he fought to curb. Idealized Christian king lifetime of giving total expression to his spiritual side through a highly patriarchal/warrior role, while secretly exploring the feminine in monarchical drag. Gregory VII (Ildebrando or Hildebrand) (c1020-1085) - Roman pope. Outer: Origins are obscure, father may have been a Tuscan workingman, although he was given a thorough Roman upbringing, having gone to the Eternal City at an early age, and studied at a monastery where his uncle was abbot. Became a Benedictine monk, and continued his education with a reputation for steadfastness of character and practical intelligence, rather than scholarship. Made chaplain to Pope Gregory VI and went into exile with him, when he was forced to abdicate. His monastic life ended in his late 20s, when he was brought to Rome by the pope and ordained a sub-deacon, to be part of his group of reformers. Did administrative work and acted as chief policy-maker and power behind the throne of St. Peter. Recovered much of the ecclesiastical property that was held by Italian nobles and restored the papal finances. Began much needed reform surrounding the corruption and spiritual laxity in the Church, and though he was opposed by both clergy and noblemen alike, he won the support of succeeding popes, taking the election of the papacy out of the hands of the Romans and into the college of cardinals, while allying with the Normans against the German kings. In 1073, he was elected pope, In 1073, he was elected pope, succeeding Alexander II (Eliot Spitzer), with whom he had closely worked, and took the name of Gregory as celebration of the first and greatest of his line, without knowing it was an earlier go-round of his. Immediately began implementing greater reform forbidding clerical marriages and simony, while appointing legates to travel around Europe and enforce his new laws. They, in turn, were met with violence and opposition almost everywhere. Kept a watchful eye on the emerging churches in the Scandinavian countries, as well as the Balkans, and made the initial plans for holy war against the Turks, which would ultimately translate themselves into the Crusades. At the Roman Synod of 1075, he condemned lay investitures, where abbacies and bishoprics were the property of secular powers, and the struggle behind those decrees would dominate the rest of his pontificate. Attacked and slightly wounded while saying Christmas Mass that year, he was carried off by a Roman nobleman, although the Romans rallied to his defense and won his release. Excommunicated the German king, Heinrich IV (William Randolph Hearst) in 1076, and the following year the king was forced to humble himself before the pope because of the sudden plummet in his popularity over the decree. When civil war broke out in Germany, he remained neutral, although Henry set up an imperial antipope, and then marched on Rome, where he proved victorious in the fray. Led the defense of Rome, but when Henry returned 2 years later in 1083, the Romans betrayed him, and he was forced to fortify himself in the Castel Sant’ Angelo, until he was rescued by his Norman ally, Robert Guiscard (Robert Kennedy). The Normans, however, plundered the city, and because of the unpopularity of the war he had called to the city, he had little choice but join them in their retreat south, and died a year later, shorn of all but his Norman support. His last words supposedly were, “I have loved justice and hated iniquity; that is why I am dying in exile.” Viewed as one of the truly great reformist popes. Inner: Although condemned by his enemies as prideful and ruthless, his piety was unquestioned, as was the monastic simplicity of his personal life. Stubborn and noble in his defense of the Church’s moral responsibilities, as well as its liberty from secular powers. More of a spiritual figure than a political one, viewing himself as a purger of religious and secular corruption. Crusading lifetime of piety and moral rectitude, only to fall victim to the martial will of the secular world, which may have impelled to return to the political sphere in order to truly express his sense of heart-felt power. Gregory I (c540-604) - Roman pope. Known as “the Great.” Outer: Son of a Roman senator, had a privileged upbringing, and was related to 2 earlier popes. Inherited a large fortune, and entered the service of the state as a young man. In his early 30s, he became urban prefect of Rome, holding the position for 2 years, before being forced to vacate that high post. Sold his enormous properties and set up 6 monasteries in Sicily, and one more in Rome, while giving generously to the poor. Entered his own St. Andrew’s Monastery in Rome, and pursued the ascetic life of the monk, damaging his health through his austere practices, although afterwards he looked back at that time of his life with extreme nostalgia. Suffered much of his life from gout and gastritis, although they never affected his judgement. Nevertheless, saw God as difficult and painful to access, thanks to his own ongoing physical discomfort. After being assigned by the pope as one of the 7 deacons of Rome, he became a papal nuncio in Constantinople in 579, serving for 6 years, although with little overt success on his own, until he heavily compromised himself to insure Italy safe from Lombard attack. Came to see that the migrations westward were key to the law and theocratic order of the future, and curried favor with converted royalty to keep them Christian. Returned to Rome to become abbot of St. Andrew’s. Despite initially demurring, he was elected Pope in 590 during the outbreak of a plague, and reluctantly accepted the position. Led a penitential procession through the streets, petitioning heaven for relief, and received the vision of the archangel Michael, sheathing his sword from above, after which, the scourge receded. Went on to deal with floods, famine and invasion. Took all in successive stride and proceeded to act as the pre-eminent architect for the medieval papacy, bringing his administrative, theological and reforming spirit to bear on the office to extremely far-ranging effect. Not above advocating war to remind heathens that the cross was wedded to the sword. Responsible for the defamation that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute, thanks to an ill-informed sermon on the subject, when he tried to make her into a model of penance. In 596, he sent missionaries to Britain to convert those Anglo-Saxon isles before the rival Eastern church could, bringing them in close accord with Rome. His guidance, planning and direction in the undertaking, made him one of the primary apostles of the future British Isles. Liked to be known as “the servant of the servants of God,” a title that would carry down through the millennia. A prolific writer, albeit more pragmatic than cerebral, with a special interest in familiarizing converted barbarians with the rich theological literature of the Greco-Roman world. His Pastoral Care and Dialogues would be on the must-read list of future medievalia. Also contributed to the development of the Roman Liturgy, and is best remembered for his reform of the Mass, which would eventually add the Gregorian chant to its litany in honor of him. In declining health in his latter years, and ridden with arthritis, although he maintained his office as best he could. Canonized soon after his death. Inner: Generous, genuinely spiritual, with a reformer’s and administrator’s zeal. Thanks to a great desire to make the church more accessible for ordinary people, he geared his writings and reforms towards that end. Had an idealistic view of the secular subservient to the ecclesiastic, which wasn’t supported by reality. Tolerant towards the Jews, but also engaged in the slave trade for his own domestic needs, occasionally freeing one. Admixture of power-seeking and prayerful retreat, an otherworldly man-of-the-world, which he would still be working on over the next millennium and a half. Saw the search for God as one of great strain, a stance that would strongly affect the Church for the next half millennium. Monk-at-heart lifetime of living up to the accolade of ‘the Great’, in his energy, vision and ability to make manifest some of his theocratical will at a pivotal point of development of the medieval church.

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PATHWAY OF THE POLITICAL HELPMATE AS EVER-EVOLVING FORCE:
Storyline: The herstory-making mate continues to transform herself both on her own and through powerful spouses of the same loose family, into a voice and persona with which to be reckoned.
Michelle Obama (Michelle Robinson) (1964) - American lawyer and political helpmate. Outer: Of African-American descent. Father was a Democratic precinct captain, and a city pump operator, who had multiple sclerosis, and was forced to rely on crutches. Mother worked as a secretary. One older brother, who became a college basketball coach. Both parents imbued her with an ethic of hard work and the will to succeed. Grew up in modest circumstances in a one-bedroom apartment on Chicago’s South Side, where a divider in the livingroom served as her bedroom. Put in a program for gifted children, she wound up following her sibling to Princeton Univ., after being told she wouldn’t do well there, only to graduate cum laude in 1985, with a B.A. in sociology. As part of a distinct minority at the school, she became acutely aware of the prejudicial role of race in America. Received her law degree from Harvard Law School, after once again being told beforehand she would have academic trouble there. Following graduation in 1988, she joined a law firm as a specialist in marketing and intellectual property, and while there, she met a summer intern, Barack Obama, after being assigned to be his mentor, since the duo were the only two African-Americans there. The pair would marry in 1982, two daughters from the union, Malia and Sasha. After her father died of complication from MS in 1991, she decided to re-evaluate her life and left corporate law for the private sector, taking city positions in her native Chicago. In 1995, she began working through the Univ. of Chicago, where she developed the school’s Community Service Center. After the turn of the century, she became an executive director of community affairs for the school’s hospitals, while also holding several other board positions. Disturbed over BO’s run for Congress in 2000, so that their marriage was strained by the time of the birth of their youngest daughter a year later, over what she deemed his selfish career ambitions. Remained in Chicago as a working mother, when her husband was elected to the Senate, and only when he decided to run for the presidency in 2007, did she cut back her hours and accommodate herself to his career, having resolved herself to its inevitability. Proved feisty, controversial and candid on the campaign trail, and was forced to tone down her remarks somewhat to an America not used to blunt truth from its potential first ladies. Her statement, “for the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country because it feels like hope is finally making a comeback,” did not sit well with some, but she has since learned to temper her truths with more of a diplomatic sense of what the country-at-large’s capacity is for criticism. Nevertheless, she would prove a handy target for hate-mongering, in her own ongoing lessons on how to operate in a country weaned on the pablum of pieties, palliatives and platitudes, and still not able to swallow a far stronger diet of necessary correctives to its ills. Introduced herself to the nation-at-large with a well-received speech at the Democratic National Convention, showing herself to be both gracious and politically in tune with her audience. Her husband’s subsequent victory would make her the first three-time occupant of the White House on the distaff side. Code-named Renaissance by the Secret Service.Immediately showed herself to be a highly active First Lady, visiting soup kitchens, inner city schools and meeting military families, while ruffling some fogyish feathers, through her blatant display of her muscularity. Chose childhood obesity as her initial crusading issue, and remains an emblem of assertive womanhood during a time when that concept still draws fire from traditionalists. Inner: Outspoken, sarcastic and extremely strong-willed. Great belief in her husband as an instrument of much needed change, and unafraid to be both simultaneously critical and supportive. Next level lifetime of helping to redefine women’s roles in the political spheres, in her ongoing crypto-flirtation with partenrship and the U.S. presidency. Ellen Axson Wilson (1860-1914) - American political helpmate. Outer: Of Welsh and Scottish ancestry. Father was a Presbyterian minister, as his father had been. The eldest of 4, she had two brothers and one sister. Met her future husband Woodrow Wilson (Michael Eric Dyson), when she was an infant and he was 6. Grew up in a refined household, with an abiding interest in art, which she would pursue and eventually excel at. Had a lonely childhood, and was seen as standoffish. 5’3”, with dark reddish-brown hair. Her parents believed in education for girls, and she was tutored at home by her mother, before attending a local female high school. Spent most of her early life in her adopted hometown of Rome, Georgia save for a short period when she studied art at the Art Student’s League in NYC. Her mother died in 1881 in childbirth, which caused her father to recede into himself, and her siblings to be transferred to her grandfather’s home, in what would be a traumatic time for her. Re-met fellow Georgian Wilson in her early 20s, and they were engaged soon afterwards. Her father subsequently collapsed and was carted off to a mental institution, which drained her, and made her question whether she would be suitable for marriage. Following his death from suicide in 1884, she returned to NYC to continue her art studies, while also teaching African-American children at one of the city’s missions. Married Wilson the following year with her grandfather conducting the ceremony, three daughters from the extremely close union, Margaret (Malia Obama), Jessie (Sally Quinn) and Eleanor (Sasha Obama), with all serving as his adoring Greek chorus. Followed her husband on his academic career, which culminated in his becoming president of his alma mater, Princeton Univ. in 1902, after teaching there for 12 years. Helped him in his researches, and traveled with him to Europe, marveling at how relatively emancipated women were there. In 1905, one of her brothers, his wife and their son all drowned in a Georgia river, and she created a scholarship at Berry College in their memory, funding it with her artwork. Turned her mourning into an outpouring of painting, while simply signing her works EW, since she did not want to eclipse her spouse in any way. Had several one woman shows, and also won awards for her work, some of which were displayed at the Chicago Art Institute. Helped her husband get elected New Jersey governor in 1910, although by then was in ill health, having incurred kidney problems with the birth of her youngest in 1890. After her husband was elected president in 1912, she set up a studio on the second floor of the White House, while she was known by her staff, as “the Angel in the White House.” Never particularly interested in Washington society, she, nevertheless, dutifully performed her hostess duties, and also oversaw the weddings of two of her daughters while First Lady. Sensitive to the plight of the capitol’s African-American population, because her ancestors had been slave-owners, she worked on improving housing in Washington’s rundown slums. Tried to improve working conditions in various government offices, as well, with a special emphasis on the lot of working women. Also organized and established the White House Rose Garden. Became puffy and tired all the time because of the demands put on her and her weakening body. Suffered a bad fall in her bedroom, and had to have surgery on her legs, as her health deteriorated, thanks to tuberculosis of the kidneys and Bright’s disease, also a kidney disorder. Seventeen months into her husband’s presidency, she died of the latter, asking before she went, that her husband marry again, which he did, after grieving enormously for her. Inner: Highly energetic, and passionate with a strong esthetic. Calm, motherly, refined, principled and well-read, with an all-abiding interest in domesticity. Modestly declaimed any ambitions for herself, despite being an activist interested in uplifting the powerless. Had excellent political instincts, as well as a strong social conscious. Support lifetime of aiding her longtime family member in his desire to change the world, while focusing her activism on one neighborhood and one person at a time, before prematurely exiting so as to return to do the same in a far more dynamic era, with far more opportunities for her to make a major mark on her times. Jeanne Guyon (Jeanne-Marie Bouvier de la Motte-Guyon (1648-1717) - French religious figure. Outer: Father was a procurator, and both parents were extremely religious. Grew up in a household of wealth and power, although she was often sick, leaving her particularly impressionable to her progenitors’ piety. Educated at a convent, while moving back and forth between there and her home because of her ill health, which precluded her from getting a worldly educated. As a result, she expressed a desire to be a nun at one point, as one of her older sister had done, although soon changed her mind. Because of her potential dowry, she was a matrimonial prize, and at the age of 16, married a figure of local wealth, Jacques Guyon, who was over two decades her senior. Four children from the union. Suffered at the hands of her monstrous mother-in-law, as well as an equally unpleasant servant, and during the dozen years of her unhappy union, serially lost two children, her parents and a half-sister, in a relatively short spate of time, which all added to her ongoing fascination with mysticism and otherworldliness, since this world held little for her save for sadness, ill-treatment and loss. Felt that her suffering was a path to salvation, and after giving birth to two more children, her husband mercifully died a dozen years into the union. Deeply affected by the writings of Francis de Sales (Barack Obama), she left her children behind, and went to Geneva to be with her spiritual mentor, Pere Lacombe, only to soon find herself persona non grata there by the local bishop, who felt her espoused beliefs bordered on the heretical. Returned to France and once again ruffled the authorities with her written musings on a religious philosophy that would come to be known as Quietism, a complete and utter rejection of the material world through prayer and meditation, which was achieved in three stages. The first would be a sense of the union with the divine, the second a mystical death into the baseness of being, and the third a resurrection in which soul and sense of divinity were reunited. By 1686, she was in Paris, looking for adherents to her passive piety, only to find Rome condemn it as heretical. Her mentor was tossed in the Bastille, while she suffered arrest and imprisonment as well. On her release seven months later, she gained her most distinguished disciple, Francois Fenelon (Michael Eric Dyson). The two would subsequently have a chaste, intellectual relationship, while his influence in the higher circles of the French aristocracy would be considerable, bringing her beliefs to some of the creme of the country’s upper crust, and making her a distinct threat to its ecclesiastical powers. Her published works were condemned as heretical and she was prosecuted by Jacques Bossuet (Barack Obama), the Bishop of Chalons, and another, although he allowed her refuge from detention for some months. After secretly returning to Paris, she was officially arrested through the efforts of one of her brothers, and serially imprisoned, ultimately winding up in the Bastille, where she stayed until 1703, for a total all told of seven years of incarceration. Although she officially abjured her teachings, Bossuet and Fenelon would battle it out over them until the former’s death in 1704. Following her release, she went to live with her son, where she spent the remainder of her life in quiet seclusion, penning poetry, and adhering to her principles. Her works would find favor with some factions of the French court, where its most pious members lived by her postulates. Maintained a discreet and secret correspondence with Fenelon during this time, before finally and quietly passing on to the next world. Her teachings would subsequently find far more favor among Protestant sects, particularly the Quakers. Inner: Despite being condemned as a heretic by official declaration of the Church, she always felt she operated within its spiritual confines. Very much in tune with her interior being. Channeled lifetime of transcending a frail body with a powerful will, turning herself into a self-appointed apostle, for which she would suffer her own quiet sense of crucifixion and resurrection, before returning to the material world in succeeding go-rounds, a far more integrated figure for having gone through her own self-created auto-da-fe. St. Jane Frances de Chantal (1572-1641) - French saint. Outer: Father was the president of the Parlement of Burgundy, and leader of the Royalist party, that ultimately saw the supremacy of Henri IV (FDR) in the War of the Three Henris for the crown of France. Her mother died when she was 18 months old. Both beautiful and refined, she exhibited a lively and cheerful temperament. Although she grew up in a political household, she was always extremely spiritual. In 1592, she married the Baron de Chantal, and went to live in his feudal castle, rehabilitating it from ruin, and bringing it back to both order and prosperity through her excellent organizational skills. Six children from the union, with three surviving, including a troublesome son, Celse-Begnigne (Phil Graham). Dressed plainly, while consciously always seeing herself in God’s eyes as the ultimate measure of her being, despite being criticized for not acting like an ordinary lady of the castle. Extremely attentive to the problems of the poor, and involved in charitable works, she weathered the death of her husband in 1601, after he was accidentally killed by a harquebus on a hunting trip. Heartbroken at the loss, she took a vow of chastity afterwards, and prayed that she could have a guide, whom she got a glimpse of in a spiritual vision. In order to protect her husband’s property for her progeny, she went to live with her 75 year old father-in-law, who had threatened to disinherit her children if she didn’t. Despite his unpleasant character, as well as the continued dark presence of his arrogant housekeeper, she managed to retain her upbeat nature throughout the ordeal. Spent seven years there, as her goodness and virtue ultimately triumphed over the disagreeable situation. In 1604, while visiting her father during Lent, she met St. Francis de Sales (Barack Obama), and saw immediately he was the guide for whom she had earlier prayed. The duo, who would both be destined for sainthood, began corresponding with one another, while he dissuaded her from becoming a nun, seeing she would be of better service in the larger world. After securing the future of her children, she headed for Annency, along with her elder daughter, who had recently married the brother of Sales, and together they founded the Congregation of the Visitation in 1610, which would house both young girls and widows who wished to dedicate themselves to the religious life, without having to suffer the abnegation and austere practices of other orders of the time. Spent the rest of her life cloistered while struggling with her violent duel-prone son, praying he would die a Christian death on the battlefield. His daughter became Marie de Sevigne (Katherine Graham). Enjoyed a reputation for absolute sanctity, while nobles of all ranks came to the reception room of her convent in order to have audience with her. Died while visiting the convents of her community. Canonized in 1767, with August 21st as her feast day. Left several works on the religious life, which were simply and precisely writ. Inner: Extremely sensitive, gentle and kind, as well as firm and vigorous. Repressed, save in her heartfelt love of the divine, and both competent and self-denying, with a curious dual facility for both the spiritual and material worlds. Saintly lifetime of self-denial and a complete focus on spirituality to deal with problems of the psychological, in her ongoing development of her two sides, so as to be more of a complete figure of both power and compassion in lives to come.

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PATHWAY OF THE COMMENTATOR AS ELEGANT ELUCIDATOR:
Storyline: The highly active activist turns conservative commentator and educator in order to establish her voice on her own, after many a go-round of giving support and succor to powerful male partners in the political realm, culminating with the first crypto-American co-presidency by someone of her gender.
Michelle Bernard (1964) - American lawyer, writer and political analyst. Outer: Of Jamaican/American descent. Parents were Jamaican immigrants. Father was an oral surgeon. Grew up in comfortable middle-class circumstances, with her strong-willed mother as a role model. Oldest of 3 with a younger brother and sister. Taught to be self-reliant and proud of herself while growing up, while inculcating traditional values and a need to elevate and elucidate others not quite as fortunate as she. Quite tall with a striking esthetic and a quiet grace about her. Graduated from Howard University with a B.A. in Political Science and Philosophy, before getting her law degree from Georgetown Univ., where she initially was a liberal Democrat. Married and divorced. Became a Washington lawyer, ultimately joining the high-power firm of Patton Boggs as a partner, where she specialized in foreign and domestic legal policies related to women and minorities around the world. A political activist using the courtroom for furthering her aims, she also served as the chair for Washington’s Redevelopment Land Agency, where she helped in negotiating the financing for Washington’s MCI center, a huge sports arena for professional basketball and hockey in the mid-1990s. Has put a great deal of energy into trying to elevate women and ethnic and religious minorities in emerging democracies, while also contributing to a goodly number of publications. In 2000, she served as a member of the Bush-Cheney Presidential Inaugural Committee, and has since become a ubiquitous cable television presence, showing a knowledgeable and highly articulate familiarity with a host of issues. Married Joe Johns, a correspondent for CNN, and fellow lawyer. Two children from the union, a son and daughter. Parlayed her telegenic personality and looks into a high profile television career as a panelist on the McLaughlin Group, and a conservative analyst for liberal MSNBC. Extremely involved with the IWF Iraqi women’s democracy initiative, working towards the education and support of Iraqi women’s activists and their desire for full integration into Iraqi society. Despite her stance as a traditionalist, she was an enthusiastic supporter of Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential campaign, with some seeing her as an opportunist looking for White House access, after earlier coming out as a Republican because of the greater opportunities presented to desperately-needed minorities by the party. Inner: Highly articulate, with a great desire to right society’s wrongs, not only in the U.S. but around the world. Activist lifetime of coming into a minority she had previously feared, as a way of reintegrating herself, and furthering her own ongoing desire to be a legal and educational force in making the world a far more equitable place for her having been in it. Edith Galt Wilson (Edith Bolling) (1872-1961) - American political helpmate. Outer: 9th generation direct descendant of the Amerindian Pocahontas (Whitney Houston). Daughter of a judge and plantation owner, to whom she was close. Seventh of 11 children, and a loose relative of former first lady Martha Washington (Perle Mesta). Her family had owned lands for generations, finally losing them in the Civil War, so that financial considerations curtailed her own education. Had a difficult childhood, living in crowded conditions with siblings and relatives. Briefly went to a women’s college, but disliked it and left after two terms, then went to another female seminary, but also left it without degree. 5’9”, with black hair and blue eyes. In 1896, she married Norman Galt, a fastidious Washington jewelry store owner, whose family had supplied Thomas Jefferson’s silver service. Not in love with her husband, but enjoyed his gifts and attentions. Her only son died within a few days of birth, leaving her unable to bear more children. Unexpectedly widowed in 1908, with one adopted son, and left well off, through her spouse’s prosperous business. Traveled to Europe often, indulging in her love of fine clothing, while also overseeing its operations, although letting someone else run it. Met widower Pres. Woodrow Wilson in the White House and married him in 1915, although initially wished to wait until after he was out of office. His advisers had been dead set against the union, but love, and in his case obsession, prevailed. Taught the secret code twixt embassies, she was soon transcribing and decoding communiqués from abroad, while underlining her husband’s egregious sense of self-righteousness. After his 2nd election in 1916, she kept a war-alerted White House when the U.S. entered WW I two years later, and remained a steadying influence on her spouse, acting as his emotional sword. In 1919, she nursed him through a paralyzing stroke and served as an intermediary and decision-maker for him, pushing her own views on state affairs, while running a “bedside government,” with herself, a devoted aide, and the president’s physician. All the while, she kept everyone else ill-informed about his true condition, while using her own subjective instincts in transliterating his political aims. In effect, she was the first female president of U.S., issuing edicts galore and reorganizing the cabinet, according to their loyalties to her spouse. As a very popular figure in Washington, she was able to withstand the sniping of the press over the sudden bestowal of power on her. After her husband retired in 1920, a physically broken man, she continued to devotedly nurse him until his death in 1924, and then became an active director of the Woodrow Wilson Foundation. As an ardent Democrat, she was held in esteem by succeeding Democratic administrations, and was even considered a possible candidate for vice-president in 1928. Enjoyed the spotlight as her husband’s subsequent stand-in, Made an annual pilgrimage every year to Geneva, Switzerland, the home of her mate’s unrealized dream, the League of Nations. Also maintained a 4-decade correspondence with Eleanor Roosevelt. Wrote her autobiography, My Memoir, which whitewashed her White House role, while refusing to give her papers over to chroniclers, until she found one she could control. Died on her husband’s birthday. Inner: Lively, intelligent and highly manipulative. Quite conservative in her own beliefs, disliked African-Americans, Jews and members of her own gender, and was opposed to the suffrage movement. Never close to any other women. One-step-closer lifetime of even more directly experiencing presidential power, in her serial desire to realize power in her own name, through her ongoing tutorial at the hands of a longtime family member. Dolley Madison (Dorothea Payne) (1768-1849) - American political helpmate. Outer: Of Irish, Scottish, French and English ancestry. Father was an unsuccessful planter and Episcopalian, who ultimately became a semi-paralyzed invalid. Mother was a Quaker and a cousin of patriot Patrick Henry (Barack Obama). 4th of 8 children, with four brothers and three sisters. When she was one her parents moved from North Carolina to east Virginia and in with her mother’s family, where she was raised a Quaker in relatively comfortable surroundings. In 1783, her sire freed his slaves, and moved the family to Philadelphia, where he opened a starch business which failed. Her mother then turned their home into a boardinghouse, as her progenitor not only slid deeper and deeper into debt, but was also expelled from his Quaker congregation, and soon died a broken man, leaving his family in greatly reduced circumstances. Escaped their poverty by marrying John Todd, a Quaker lawyer, 2 sons from the union. Both her husband and infant son died in the Philadelphia yellow fever epidemic of 1793. Returned to Washington with her remaining scion, and reintegrated herself into the city’s life, while remaining in mourning. A popular social figure, she felt extremely nervous on first meeting confirmed bachelor James Madison (Michael Eric Dyson), but renounced her Quaker faith to marry him in 1794. Soon became renowned as a hostess and gifted helpmate of her husband, as the pair proved an extremely popular couple on the social circuit, thanks to her rare abilities in that sphere. Retired with her spouse to his 5000 acre estate, Montpelier, when he temporarily ended his overt political career, then returned with him in 1802, and the following year began assisting President Thomas Jefferson (Sal Williams) in his social functions. Recognized as Washington’s peerless social leader, she helped create a Washington society where there had never really been one. Had a remarkable memory for names and faces, and was an easy and graceful conversationalist. In 1808, her husband was elected 4th president of the U.S., and she effortlessly slipped into her official hostess duties. Refashioned the formal dinner parties and weekly open houses of her predecessors by taking a highly conspicuous role in them. Deliberately sat at the head of the table at dinners, relieving her husband of his host duties, so that he could sit mid-table, while she conducted the flow of the conversation. Also found a comfortable middle-way between European formality and the far more casual American style, so that her soirees met with approval from one and all who attended them. Redecorated the White House in simiilar politic manner, finding a balance between Federalist fashion, and Republican simplicity. Forced to flee Washington with JM during the War of 1812, although not before securing many of the nation’s early artifacts. Disguised herself as a poor countrywoman in her flight, but returned soon afterwards to begin the process of rebuilding the devastated city. Retired to Montpelier in 1816, after her husband’s run of office, and helped her frail and soft-sighted mate in his final work on compiling his notes on the Constitutional Convention. Fell into poverty after JM’s death in 1836, thanks to her alcoholic son’s mismanagement of their estate, but was helped out by friends, as well as a niece, who became her fulltime companion. Moved back to Washington, and became a doyenne there, replicating her old highly social life, as the last vestige of the early republic. At 80, her toils in service of the country were recognized by Congress and her final days saw her financially secure again. At her funeral Pres. Zachary Taylor (Gerald Ford), eulogized her as “First Lady,” the first time that term came in popular use. Inner: Strong female energy, counterbalancing a weak father. Charming, lively and outgoing, a head taller than her husband, and personality opposites as well. Loved high fashion, and was very conscious of the roles thrust upon her, dealing with them with aplomb and great grace. Crossover lifetime of both supporting and being supported by the universe-at-large, while learning the intricacies of political power in a democratic state. Marguerite (1219-1295) - French Queen. Outer: Father was Raymond Berenguer IV (Phil Graham) a French count and descendant of the kings of Aragon. Mother Beatrice of Savoy (Katharine Graham) was a skilled diplomat, as well as the member of a family of diplomatic players on the European landscape. A noted beauty, and she was the eldest of four sisters who became European royal consorts, including Eleanor of Provence (Doris Kopf-Schroeder), to whom she was very close, Sanchia (Daryl Hannah) and Beatrice (Maria Shriver), who would marry her husband’s brother, Charles I (Arnold Schwarzenegger), the future king of Sicily. In 1234, she was selected with papal approval to marry Louis IX of France, in what would be a close relationship. Together they had 11 children, including his successor, Philippe III (Eliot Spitzer). Her mother-in-law, Blanche of Castile (Barbara Walters), however, would prove jealous of her daughter-in-law’s relationship with her otherworldly son, and the two would have a competitive contretemps over him until the latter’s death in 1252. Accompanied her illl husband on the 7th Crusade in 1248, and gave birth to three of her children during this period. Her spouse was captured, and from her childbirth bed, she was able to negotiate his release, becoming, in essence, the only woman ever to be head of a crusade, however briefly. Only ruled directly for a couple of months in 1250, but proved to be extremely valuable to her royal spouse in the throne’s diplomatic maneuvers and mediations, including getting the release of an uncle captured in the Holy Land. Her husband refused to allow her to be regent for their eldest son, because of tensions between her and his brother Charles, over the latter’s inheritance of Provence. Following the death of Louis in 1270, while beginning another crusade, the regents appointed by him tried to seize her dower, but she resisted, and was finally granted reparations by her son, Philippe. The latter also allowed her to raise an army against Charles, using her for his own ambitions. The issue was later settled by marriage and compromises in the generations that followed. Outlived her husband by a quarter century, although played little role in the subsequent administration of her son. Inner: Highly competent, ambitious and down-to-earth in contrast with her largely otherworldly mate. Support lifetime of dealing with a competitive mother-in-law and a hyperspiritual husband, and acquitting herself quite well under the delimiting circumstances.

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PATHWAY OF THE POLITICIAN AS GOLDEN-TONGUE CRYPTO-POPE:
Storyline: The eloquent electrifier returns again-and-again as a potential giant slayer, taking on outsized personalities, before tackling deep-seated racial prejudices, including his own, in his ongoing desire to cut a memorable swath for himself in the American political landscape.
Barack Obama (1961) - American president. Outer: Of English descent on his maternal side and Kenyan on his paternal. Distantly related to both George Bush and Sarah Palin, through similar Mayflower ancestors, as well as to Confederate president Jefferson Davis (Lyndon Johnson). Mother was Caucasian and from Kansas, while his father of the same name, which means ”Blessed” in Swahili, was from Kenya, and had three wives. The duo met at the Univ. of Hawai’i, but were only together briefly. The latter left the family when his son was two, and he was raised in Hawai’i by his mother’s parents, save for a four year interlude between the ages of 6 and 10, when his mother married an Indonesian foreign student. One half-sister from the union. Later records show that her side of the family were once slave owners. The family moved to Jakarta, where he attended a madrasa, before returning to Hawai’i and the life he had led before. Attended an exclusive prep school, where he was only one of a handful of black students, while never truly feeling part of any group, with little about the true African/American experience to call his own. Felt a creeping rage around the projections his fellow classmates had about him, and a disorientation about not belonging. Briefly experimented with drugs, and also flirted with socialism, before returning to the narrow and straight, and graduating from Columbia Univ. in NYC. 6’1”, thin. When he was 21, his father died in a car accident in Kenya, while his mother died of cancer a few months after the publication of his 1995 memoir, “Dreams of My Father.” Only visited once by the former, and their only other contact was via letters. Following Columbia, he moved to Chicago to be a community organizer, and ultimately brought a job-intake center to the neighborhood in which he worked. Graduated Harvard Law, where he was the first African-American to become President of the Law Review, thanks to his ability to politick conservatives in his class. Worked at a corporate law firm for a summer, and met his future wife, Michelle Robinson, who was an associate attorney there in 1989. The pair married in 1992, two daughters from the union, Malia and Sasha. Considerable tensions would arise in the marriage through his desire to become a national figure. Joined a small civil-rights firm in Chicago, where he worked for three years, while also serving as a law professor, which got him elected to the Illinois state senate in 1996 as a Democrat, which led him to run against four-term U.S. Congressman and former Black Panther Bobby Rush in 2000, who hammered him as a John Harvard carpetbagger and he lost by a 2 to 1 margin. Came to national attention with the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, introducing himself as a voice that demanded to be listened to, and handily won election to the Senate from Illinois later that year, thanks to a spate of good luck around the missteps of his various opponents. As prelude to a presidential run in 2008, he published, "The Audacity of Hope," in 2006, while enjoying a rush of high hopes around his intended candidacy. Able to exploit the groundswell of Obamamania for a run once again at an office that has twice eluded him in the past, eliciting double the amount of contributors of his nearest rival Hillary Clinton. Showed himself willing to address uncomfortable issues, although initially he was far too cerebral for most ordinary people’s tastes. Subsequently received the mantle from part of the Kennedy clan as heir apparent of the JFK spirit. Continued to excite young voters and surge ahead of what was once thought to be another Clinton coronation, while weathering rumors, attacks and questions galore about his abilities to handle the complexities of the presidency. Despite an inability to win the big population states, and a controversial pastor as father figure, whom he had to defend and refute and finally deny, he would remain a surprising work-in-progress. Gave a stirring talk on race, and despite a kitchen sink approach against him by the increasingly negative Clintons, he clinched the nomination on the last day of the primaries. Made a pre-presidential tour of Europe and the Middle East, where he was accused of arrogance and presumption, while continually compromising himself on a variety of issues, in an attempt to present himself as a nonthreatening centrist, much to the disappointment of his earlier progressive base. Picked Sen. Joseph Biden as his running-mate, then was awarded the nomination by proclamation 45 years after Martin Luther King’s “I Have A Dream” speech, before giving his own rousing acceptance speech at outdoor football venue Mile High Stadium in Denver in front of some 80,000 people. Saw his stock rise considerably following a stock market meltdown in the fall, in which his cool and collected “No Drama Obama” demeanor contrasted greatly with that of his far more erratic opponent John McCain. Code-named Renegade by the Secret Service. Handily won the presidency by a 2-1 electoral college margin in an overwhelming mandate for change, after losing his beloved grandmother two days before the election. Immediately began dealing with the economic crisis by naming his financial team, Wall Streeters all, less than a month later, while also tabbing Hillary Clinton as his Secretary of State in a surprise move. In one final accolade to his year of living politically, he was named Time magazine’s Person of the Year for 2008. Made a goodly number of inclusive gestures just before assuming office, including throwing a dinner for John McCain. Followed Abraham Lincoln’s inaugural train route, in his ongoing fascination with him, and took office with unprecedented approval ratings. Enjoyed an emotional inauguration with some 1.6 million in attendance, and gave an uplifting yes we can tough times address, while the Dow industrial averages dropped its most precipitously on an Inauguration Day in its his/story, losing over 300 points. In addition, Sen. Ted Kennedy suffered a seizure at an inaugural luncheon. Had to redo the oath of office the following day, when Chief Justice John Roberts inadvertently reversed the order of the word ‘faithfully,’ then immediately began reversing some of the policies of his predecessor. Subsequently had to withdraw several nominations for ethical reasons, while doing battle with the Republicans over his economic stimulus plan. Eventually saw it pass, on a strictly partisan level, while enjoying optimistic popularity in dealing with the myriad problems he inherited. Released the torture memos of the Bush administration, then declined to prosecute those involved. Despite campaign promises, he also pursued a very similar military agenda to his predecessor, giving indication he would remain in the thrall of America’s 20th century strategists, rather than try to deal with the world with truly fresh tactics. Saw an uptick in high profile hate crimes, as well, in paranoid and racist reaction to his presidency fanned in no small part by the paleo-wing of the Republican Party and the talking torsos on radio and TV, who would continually accuse him of socialistic bias, with some claiming he was foreign-born and held his office illegally. His subsequent health care reform found tremendous resistance, forcing compromise after compromise, as his promises of change continued to evaporate in an atmosphere of entrenched interests unwilling to give in the slightest to their own self-interested agendas. Given the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize, despite following the previous administration’s war policies, in a surprise even to himself, having little to do with his actual accomplishments. In ironic response, he later made the Afghanistan invasion his own with a large troop surge of 30,000 at the end of 2009, thereby transferring responsibility for the war to himself. Offered a timetable, to simultaneously displease both the left and right with the move, while remaining in thrall to the previous administration’s vocabulary and agenda on America’s ongoing conflict with “global terror.” Soon afterwards, he gave himself a generous B+ for his first tumultuous year in office on national TV, despite a distinct eroding of his popularity from all spectra of his constituency, over his various stances. No longer the savior as he was earlier seen by many, he welcomed in 2010 with a devastating earthquake in Haiti, and a loss of a nearly half-century Democratic senatorial seat in Mass., ending his filibuster proof Senate. Nevertheless, able to push through his health care reform two months later, in his first real legislative triumph, amidst much rancor, compromise, and threats by the states to block it. Signed a nuclear arms reduction treaty afterwards with Russia, which was more style than substance, but gave him, for the moment, the B+ he had earlier awarded himself, and the sense he was finally on a roll. That roll would quickly end, when, after approving off-shore drilling despite campaign promises to the contrary, the largest oil spill in U.S. his/story happened on his watch in the Gulf of Mexico, once again underlining the sense of distance he brings to all problems, as an ivory tower observer rather than an engaged and active empathiser and problem-solver. Forced to ask his chief commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal to step down, after some intemperate remarks by the latter, while dissatisfaction with his performance continues to grow from both the left and the right, with only the centrists approving of his well-spoken empty suit leadership. Subsequently compromised by damaging leaks over the Afghanistan invasion, while also continually allowing himself to be manipulated by the reactionary propaganda machine dedicated to painting him in the most racist, socialistic terms possible. All the while, America would question his true religious affiliation, despite his deep Christian sensibilities, thanks once again to the divisive voices on the airwaves intent on despoiling his moment in the political sun as much as they can. Inner: Highly ambitious, seemingly candid, with a curious sense of detachment despite his passionate rhetoric and messianic self-view. Excellent motivational speaker, with an eloquence rarely heard in post-WW II American politics. Has the ability of a channel to do many voices and many physical postures, in a sense incorporating all of America into himself as its reflective leader. Mixed messenger lifetime of making yet another run for the presidential roses in yet another eloquent, and even more exotic vehicle than in times past, in order to both redefine himself to himself and embody the necessary compassion and wisdom to try to lead a great nation towards its larger promise, despite an inability to confront the obstacles standing in the way of that goal. Wendell Willkie (Lewis Wendell Willkie) (1892-1944) - American lawyer and politician. Outer: Grandparents were German immigrants. Parents were both teachers turned lawyers. 3rd son and 4th of 6 children. Grew up in a house of over 6000 books, widely read his whole life, while his home served as a lively debating society all through his early years. His father would wake up the children in the morning shouting snippets of the classics, to further ingrain the power of well-wrought words. Attended public schools, then was educated at Indiana Univ., where he also got his law degree, then joined his sire’s law firm. 6'1". Served in WW I as a lieutenant, and on his discharge, became a partner in an Akron, Ohio law firm for a decade, beginning in 1919, while also becoming involved in the Democratic Party. Married Edith Wilk in 1918, one son from union. In 1929, he was named attorney for a large utility holding company, and became its president in 1933. Despite his business success, he always managed to maintain the aura of ordinariness of his simple midwestern upbringing. Actively participated in the 1932 Democratic National Convention, and though Franklin Delano Roosevelt was not his first choice, he became one of his delegates and actively supported him while contributing to his successful campaign. His company controlled 4 electric power companies in the Tennessee valley, bringing it in conflict with the TVA, a New Deal agency which distributed cheap electric power. Argued that the practice was unfair to business competition, although the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the TVA, and he wound up selling his company’s holdings to the government in 1939, while also becoming a vocal critic of the New Deal and switching his official affiliation to the Republican Party. His stance won him the support of many pro-business Republicans, and he wound up the dark horse candidate for the Republican Party in the 1940 election, after 6 ballots, despite never having held public office before. Unlike the conservative wing of the Party, he was an internationalist, who also was not anti-New Deal, save for some of its anti-business policies. Forced to take on Charles McNary (Elizabeth Edwards), the Senate Minority Leader as his vice-presidential candidate, despite the latter having spearheaded a “Stop Willkie,” movement late in the nomination process. Ran an energetic and eloquent campaign, against both the New Deal and the U.S.’s lack of military preparedness, but proved no match for Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who handily won a third term, outpolling him by some 5 million votes, as well as over 5 times the number of electoral votes. Won more votes, 22 million than other Republican ever had, while also carrying 10, mostly Northern states. Following the loss, he became the leader of the internationalist wing of the Republican Party, supporting FDR’s preparedness measures around WW II, and flying to England in 1941 to give support to the Land-Lease program, as a direct ally of the president and most of his policies. Joined a Wall Street law firm, which listed his name first among its several partners. After America’s involvement in the war, he made a goodwill tour of many of the allied nations, including the Soviet Union. In 1944, he published “One World,” urging international cooperation as the keynote to world peace, as well as supporting long-oppressed colonial peoples. Also enthusiastically supported the formation of the United Nations, which he did not live long enough to see. Reputedly had a roving eye, and engaged in an illicit affair with Madame Chiang Kai-shek, among others. Actively sought out the Republican presidential nomination again in 1944, although lost it to Thomas E. Dewey, whom he could not support. Instead he began working with the new Liberal Party in NY, in hopes of making it a national organization. Spoke out vehemently against racial discrimination, the last year of his life. Suffered several heart attacks, and finally died of one. Inner: Highly intelligent, optimistic and dynamic, and a reformer at heart. Magnanimous, and outspoken, but too noncompromising to be an effective politician. Never owned his own automobile. Left no outstanding monuments of achievement, only words and heartfelt sentiments, none of which were original, but all of which were genuinely believed. Little man lifetime of rising to power on the sheer dint of his drive and intelligence and ultimately coming to recognize the great imbalances of the world, causing him to come back in minority form to try to redress them directly. Stephen Douglas (1813-1861) - American politician. Outer: Of Scottish and Celtic descent. Father was a physician who died when he was an infant, and the family was dependent on his mother’s brother. Moved to a farm in his late teens and studied at a nearby academy, while also serving short apprenticeship to two cabinetmakers. Against his mother’s wishes, he went to Cleveland to seek his fortune. Fell ill there with typhoid fever, for 4 months, then pushed westward to Illinois when he was 20. 5’4”, and only 90 lbs, with a large head and a massive chest, giving him a very curious physicality, despite a great, sonorous voice. Worked as a teacher, studied law and thoroughly transplanted himself, identifying completely with his change of geography. The following year he was admitted to the bar, and began a large and prosperous law practice, while also making a lot of money in Chicago real estate. Despite his short stature, he became known as the “little Giant,” thanks to an innate facility for everything he undertook. At the same time, he rose rapidly in Democratic politics, holding a number of state posts before being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from 1843 to 1847. Briefly courted Mary Todd (Rosie O'Donnell), who went on to marry his arch political rival, Abraham Lincoln. In 1847, he married Martha Martin, the daughter of a wealthy colonel, and the same year was elected to the U.S. Senate, where he became a prominent figure in the Young American Movement, which saw the country in terms of economic expansion and exploitation. His wife brought with her dowry a large Mississippi plantation, replete with slaves, which put him in a compromised position as a northern politician. Wangled his way around it, by hiring a manager for it, while using its proceeds to further his own political career, and only visiting it once for an appreciable stretch, and briefly several other times. Supported the Mexican War and became Chairman of the Senate Committee on Territories, where he played a key role in the passage of the Missouri Compromise of 1850, which made slavery an issue to be decided by the settlers of new territories, rather than a government mandate either way. His wife died in 1853, leaving him with two young sons, and three years later he married Adele Cutts, a 20 year old, who was a great-niece of Dolley Madison (Michelle Bernard). In 1854, he sponsored the Kansas-Nebraska act, which opened those territories to slavery, and prevented him from gaining the presidential nomination in 1856, thanks to Northern opposition to the plan, and his own obtuseness in the face of slavery, since he felt that the western territories were unsuited for plantations, and therefore would remain free on their own. As a Chicago landholder, he also saw expansion of the railroad enhancing his own net worth as well. A highly controversial figure at this point, he nevertheless was able to defeat Republican Abraham Lincoln in 1858 to win a second term in the Senate, after breaking with Pres. James Buchanan (John Roberts), in trying to wrest the Democratic Party away from him. During the seven electric debates between them, he tried to make Lincoln look like an abolitionist, while accusing the Republican Party of promulgating racial equality, while he was a defender of democracy, stating, “Let the people rule,” as his overarching mantra. Put forth his “Freeport Doctrine,” which once again used popular sovereignty as a means of defining slave status in a territory. Managed to alienate the Southern states through this stance, although it helped him beat Lincoln. Not a particularly effective speaker, thanks to overly dramatic gestures, but he had a strong voice, and a good way with words, which compensated for his relatively graceless delivery. In 1860, he managed to win the Democratic presidential nomination, thanks to northern support, but he lost the southern wing of the party, which doomed him in the subsequent election. Able to accept this circumstance in a singular show of moral character, putting the union of the states above his own personal ambition. Subsequently denounced secession in the south, to the tumultuous nose-holding of the southern states, and lost to Abraham Lincoln in the general election, after three highly memorable debates twixt the two. In the subsequent secession that followed, he put his heart and soul into keeping the union intact, but died shortly after the Civil War began from typhoid fever. Inner: Adroit, gregarious, cynical with good national vision. Great believer in expansion and popular sovereignty, and also a true democratic at heart, ultimately putting the country and its unity ahead of his own political needs. Felt African/Americans were inferior, and saw no moral wrong in slavery, a karmic position he would spend his next life redressing at its end, and the one afterwards, via total identification. Populist lifetime of ardently supporting democracy, while giving little credence to anyone whose skin did not match his own, in a go-round limited by myopia and self-interest, two strong failings, which he would try to amend in his subsequent go-rounds. Patrick Henry 1736-1799) - American politician and orator. Outer: Father was a well-educated Scots immigrant, who was in turn, a Virginia county surveyor, colonel and a judge. Mother was of Welsh descent, and musically inclined. 2nd oldest of 9 surviving children, out of 11. Both his parents were independent thinkers and highly articulate, passing those traits down to their son. Had a frontier childhood, hunting and camping in the woods, and was educated mostly by his sire and an uncle, although never particularly shone in as a student, terminating his education early. By the time he was 12, he could repeat whole sermons that he had heard verbatim, with all the proper dramatic inflections. Although baptized in the Church of England, he attended Presbyterian services with his mother, and the Great Awakening of the time had a strong effect on his future oratory. At 15, his father bought a store for his sons, but they were far too lenient with credit and soon had to close it. Thin, blue-eyed, deep-voiced and long-faced, with a serious demeanor. Married Sarah Shelton, a 16 year old, in 1754, 6 children from union, of whom he outlived 5, with one daughter dying the same day as he. His wife’s dowry was a 600 acre farm named Pine Slash with 6 slaves, but he proved as inept at farming as he was at storekeeping, and within 3 years fire had destroyed their holdings. Helped his father-in-law with his tavern business, and observed proceedings across the street at the Hanover courthouse. Read the law in his spare time, and was given a law license in 1760. Initially practiced in small courts, before first coming to prominence in 1763, with the “Parsons’ Cause” case, which questioned the power of the king to overturn colonial laws and encroach on the rights of the colonist’s. His father, who was magistrate over the case, was so entranced by his son’s eloquence, that “tears of ecstasy” streamed down his face. Thanks to his eloquence, he was subsequently elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1765, and on his 29th birthday he introduced 7 radical measures of self-taxation that ran counter to the crown’s highly unpopular Stamp Act, and helped precipitate the Revolutionary War. Following the birth of their youngest child, his wife lost her reason, and had to be cared for by family and friends at their newly bought plantation. With his reputation ever growing, through both his oral and written word, he was elected to the First Continental Congress in 1774, and in the spring of the following year, he uttered his most immortal line, “Give me liberty or give me death,” in response to the growing aggressive resistance to the British presence in the colonies, which precipitated Virginia’s participation in the upcoming war. Just beforehand, his wife died, having never regained her reason. Led a militia afterwards to demand reparations for gunpowder taken, then was given command of a regiment of 544 men and control of the Virginia colony forces. Made a colonel, despite no military experience and commander-in-chief of the Virginia militia. Resigned his post the following year and served the first of 5 terms as the commonwealth of Virginia’s first elected governor in 1776. As governor, he raised troops for the Continental army and continuously rallied the colony to support both the Revolution and the early republic. Following the death of his wife, he married again in 1776 to the granddaughter of a Virginia governor and a relative of Martha Washington (Perle Mesta), and had 11 more children, with one dying in infancy, and unlike his first brood, all but one, significantly outliving him. Drafted several articles of the Virginia Declaration of Rights, which was a forerunner of the Bill of Rights. In 1783, he helped found Hampden Sydney College, where six of his sons would be educated. After the war, he always conducted himself with dignity in office, never appearing without a scarlet cloak, black clothes and a wig. Served his last two gubernatorial terms between 1784 and 1786. Resumed his law practice afterwards, and was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates and the Virginia Convention of 1788. Helped the passage of the Bill of the Rights after the Constitution was ratified. In 1791, he retired from political life to help pay off his debts. Spent most of his life in a series of small-frame houses in the Virginia back country on increasingly larger, than smaller plantations as he aged. Unlike his contemporaries, he never sat for one of the leading portraitists of his time. Prematurely aged by his last decade, and also in failing health, he declined appointments in the Washington administration, including Chief Justice and Secretary of State, as well as another term of governor of Virginia. Made his last public speech, and then won his last election to the Virginia legislature, after being convinced to run by George Washington (George Marshall), although he died before taking office. On his tomb would be the words, “His fame his best epitaph.” Inner: Saw himself as a plain man, and acted as such. Modest, and unassuming until he opened his extraordinary mouth, and then he became an impassioned speaker for the ages. Golden-tongued lifetime of giving verbal ballast to extraordinary times, as one of several memorable voices of freedom and liberty, that spurred an oppressed colony into becoming a glorious experiment in participatory democracy, in a still unfolding drama and struggle of the weak versus the powerful, several centuries later. Jacques Bossuet (Jacques Beninge Bossuet) (1627-1704) - French prelate, philosopher and orator. Outer: Fifth son of a family of properous Burgundian lawyers on both sides. Mother was extremely pious and wanted him to enter the priesthood. Father was a judge of a provincial high court. Studied with the Jesuits until he was 15, then went to the College of Navarre in Paris to pursue theology. A hard worker at school, he was nicknamed “ox broken to the plough.” Ordained in 1652, while exhibiting a preternatural facility for oratory even as a teen. Spent his first 7 years as such at Metz, where his father had earlier gotten him a canonry at 13. Forced to deal with a large population of Protestant Huguenots there, and, to do so, he sculpted his pulpit skills, in an age where the oral far outshone the written. By 1659, he had developed the essence of his mature oratory style and took to it to Paris, where the Chapel Royal awaited him three years later. Had a strong voice, an excellent command of language, and never compromised himself by playing to easy emotions or facile narration. Instead he integrated passion and idea directly, by composing as he went along, rather than carefully orchestrating them beforehand on the printed page. At his best with funeral orations, because of the natural storylines and the heart of the lives behind them. In 1669, he was made bishop of Condom in Gascony, which ended his Parisian run, save for state occasions. At the same time, he was made tutor to the royal dauphin, a task for which he was ill-suited, because of the sullen unresponsive nature of his charge. Used his otherwise unproductive time at court to put his teachings on paper, in a remarkable trilogy detailing divinity’s relationship with humanity and the rights and duties of the latter in the connection twixt the two. Wished to see a parallel between the France of Louis XIV (Charles de Gaulle) and the Israel of King Solomon (William Randolph Hearst), while continually upholding rational orthodox authority. Elected to the French Academy in 1671, he was made bishop of Meaux in 1681, only to suddenly find himself caught in an argument between the king and the pope. Politically took a middle course between the two, in a plea for compormise, and avoided the personal contumely of the two through it, with his ultimate defense of the French clergy published after his death. Continued to try to resolve the differences between the Church and the Huguenots, while growing ever more conservative and impatient as he grew older. Fell into a dispute with his old pupil Francois Fenelon (Michael Eric Dyson) over Quietism, a passive meditative practice that was the product of Jeanne Guyon (Michelle Obama). Forced to denounce her, although offered her refuge, before she was finally arrested for her writings. After a lifetime of good health, he descended into invalidism his last two years, and died quietly. Inner: Diligent, kindly and friendly to a point. His/storian at heart and a great believer in recognized authority, with king, Christ and the Church as his earthly trinity. At the same time, he worshiped at the altar of rationality, with philosophy as his proof of God’s existence, and kingship as a manifestation of divine will. Philosopher priest lifetime of showing his true strength in rational language, with an unshakeable belief in the immutable power of the divine as last word of existence. St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622) - French prelate. Outer: From an old Savoyard aristocratic family. Eldest of 6 brothers, out of 12 children all told, and destined to be a magistrate per his family’s wishes. Studied rhetoric and the humanities at the College of Clermont in Paris as well as theology, under Jesuit instruction. Felt, nevertheless, that he was predestined for Hell, and fell psychosomatically ill over it, until he had an epiphany in front of an image of the Virgin Mary. Subsequently consecrated his chaste life to her. Continued his study of law, per parental wishes, and was admitted as a lawyer before the senate of Chambery. About to be appointed senator, as well as wed a rich Savoyard heiiress his father had chosen for him, when he made his otherworldly intentions clear, much to his sire’s extreme irritation. Nevertheless, the Bishop of Geneva, who was located in nearby Annency, interceded on his part, and obtained a position for him within his see, and he became its enthusiastic provost. Threw himself into his new duties with tremendous zeal, and in 1594, he volunteered to evangelize his district contra its Calvinistic leanings, at great risk to himself. Through his oratorical eloquence, learning, kindness, and simple, chaste behavior, he was able to convince and convert several prominent Calvinists, while many of the inhabitants of the district returned to the arms of his Church as well, because of his courage, ministrations, and golden tongue. Made the Genevan bishop’s coadjutator, he went to Rome and got the pope’s blessing for what he was doing, before going to Paris and preaching at the court of Henri IV (FDR), who was equally impressed with him. On the death of the Bishop of Geneva in 1602, he was consecrated to replace him. Proved to be a highly active reformer, while acting as an exemplar of the kindness, patience and goodness of the prophet Jesus. Lived and ate simply, and showed great compassion for the poor, living a saintly Christlike existence, with his entire focus on the needy and the upliftment of all whose life he touched, despite his high position in the hierarchy of the Church. Along with St. Jane Frances de Chantal (Michelle Obama) he founded an institute ifor young girls and widows to devote themselves to the religious life. An extremely effective preacher and orator, he had a stunning effect on all who heard him, and he was constantly implored to stay in France, where he periodically went to preach, although he always returned to his own diocese outside Geneva. Died after a seizure of apoplexy, and following his receiving last rites, and muttering over and over, “God’s will be done! Jesus, my God and my all,” he went on to his greater glory. Huge crowds flocked to visit his remains, and after much discussion, his heart remained in Lyons, where he died, while his body was sent back to Annency, to be buried there. During the French Revolution, his heart was carried by nuns to Venice, where it would find its final resting place. An active author, he continually defended the authority of the Catholic Church, while his “Introduction to the Devout Life,” would have considerable sway in the various pietistic movements which would follow. Canonized in 1665, his feast day would be January 24th. Inner: Saw love as the heart of religious devotion, and fidelity to the will of God as an absolute duty. Prosleytizing lifetime of penance and preaching, while embracing the Christ as his personal model, as a means of cleansing himself of his earlier drives for power, in order to bring a clean slate for his politically charged go-round in the far more secular world to come. Urban II (Odo of Lagny) (c1035-1099) - French pope. Outer: From a noble family of the Champagne region of France. Tall, handsome and aristocratic. Studied in Soissons and Reims, then became an archdeacon in the diocese of Reims, at the time the most important city in France, holding the position for about a dozen years. Became a monk and then Prior Superior of Cluny, building up on his administration experience as well as making contacts with the reform movement within the Church. Went to Rome on a mission and was made cardinal-bishop of Ostia by Pope Gregory VII (Michael Eric Dyson). In 1084, Gregory sent him as a papal legate to Germany, where Heinrich IV (William Randolph Hearst), who was dueling the pope, kept him in prison for some time, before releasing him. Served Gregory’s successor, then after a long delay, he was elected pope in 1088, taking on the name of Urban II. On the day after his elevation to the papacy, he sent circulars to all the bishops of Germany that he intended to follow in Gregory’s reform-minded footsteps. Found support on a number of levels, and dedicated himself to being recognized as the legitimate chairman of the Chair of Peter, since an antipope had been established during Gregory’s contretemps with Germany. Continually adapted himself to circumstances, so that he was able to regain the leadership in Europe that Gregory had lost through his insistence on lay investiture, an issue he pushed to the background in order to broach the church-state schism it had caused. Through moderation, he effected reform and healing, and during the Council of Clermont in France in 1095, he issued a ringing clarion call to several hundred nobles present for the First Crusade, an event that would have the most far reaching affects of his pontificate, in essence, integrating Europe through mayhem and misplaced zeal, as he promised heavenly rewards for the earthly actions of the warrior horde of western Christendom. Initially, he had conjured the Crusade as a way to displace the merciless and murdering energies of European nobles away from their own peoples. Although he had difficulties with a large part of the church in the Holy Roman Empire, and had strained relations with various crowns, he strengthened the papacy as a political entity. Expanded the papal administration, and further centralized the Roman Church, although failed to unite the eastern and western churches through the First Crusade. Died two weeks after the Crusaders committed wholesale slaughter on the Jews and Muslims of Jerusalem. Inner: Well- respected, offensive to no one. Eschewed passion and confrontation for his own diplomatic sense of timing. Able to pursue much of his agenda by not pushing it too hard. Inadvertent lifetime of recreating Europe in his call to arms against the infidels of the east, while strengthening the institution he was called upon to serve as its spiritual and political head, once again, doing his duty, but without the possibility of knowing of its far-reaching effects.

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PATHWAY OF THE PRESIDENTIAL PROGENY AS SUBLIME SPIRITUALIST:
Storyline: The first daughter two times over, once again winds up in the White House, although at a much younger age the second time around, to see if her deeply spiritual nature will once again reject the outer trappings of fame for the inner peace of disciplined serenity.
Malia Obama (1998) - American presidential daughter. Outer: Of African-American descent. Mother was Michelle Obama, father was Barack Obama. Older sister of Sasha Obama. Like her sibling, she became used to the spotlight at an early age, although her parents have tried to give her as normal an upbringing as possible, despite the family’s fishbowl existence, particularly after her sire was elected president in 2008. Bears a strong resemblance to her mother. Inner: Work-in-progress lifetime of using the White House once more as a springboard, at an even earlier age, to see where it will eventually take her. Margaret Wilson (Margaret Woodrow Wilson) (1886-1944) - American singer and spiritualist. Outer: Mother was Ellen Axson Wilson (Michelle Obama), father was Woodrow Wilson (Michael Eric Dyson), who would eventually become president of the U.S. Eldest of three sisters, including Jessie (Sally Quinn) and Eleanor (Sasha Obama). Grew up in an extremely close knit family centered around their father. The most spiritual of her family, she was also blessed with a pleasant singing voice, as well as her mother’s strong sense of gender equality. Trained in voice and piano at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore and followed her father to the White House when he was elected president in 1912. Her mother died the following year, and she became her progenitor’s official hostess, although she hated the role as well as the pressures, and gladly relinquished it when her sire remarried Edith Galt (Michelle Bernard) in 1915. The only one of the three sisters not to marry. Made her debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1915, and then did performances in order to raise money for the Red Cross during WW I. Did some recordings, but her compulsive need to entertain soldiers at the front strained her voice beyond ever publicly singing again, after spending nearly a year in France. The sights she witnessed also brought on a nervous breakdown following the fray. An active suffragette, she also supported her father’s ideal of a League of Nations. In 1923, she abandoned performing on the piano as well, and went to work for a NYC advertising agency as a consultant. Became involved in oil stock speculation, losing money on the venture, but paid back all of her friends whom she had touted on the risky deal. Her health began to fail, and she became involved in Indian mysticism in the 1930s, through an English army officer friend, and began corresponding with Sri Aurobindo, who became her guru. Despite warnings from her doctors that the climate would ill suit her acute arthritis, she went to live in Pondicherry, India in Aurobindo’s ashram in 1938. Was given the name Nishtha, which meant “one-pointed in devotion of Divine Realisation.” Spent her days in prayer and meditation, as well as typing and editing Aurobindo’s writings. Ignored pressure from family, friends and the government to leave India under threat of Japanese invasion during WW II. Felt extremely at home during this last phase of her life, despite continued ill health, and finally became victim to the same kidney failure that had felled her mother, and ultimately died of uremia. Inner: Fiery, imperious, fastidious, highly intelligent and highly capable. Spotlit lifetime of ultimately rejecting the material world and secondary fame to find her bliss in the simplicity of truly felt spirituality.

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PATHWAY OF THE PRESIDENTIAL PROGENY AS MICRO/HERSTORIAN:
Storyline: The first family daykeeper returns to the White House for another youthful stay, to continue her upfront and personal view of both his’n’herstory, and perhaps become an intimate recorder of it once again.
Sasha Obama (2001) - American presidential daughter. Outer: Of African-American descent. Mother was Michelle Obama, father was Barack Obama. Younger sister of Malia Obama. Thrust into the national spotlight at an extremely young age, because of her father’s high profile career, which led to the presidency in 2008. Seems to enjoy being centerstage, exhibiting an infectious personality, while her parents work at keeping her both grounded and normal, despite the extraordinarily intrusive nature of her parlously public upbringing. Inner: Work-in-progress lifetime of once again being thrust stage center by her family, in her ongoing close-up view of his’n’herstory in the making, and her self-appointed role as record-keeper of it. Eleanor Wilson McAdoo (Eleanor Randolph Wilson) (1889-1967) - American writer and biographer. Outer: Mother was Ellen Axson Wilson (Michelle Obama), father was Woodrow Wilson (Michael Eric Dyson), who would eventually become president of the U.S. in 1912. The youngest of three sisters, including Margaret (Malia Obama) and Jessie (Sally Quinn, and the only one in the family to be born in the north. Known to her family as “Nellie.” Extremely close with her parents and sisters, all of whom basked in the reflective light of their father, and also served as extremely strong supports for him. Lost her mother to a kidney ailment in 1913, and the following year, after being secretly engaged to another, and turning him down at least once, she married William Gibbs McAdoo, her father’s Secretary of the Treasury, who was a widower with 6 children, and also more than twice her age. The pair would have two daughters, one of whom would eventually commit suicide in 1946. Moved to California, where her husband practiced law, and also made two aborted runs for the presidency, before coming back to Washington in 1932, when he was elected senator. Divorced him two years later, citing a dislike of the climate in Washington, and returned to California. Remained publicly loyal to her ex, and was deeply disturbed that the marriage had not worked out. Turned to writing short stories, as well as penning a biography of her father. Also served as the family’s unofficial his’n’herstorian by collating the love letters between her parents. Became a frequent commentator on national radio, and also a popular public speaker, while helping to establish the Woodrow Wilson Foundation. Suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in 1965, and spent her last two years as an invalid, before dying at home. Inner: Athletic, feisty, highly articulate, and extremely concerned with her family’s legacy. Centerstage lifetime of enjoying her time in the spotlight via a presidential father, and an also-ran mate, before establishing her own public career, via her pen and voice and an innate need to be heard both orally and on paper.

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PATHWAY OF THE JOURNALIST AS SOCIAL BUTTERFLY:
Storyline: The longtime adoring chorus member easily bridges over to a noticeable career for herself, as a step up from her ongoing self-appointed role as ballast for men who need her approving support to further their own considerable sense of themselves.
Sally Quinn (1941) - American journalist. Outer: Delivered by her maternal grandfather, a surgeon. The oldest of three children, with a younger brother and sister, of an army intelligence officer who became a lieutenant general, only to be forcibly retired by Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson, who suspected he was passing military secrets to old family friend Barry Goldwater. Grew up on army bases around the world, attending 22 schools all told while her family maintained a residence in Washington, D.C. An avowed atheist as a child, who felt religion was an unnecessary evil, she eventually muted her sentiments. Substituted for her mother as an escort for her sire at functions, and reveled in the social attention, while finding her proximity to powerful people intoxicating. Came out as a debutante, and went to Smith College, where she majored in political science, while graduating at the bottom of her class. Worked in the Pentagon’s protocol office, did some summer stock, and Junior League charity work, before going to Germany and working as a translator for the Mercedes-Benz car company. Afterwards, she traveled around Europe with friends and lovers, evincing a special affinity for Spain. Highly attractive, with a sharp wit, she wound up breaking several engagements. Returned to the U.S. in the mid-1960s and held several jobs, before working in the 1968 presidential campaigns of Eugene McCarthy and then Robert F. Kennedy. Afterwards, she began toiling as a reporter for the Washington Post, despite having no writing experience whatsoever. Assigned to the Style section, she covered Washington parties, while showing a talent for drawing out her subjects in interviews, and coming up with highly quotable quotes, the product of her limited skills as a writer, and dependency on what her subjects said, rather than her abilities to limn them in print. Came to greater public attention, when she joined CBS Morning News as a co-anchor in 1973. Her first day she collapsed from the flu, and her second she was forced to go on alone when her co-anchor’s mother died. Proved herself a poor fit with the medium because of her irrepressible nature, and within six months, she was gone, despite ultimately becoming a skilled interviewer. Wrote about her experiences in “We’re Going to Make You a Star,” in 1975, a chatty and catty view of TV news. After an affair with her married editor, Ben Bradlee, he left his wife and the two lived together for several years, before she married him in 1978, despite a two decade difference in their ages. In her early 40s she had a son, who was born with a heart defect, and needed special attention. Published a novel, “Regrets Only,” in 1986. A Washington social powerhouse and ultimate insider, along with her husband, she had an extremely contentious relationship with the Clintons during the 1990s, condemning Bill Clinton for his adulterous behavior, despite being guilty of the same in her initial relationship with Bradlee. Continues as a Washington Grand Dame and opinion-maker, while admitting to have mellowed with age, with less of a need to be in the public spotlight all the time. In 2010, she lost her print column, “The Party,” after using it to address competitive issues within her family, although it would continue as an online feature, in what may have been her last hurrah at controversy in the twilight of her public life. Inner: Glamorous, highly social and witty, with far too hot a personality to translate herself into the cool medium of TV. Front and center lifetime of taking center stage for herself, after many a go-round of being in the adoring chorus of powerful men, in her own ongoing evolution as a public personality on her own. Jessie Wilson Sayre (Jessie Woodrow Wilson Sayre) (1887-1933) - American presidential progeny. Outer: Father was future president Woodrow Wilson (Michael Eric Dyson), mother Ellen Wilson (Michelle Obama) was the daughter of a minister. Middle of 3 daughters, including Margaret (Malia Obama) and Eleanor (Sasha Obama) in a very close family, centered around her sire. Educated privately, then graduated Goucher College in Baltimore. Worked at a settlement home in Philadelphia for 3 years, as well as served on the national board of the YWCA. In 1913, she was married at the White House to Francis Bowes Sayre, a law professor, in an affectionate relationship, that was a mirror of her father/daughter connection, 2 sons and a daughter from the union. Her husband was a professor of law at Harvard Law School, and went on to serve as assistant Secretary of State in the Franklin Roosevelt administration and High Commissioner to the Philippines, in between his teaching duties. The family based themselves in Cambridge, Mass., where she was active in the Democratic Party, and the League of Women Voters, as well as promoting her father’s dream of the League of Nations. In 1928, she gave the introductory speech for Al Smith (Antonio Villaraigosa) at the Democratic National Convention. Afterwards some consideration was given to her as a possible senatorial candidate, although she politely demurred. Remained active politically until the aftermath of an emergency appendectomy operation suddenly did her in. Inner: Intelligent, highly social and unaffected. Dual love lifetime of providing support for two not dissimilar men, in a seamless existence of serving as the appreciative audience for both her progenitor and marital protector, while directly wetting her feet in American politics. Marie of Brabant (c1260-1322) - French queen. Outer: Daughter of the Duke of Brabant, mother was a French noblewoman. Married in 1274 to Philippe III (Eliot Spitzer), as his second wife, 1 son and two daughters from the union, including Marguerite (Carolyn Bessette), a future queen of England. Close relationship, although the king’s chamberlain was jealous of her, and accused her of poisoning the king’s eldest son, when he suddenly died at the age of 9. Her brother successfully championed her in knightly combat, assuring her innocence and her accuser was promptly hanged. 9 years later her husband died, and she outlived him by nearly 4 decades. Inner: Royal lifetime of weathering a potential character assassination, before enjoying a long run as dowager queen in her ongoing education in the highest halls of power.

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PATHWAY OF THE RULER AS LONGTIME IMPRESSIVE RESUME-FILLER:
Storyline: The re-formed reformer tries to transcend a longtime habit of acquitting himself well in the public sphere, without ever capturing the public’s imagination, by eschewing his usual mainstream background for a more ethnic one, only to ultimately hoist himself on his own highly moralistic petard..
Eliot Spitzer (1959) - American politician. Outer: Parents were Austrian Jews, although he did not grow up in a religious home. Father was raised in poverty, got a degree in civil engineering and became a wealthy NY real estate developer. Mother taught literature at Marymount Manhattan College. Youngest of 3, and inculcated by his parents in helping other people. Each night at dinner, he and his siblings were made to discuss timely topics to make them socially aware. Went to private school, Horace Mann, where he excelled academically and was captain of the tennis team, then matriculated at Princeton Univ., where he was chairman of the student government his sophomore year. Lean, with a prominent nose, chin and forehead, and a strong jawline and deep-seat eyes. Had a perfect score on his law boards, and went to Harvard Law School, where he served as an editor of the Law Review. Met and married Slida Wall there, 3 daughters from the union. Clerked in Manhattan afterwards, then joined a prestigious NY law firm for two years, before becoming part of the Manhattan district attorney’s office, with the thought of a future political career. Spent his first six years pursuing organized crime, culminating in 1992, when he led a successful investigation into the Gambino crime family’s involvement in the city’s trucking and garment industries, wheedling a huge $12 million fine out of them in lieu of a jail term, and much positive publicity. For the next 6 years, he worked at two different NY law firms, showing himself to be an advocate of consumer rights. Lost his first elective bid in a Democratic run in 1994 for NY State Attorney General, but won the office four years later by a narrow margin, using his family’s considerable resources. Going against precedent, he proved to be an extremely aggressive bulldog against white collar crime, building a positive public image for himself as a crusader against corporate malfeasance, which gave him a 66% voter approval rating in his subsequent 2002 bid for re-election. Crafted his public career in emulation of his predecessor Rudy Giuliani, who used the same office to propel himself into national contention for higher office. Also kept a high profile as a commentator and analyst on various national news programs. Won extreme opprobium from the business community for his methods, but more than made up for it with his positive image in the electorate’s eyes as an aggressive advocate working in the public interest. Prosecuted cases as much through public opinion as he did through the courts, operating in a host of arenas, including pollution and health and safety standards. Many of his cases resulted in huge fines, while some were clearly politically motivated, around his own liberal agenda, including going after anti-abortion centers. When he ran for governor of NY in 2006, he easily won with almost 70% of the vote, the second largest majority ever in state his/story, thanks to the public persona he had carefully crafted. Initially found a resistant legislature to his reformist desire for overhauling and streamlining moribund state systems, while his subordinate’s ethics came into question around going after political enemies, while bringing into sharp question his ability to work collaboratively as an administrator. Also had his own ethics come into question for a million dollar loan from his father for his winning attorney general run in 1998, considerably dulling the crusader sheen he had fashioned around himself. His reformist stances in support of gay marriage and driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants, also ran into strong legislative opposition, tarnishing his effectiveness further, despite no loss of self-confidence on his part about his ultimate ability to have his political will prevail. Finally undid himself in 2008, when he was nailed in a prostitution sting, revealing he had spent tens of thousands of dollars as Client #9 of an organization called Emperor’s VIP, forcing him to immediately resign, and summarily end his fast track political career. Returned to work for his father’s real estate concern, and began his rehab the following year by appearing as a commentator on MSNBC, and also teaching a course on law and public policy at CCNY. Eschewed any mea culpas, and instead took a far more brazen approach to a comeback via a documentary, and a sympathetic biography to try to prove to the public he was once more a political player, very much interested in getting back into the game. Inner: Zealous and extremely career-oriented. Both self-mocking and self-aggrandizing. Also didactic, impatient and bullying with a righteous sense of self-confidence and arrogance. Reputedly always kept his socks on during illicit sex, as a symbolic need to keep some part of himself hidden, and an unwillingness to appear naked to anyone other than intimates. Ethical sword-in-hand lifetime of trying to return to centerstage of elective American political life, after being previously sidetracked into a highly effective high profile but support status, replete with the WASP prejudices of both his class and status, which he would also try to redress through a far less establishment background. Henry L. Stimson (Henry Louis Stimson) (1867-1950) - American statesman. Outer: From an illustrious family. Father was a stock broker, who sold his seat when his son was 4, and went to Europe for 3 years to study to become a physician. On the family’s return, his mother died, leaving him sickly and sober as a youth, during his privileged upbringing. His sire was detached and distant, and he felt he blamed him for his mother’s death, while he was sent to his grandparents to be raised. Trim and physically fit as an adult to compensate for his sense of weakness growing up, he became a sportsman, big-game hunter, and avid horseman. Received a BA from Yale, where he was a member of Skull & Bones, which gave him the contacts he needed later on in life. After graduating, he got an MA and LLB from Harvard. Admitted to the NY bar in 1891, and joined the law firm of Elihu Root (Martin Sheen) in 1893, becoming a partner in 1897. Had to wait 5 1/2 years to marry Mabel White, the woman he desired from Yale onwards, because of her father’s objections to his relative impecuniousness. No children from their 57 year marriage. Became active in Republican politics, and was appointed U.S. attorney for the southern district of NY. Unsuccessful in his only try for elected office, losing as the Republican candidate for governor of NY, thanks to his austere and aloof personality. Remained a lifelong progressive Republican and nationalist, a la Theodore Roosevelt (Kathleen Kennedy). Served as Secretary of War under William H. Taft (Bill Clinton) from 1911 to 1912, where he tried to build on the reforms of his direct predecessors. Went back to law practice afterwards, then volunteered for WW I duty when he was nearly 50, serving in France as a colonel of artillery , and enjoying himself as a soldier. His friends would later address him as ‘colonel.’ Returned to his corporate Wall Street practice afterwards, and opposed Woodrow Wilson’s plan for a League of Nations, feeling it would overcommit the U.S. In 1927, he effectively oversaw the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Nicaragua, while maintaining that country’s dependence on America, only to misread the subsequent half-century dictatorial run of the Somoza family, initially labeling its patriarch as a “likable young liberal.” Served as governor-general of the Philippines until 1929, once again working in America’s interests while efficiently discharging his executive duties, and proving popular for his economic policies. Served as Secretary of State under Herbert Hoover for his entire term, and was a leader of various delegations. Unsuccessfully tried to get European debt to the U.S. cancelled in order for Europe to do the same way with Germany, which would have slowed Adolf Hitler’s rise. Author of the Stimson Doctrine, protecting U.S. treaty rights. Returned to his law practice following his cabinet duties, and became a leading exponent of ‘collective security,’ supporting both the League of Nations and western democracy as the bulwarks of a peaceful world. Became Secretary of War under Franklin Roosevelt in 1940, and was instrumental in setting up the draft, as well as being involved in overseeing the creation of the atom bomb. Worked in close concert with the army chief of staff, George Marshall, and assembled a very effective team of subordinates. Played a central role in the interment of Japanese citizens during the war, resisted the integration of African-American soldiers into the greater army, and also served as a key adviser on atomic policy. Helped Harry Truman make the decision to use the atomic bomb on Japan in 1945, arguing it would shorten the war, although he later urged cooperation with the Soviet Union on nuclear energy. Left the war department at the end of WW II, and finished his career as an unofficial governmental adviser. Identified with America as a world leader, and was active his entire life on the world stage. Published several policy works and wrote his autobiography, On Active Service in Peace and War in 1948. Suffered from arthritis and heart problems, and was in great pain at life’s end. Died with his wife holding his hand. Inner: Aristocrat who believed in elitist service rule. Saw America in terms of the world’s peace-keeper, and felt it had a duty to keep aggression at bay through its own aggressive self-interest. Formal, controlled, humorless, with an occasional flare of temper. Slow-speaking, extremely tenacious, liberal imperialist. Put pragmatism over ideology, while harboring both class and race prejudices, which limited his vision. Duty calls lifetime of carving out one of the more impressive resumes in American bureaucratic his/story. James Monroe (1758-1831) - American president. Outer: Son of a farmer who died when he was young, so that his mother’s brother, a judge, served as his father figure. 6’, broad-chested, with a resemblance to George Washington (George Marshall). Gray-eyed, which reflected warmth and kindness, despite his starchy exterior, and extremely old-fashioned. Attended the College of William & Mary, although didn’t graduate. Instead, he served in the Continental Army for the first 3 years of the American Revolution. Wounded at the battle of Trenton, he rose to the rank of major, although unable to get a field command, he quit the military to study law under Thomas Jefferson from 1780 to 1783. The subsequent friendship twixt the 2 would serve as his political foundation. Elected to the Virginia House of Representatives in 1782 and served in the Continental Congress for the 3 years following. Opposed the Constitution, feeling it created too centralized a government at the expense of states’ rights. In 1786, he married Elizabeth Kortright (Katharine Graham), the daughter of a mercantile family, who lost much of their money during the Revolution, 2 daughters from the union, as well as a son who died at two. His wife’s extravagant tastes would put him into debt, as her social, luxurious ways strongly contrasted to his sober, tight mien. Remained under her control, allowing her to act out a totally repressed side of himself. Served in the U.S. Senate from 1790 to 1794, proving himself an excellent lieutenant for Jefferson and a strong anti-Federalist. Appointed Minister to France in 1794, and his family greatly enjoyed their fashionable stay there. Despite his own Francophilia, he did nothing to ameliorate the bad feelings twixt the 2 nations and was recalled 2 years later. Served as governor of Virginia from 1792 to 1802, where he opposed slavery, suggesting all blacks be moved West, then went on several more failed governmental European missions, save for another stint in France, where he helped negotiate the Louisiana Purchase. Made a bid for the presidency in 1808, alienating James Madison (Michael Eric Dyson) who won the election, but, after another stint as Virginia governor, became his Secretary of State from 1811 to 1817, as well as simultaneous Secretary of War during that period. In 1816, he was easily elected to the presidency, as a Democratic-Republican, defeating Federalist Rufus King (Gary Hart), and served 2 terms in that capacity, in what would be dubbed as the “Era of Good Feeling.” Returned the presidency to the formality of the Washington administration, while acting as the last of the Revolutionary War generation to hold that office. Won his second term over John Quincy Adams (Rob Lowe), by an even greater margin, winning all but one electoral vote. Obtained Florida from Spain and ended border disputes with Britain over Canada, while serving as the author of the Monroe Doctrine, which protected New World territory from foreign intervention. Despite his pro-South views, he signed the Missouri Compromise into law, fearing if he did not it might destroy the tenuous union. The resettling of Liberia with black Americans received his blessing, and its capital of Monrovia was named after him. In financial straits after his presidency due to his family’s expenditures, he ended his career presiding over the Virginia constitutional convention, where he supported the conservatives on slavery. Avoided all political activity on leaving office, and was totally grief-stricken at the death of his wife in 1830. Moved to NYC to live with his youngest daughter, and died there of debility on the 4th of July, the third of the first five presidents to expire on that momentous American date. Inner: Sober-sided and humorless, and not particularly well-regarded by contemporaries. Weighed every side of an issue, and was slow to come to decisions, which irked many. Sentimental, and a serious drinker, despite his controlled mien. Reeled-in lifetime of public service and doing his duty, while allowing his wife and daughters to counterbalance his drab sense of responsibility. Andre-Hercule de Fleury (1653-1743) - French cardinal and statesman. Outer: Father was a collector of ecclesiastical revenue. Sent to Paris to be educated by Jesuits, and received a full classical education. Became a priest, and at 30, he was made almoner to the queen, and then after her death, to Louis XIV (Charles de Gaulle). Raised to bishop 5 years later, where he spent the next 17 years in a provincial see, which gave him a strong desire to return to court. Just before Louis’s death in 1715, he was appointed tutor to his great-grandson and successor, Louis XV (Mikhail Gorbachev). 9 years following, he was made a cardinal, so he would have precedence on the royal council as minister of state. In 1717, he was made a member of the French Academy, and later added the Academy of Science and the Academy of Inscriptions to his resume. Although he never assumed the title, he became the chief minister of the realm for the next 19 years. Autocratic and firmly in control, he continued the codification of civil law, and instituted fiscal reforms that helped replenish the treasury after it had been severely depleted through Louis’s constant foreign wars, and the John Law (Joseph Kennedy, Sr.), financial fiasco. Showed a particular expertise in foreign policy, which occupied most of his long, mostly successful career, reining in France’s participation in the various European conflicts of the time, and breaking England’s dominance on the Continent, while securing closer relations between France and Austria. His power lasted into old age, although he was too weak at the end of his run of office to prevent France’s costly entry into the War of the Austrian Succession. Inner: Clear world view, from the perspective of French hegemony, despite assuming the mantle of power relatively late in life. Authoritarian, cold, frugal and highly efficient, both in economic matters and foreign affairs. Highly competent lifetime of ultimately exercising power on the highest levels, and proving himself able to the task until old age finally weakened his grasp at the helm of state. Guillaume Briconnet (1472-1534) - French reformer. Outer: Father was a counselor to Charles VIII (Hermann Goering), who took holy orders following his wife’s death, and ultimately became a cardinal. Studied under Jean Lefevre D’Etaples (Michael Eric Dyson) and partially followed his sire’s secondary career trajectory, becoming successively bishop of Lodeve at the tender age of 17, abbot of Saint-Germain-des-Pres in 1507 and bishop of Meaux in 1516, eventually inviting his old teacher to become vicar general under him in 1523. Became chaplain to the queen, Anne of Brittany (Jessica Mitford), and was entrusted with difficult diplomatic missions by Louis XII (Ferdinand Foch). Also served the latter’s son and successor, Francois I (David Lloyd George) in a diplomatic capacity in Rome, which probably prompted him to become a reformer. Became the leader of a group of Meaux evangelicals, who combined Renaissance humanism with a review of the Pauline letters as a primary source of Christian doctrine. Condemned Lutheranism, but because of his associations, he was forced to appear twice before the Paris Parlement on suspicion of heresy. Following the dispersion of the group in 1525, he remained a traditionalist for the rest of his career. Inner: Energetic, a natural leader, although a limited reformer when it came to career-threatening decisions. Showed good judgment, a love of learning Mildly rebellious lifetime of acting in concert with and against tradition at the exact time of monumental theological upheaval, only to ultimately toe the traditional line, when his career, and perhaps more, were at stake. Philippe III (1245-1285) - King of France. Known as ‘Philippe the Bold.’ Outer: Of the Capetian line. Father was Louis IX (Michael Dyson), mother was Marguerite (Michelle Obama) the daughter of a French count. Eldest surviving son out of 11 children. Married at 17 to Isabella, the daughter of the king of Aragon, 4 sons from the union, including his successor, Philippe IV (Jerry Brown/Joseph Biden), as well as a daughter, Marguerite (Carolyn Bessette), who became queen of England. Accompanied his father on his final Crusade, although was in Africa when he died, and brought his body back. During the journey, his wife fell from her horse and died of the injuries, and never set foot in France as queen. Ascended to the throne in 1270 for a 15 year reign. Continued to use his father’s able clerks and ministers, as well as the regent his father had left in control of France, so as to make a smooth transition of his sire’s successful administration. Able to annex lands and make small territorial acquisitons, thus adding to his domain, although forced to cede a county to the England. Remarried in 1274 to the daughter of a French duc, Marie of Brabant (Jessie Wilson Sayre), 3 children from union. Close connection, which survived the accusation by his chamberlain that she had poisoned his stepson, who died at the age of 9. A knight vindicated her in combat, and her accuser was subsequently hanged. Less successful in his foreign ventures than his domestic administration, waging unsuccessful wars in Spain, and provoking a guerrilla uprising because of the atrocities committed by his forces. Died of malaria on his way home from military maneuvers. Inner: Conscientious and respected for his wisdom, although largely colorless. Steady-hand-at-the-helm lifetime of inheriting a stable kingdom and maintaining the administration set in place, although less successful in the martial sphere, while maintaining a desire to continue his experience at the head of government, which he would effect in later lives in this series. Alexander II (Anselmo da Baggio) (?-1073) - Italian pope. Outer: From a noble Milanese family. Entered the Catholic clergy as a young man and quickly rose in its hierarchy. A cluniac reformer, he tried to suppress the corrupt practice of simony, and also tighten up the laxity around clerical celibacy. Sent to the German imperial court by his corrupt Church foes, he was able to use his eloquence and zeal to good effect there, and the emperor Heinrich III (David Sarnoff) made him archbishop of Lucca in 1057. With the able help of his coadjutor, Hildebrand (Michael Eric Dyson), he was in position to succeed to the papacy, and did so in 1061, via a vote of the Church’s cardinals, although the imperial court at Germany did not recognize him, and instead nominated their own antipope, another Italian bishop who represented the forces of excess and vice. Many of the nobles of Rome were outraged that the enthronement of a pope was taken out of their corrupt hands, and a potential civil war brewed. Had the backing of a reform-minded populace, however, as well as the tides of fortune, and his rival was ultimately officially deposed and excommunicated, although kept up the pretense of his position until 1072, the second to last year of his reign. Wanted to reform both the papacy and the Roman curia, although both were backed by rich and powerful interests who liked things exactly as the were. Remained obdurate in his hold on the reins of the papacy, and readily punished all he could within the Church for their simony excesses. Also able through proxy to prevent the German emperor from divorcing his wife, showing more strength outside of Italy than he did within his direct papal jurisdiction. Never really able to accomplish his many aims, because of both a lack of support and powerful factions deliberately blocking his efforts. Succeeded by his close associate Hildebrand, who took on the name Gregory VII, and through dint of his innate sense of power, made a far more effective run during his years on the throne of Peter. Inner: Reformist at heart, and appropriately high-minded, although unable to make much of his will manifest because of the combination of opposing forces against him. Mitered lifetime of being forced to deal with far more of the political aspects of the papacy than its spiritual leadership, leading to a mixed record, which would be much improved upon by his far more talented successor.

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PATHWAY OF THE PUBLISHER AS COMMUNICATIONS DOYENNE:
Storyline: The patient patrician inherits her ongoing unstable mate’s publishing stable, and winds up as the most powerful woman in America in her ongoing role as the empress of journalism, after earlier playing a similar role in the political realm.
Katharine Graham (Katherine Meyer) (1917-2001) - American publisher. Outer: Father was a Jewish banker and Wall Street millionaire, who later bought the Washington Post, mother was a writer and philanthropist, who was selfish, arrogant and contemptuous of both her husband and her offspring. 4th of 5 children. Raised in privilege with a sense of social responsibility, although Judaism, sex and wealth was never discussed. Her sire was imperious, while her mother had a volcanic temper, despite a cultivated home atmosphere. Both parents were remote, and moved to Washington without their children, who were left with servants for several years. Tall, slim, chic and patrician. Educated at Vassar and the Univ. of Chicago, then was a reporter for the San Francisco News, before joining the editorial staff of her father’s paper, the Liberal New Dealer. In her early 20s, she married Phil Graham, and accompanied her husband during his time in the army in WW II, allowing marriage to take precedence over career, 4 children from union. When her spouse was sent overseas, she went back to work, and he became publisher of the Washington Post on his return. A stylish Washington matron, she ignored her mate’s infidelity with a young reporter, then Graham, who had been disintegrating into a manic-depressive state, shot himself in the bathroom of their home. Assumed the presidency of the Post at 46, and the media empire it had spawned on his death. Studied the operation closely, noted its deficiencies, and brought in skilled journalists, showing excellent managerial skills. Backed up her editors, evincing an excellent ability to judge talent, and became publisher in 1969. Under her aegis, the Post became a bulwark of liberalism, helping to unseat President Richard Nixon through its Watergate reportage. Extremely influential for many decades on the Washington scene, as the most powerful woman in America. Eventually relinquished her position to her son. Wrote her memoirs, Personal History, for which she won the 1998 Pulitzer Prize. Died of head injuries sustained in a fall on a business trip. Inner: Slim, tall and chic. Reserved, shy and patrician with a dependence on men, but an equal ability to bring out the best in them. Conventionally oppressive marriage as “tail to my husband’s kite,” only came into her own following her unstable mate’s death. Repeat lifetime of continued association with her longtime partner, once again inheriting power from him and using it well on his self-destructive death. Miriam Squier Leslie (Miriam Folline) (1836-1914) - American publisher. Outer: Probably illegitimate. Her handsome, cultured father was a continual failure in business, although passed on his charm and good looks to his daughter. Spent her girlhood in NYC, where she was educated in languages, and became an accomplished linguist. Married a jeweler’s clerk at 18, after her mother threatened him with jail for seduction, but the union was annulled 2 years later. Reinvented herself, fudging her birthdate and name, and appeared on stage as “Minnie Montez,” supposedly the sister of dancer Lola Montez (Gypsy Rose Lee), with whom she shared billing. The latter had been pursued by her half-brother, who committed suicide in the face of her rejection, causing her to take his sister on tour to assuage her guilt. In 1857, she married E. G. Squier, a wealthy amateur archaeologist, railroad president and promoter, which gave her the wherewithal to travel and move in far more rarified social circles. After her husband’s railroad began to falter financially, he accepted an offer to become an editor of publisher Frank Leslie’s (Phil Graham) eponymous Illustrated Newspaper. At the same time, she joined Leslie’s Lady’s Journal, where she transliterated her verbal skills into writing, and was editor of a second and then a third of Leslie’s publications, focusing on fashion, flirtation and matrimony. The duo soon became an item, when her husband offered the latter a roof, after he had separated from his wife. Over the next decade, they traveled together, worked together and even moved together, while her husband grew more and more miserable over his rival’s rise in both money, power and attention from his wife. He even left them for a year while he went exploring in Peru, and when Leslie’s wife charged the duo with adultery, he completely denied it. When Leslie and his wife finally divorced, some 15 years into the affair, the menage summarily ended, and within a month of her divorcing and then marrying Leslie in 1874, her ex-husband was hauled off to a madhouse, a fate that had also befallen her first spouse, the jeweler’s clerk. Entertained lavishly, making a spectacular cross-country trip replete with servants and retinue, which she later limned in a book, then assumed the management of his journalistic empire when he died in 1880, $300,000 in debt. Quickly restored the enterprise to financial health, paring away half of its unproductive periodicals and building up the remaining ones. In 1882, she officially changed her name to Frank Leslie, and within a short span, was known as “the empress of journalism.” Spent 15 years as manager and editor, in a highly successful follow-up career to her husband’s enterprises. Also served as a prominent hostess, lectured occasionally and continued writing books. Had a 30 year high public relationship with flamboyant writer Joaquin Miller (Ken Kesey), flashing her diamonds while he flashed his Bowie knives, although it all may have just been show, with nothing physical or emotional between them, thanks to her continuous attraction to outrageously exhibitionistic types. After being engaged for 3 years to a French marquis with a similar penchant for extravagant costume, she took up with a Russian prince, only to have the former attack the latter and her in a hansom with a whip, to much subsequent publicity. Dropped both of them, and in 1891, she married Willie Wilde, an English art and drama critic, and the witty brother of playwright Oscar Wilde (Joe Orton), but divorced 2 years later. In 1895, she leased the business to a syndicate, but after 3 years, she returned to the editor’s desk. 2 years later, she relinquished the editorship and a half interest in the company. Went to Europe and returned claiming the title of Baroness de Bazus, from her Huguenot forebears, and retired afterwards. An ardent feminist, she willed the bulk of her fortune to the woman’s suffrage movement. Inner: Charming and magnetic with excellent business skills, and an equal facility for language. Had a great love of diamonds, as well as public display. Self-inventing lifetime of creating a public career off of her husband, and proving herself his highly successful successor, as well as a reigning figure in her own right, after many a go-round as a support queen. Elizabeth Monroe (Elizabeth Kortright) (1768-1830) - American presidential helpmate. Outer: Of Dutch descent. Father was a NY shipping merchant. Had 5 siblings. Raised by her grandmother. 5’, with violet eyes. Met James Monroe (Eliot Spitzer) in 1785, and married him the following year, 2 daughters from union, and a son who died at 2. Along with her daughters, she would subsequently control her husband, although she suffered from epilepsy, forcing her to hide from public view. In 1794, Monroe was made ambassador to France, a position he held for 2 years. She proved a fashionable hit in Paris, where she was known as “la belle Americaine,” while her luxurious tastes would put her husband in debt, while she felt socially snubbed in Europe. After her son’s death in 1801, her health declined, and her state of chronic illness would also cause her spouse much anxiety. Had several seizures and once fell in the fireplace, burning herself. When Monroe won the White House in 1817 for two terms, she proved an indifferent hostess, and the duo led a quiet life in Washington, although she worked out the social protocols of his office, based on European models. Quite happy to leave the White House, while Washington society largely boycotted her. Predeceased him by a year, suffering from numerous illnesses. Inner: Snobbish and regal, with far more of an interest in the material realm than the political one. Cold, aloof, shy. Strong ideals, with a sense of office as first lady, setting numerous social precedents, which would remain standard procedure for that position. Queenly lifetime of enjoying the perks of power, rather than its responsibilities, before expanding herself considerably in her next go-rounds to embrace the latter and make her a figure far more resonant with her times. Marie de Sevigne, Marquise de Sevigne (Marie de Rabutin-Chantal) (1626-1696) - French noblewoman. Outer: Her grandmother, St. Jane France De Chantal (Michelle Obama), was ultimately canonized. From a wealthy old Burgundian family on both sides. Her father Celse-Begnigne de Rabautin, Baron de Chantal (Phil Graham) was killed in battle when she was a year old, and her mother died when she was 7. A wealthy orphan, she was raised first by her maternal grandparents, then by her maternal uncle, an abbe to whom she was very attached, and received an excellent education. At 18, she married the Marquis de Sevigne, a philanderer not unlike her father, son and daughtern from the union, before her mate met his fate in a duel. Devoted her attentions to her children afterwards, and never entertained thoughts of marriage again, despite being only in her mid-20s when she lost her husband, and extremely social. Her witty and devoted, albeit irresponsible son, chose an army career, while her cold-hearted daughter married a twice wed comte in 1669. Spent her life between Paris and her domains, while keeping up a lively, weekly correspondence with her daughter, for which she is best remembered, while the latter became both her chief tormentor and central to her existence. Had no desire to pursue a literary career, using pen and paper as a direct expression of herself, rather than an artistic re-rendering of the world around her, although her observations have proved invaluable to later times, while her missives were copied and circulated during her own epoch. Traveled in bright literary circles, had access to court, enjoyed some of the best minds of her era and left an enduring record of aristocratic concerns of her time, showing a flair for accurately limning her life. Died after a brief bout of either influenza or pneumonia aggravated by her fears over her daughter’s health. Inner: Great charm, witty, intelligent, friendly and imaginative. Acute observer, able to transmute the scars of early familial deaths into a love of life on her part. Bridge lifetime of moving from thrones to the world of letters, while enduring loss and gaining independence as an ongoing means of rediscovering herself. Beatrice of Savoy, Countess and Marquise of Provence and Countess of Forcalquier and Gap (1198-1266) - Italian/French noblewoman. Outer: Father was Count of Savoy, who carried off her mother, the daughter of the Count of Geneva, after she had been promised to Philippe II (Gerhard Schroeder). Tenth of 14 children with six of her brothers living long enough to serve as diplomatic envoys in various theaters of Europe, and one becoming archbishop of Canterbury. Honed her own abilities in the politic arena, making advantageous marriages for all her subsequent daughters, which greatly enhanced her family’s power. In 1219, she wed Raymond Berenguer IV, Count of Provence (Phil Graham), who was related to the kings of Aragon, and had just escaped a decade-long confinement. A noted beauty, she also possessed excellent diplomatic skills, and was a forceful ruler in her own right, while turning their court at Aix into one of the most celebrated in Europe. Together they had two stillborn sons, before producing four daughters, each of whom would go on to sit on a European throne. The eldest, Marguerite (Michelle Obama), married the king of France. The second, Eleanor of Provence (Doris Kopf-Schroeder) wed the king of England, while the last two, Sanchia (Daryl Hannah) and Beatrice (Maria Shriver), saw their husbands enthroned respectively over the German states and Sicily, after they were betrothed to them. Able to manipulate her royal son’s-in-law to her ongoing advantage, save for Charles of Sicily (Arnold Schwarzenegger), whose overweening ambition would put him at odds with her, although they would be resolved in stages through negotiations and compromises. In 1245, her husband died, and she skillfully ruled her inherited lands, serving as the central focus of the French royal anti-Angevin party. Forced Charles into a compromise around Provence and Forcalquier, by forming a defensive league with some of its nobles when he was on crusade and could not contest her familial claims to his territory. Inherited her mother’s lands in the Alps in 1258, after the former’s death, and founded a hospital for the knights of St. John of Jerusalem. Commissioned a medical text and continually served the interests of her family, while also improving road conditions in her own mountainous domains, and leaving money in her will for their ongoing construction and repair. Inner: Handsome, intelligent, well-respected and extremely strong-willed. Regal lifetime of having an extensive family through whom she could exercise her considerable inclinations, while showing herself to be a major player in a time when women were usually relegated to very secondary roles.

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PATHWAY OF THE PUBLISHER AS CREATIVE SELF-DESTRUCTOR:
Storyline: The manic journalistic emperor cannot transcend the destructively depressive part of his character, and continually winds up a victim of it, undoing his uncanny abilities at building media empires.
Phil Graham (1915-1963) - American publisher. Outer: Father raised cattle in South Dakota, then Florida, and was later a state senator and state roads commissioner, although the family had to struggle. Tall and darkly handsome, friends all thought he would president some day. Graduated from the Univ. of Florida, drove a truck for his father’s dairy then entered Harvard Law, where he was president of the prestigious Law Review. Became Supreme Court clerk for Felix Frankfurter, then a government attorney, before joining the Army Air Corps as a private. Later won a commission by helping to decipher Japanese military codes, among other duties. Rose to the rank of major, and won the Legion of Merit. Prior to WW II, he married Katherine Graham in his mid-20s, although he felt his wife was dowdy with no style, 4 children from union. Wanted to enter politics, but his father-in-law convinced him to become assistant publisher of his paper, the Washington Post. 6 months later, he took over the day-to-day command, when his father-in-law, to whom he was close, accepted a government post. Reorganized the paper, which had been in shaky financial straits. Expanded its resources to make it into a media empire, with broadcast facilities, as well as profit-sharing for the employees. Hired top people, and later worked in conjunct with his father-in-law. Purchased the Washington Times-Herald and doubled the circulation, making the paper one of the leading dailies by the mid-1950s, and himself a social force in Washington, although not above infidelity. Helped put together the Kennedy/Johnson ticket in 1960, then resented JFK for being in the White House rather than himself. Bought Newsweek in 1961. Despite his successes, he suffered acute depression, then manic-depression, and was committed 3 times to a psychiatric institute. On a weekend pass, he went into the bathroom of his country home and killed himself with a shotgun. Inner: Friendly, dynamic, charming. Dualistic lifetime of tasting strong journalistic power, with a longtime well-loved mate, only to self-destruct through an unintegrated interior. Frank Leslie (Henry Carter) (1821-1880) - English/American journalist. Outer: Son of a glove manufacturer, who wanted him to pursue practical endeavors and discouraged his talent for wood engraving, which he had taught himself while working in his uncle’s dry goods firm. Secretly submitted his drawings to various publications under the name Frank Leslie, then went to work for the Illustrated London News, and was placed in charge of its engraving department. Married at 20, 3 children from the disputatious union, which wound up in litigation for several years after it ended in divorce. Emigrated to the United States with his family in his late 20s and had his name legally changed to his nom d’engraving. Lived in NYC and briefly in Boston, and initially illustrated promoter P.T. Barnum’s (Bill Veeck) programs for Jenny Lind’s (Judy Garland) mid-century concert tour, before becoming superintendent of the engraving department of the NY Illustrated News, an amalgam of scandal, crime stories, and general sensationalism, where he introduced a new method of producing double-page engravings within 3 days instead of the usual 2 weeks. The following year, 1854, after accumulating some capital, he published his first journal, Frank Leslie’s Gazette of Paris, London and New York Fashions. The year after that, he purchased the New York Journal, which he eponymously renamed. The publication gave consistent quality at a lower price than his competitors, combining the speed of newspapers with the pictorial luster of a picture magazine. Established a dozen journals all told, including a German-language edition of his Illustrated Newspaper, and made his fortune through sending his artists to the major battlefields of the Civil War, publishing news reports as well as pictures. Usually went for the sensational in order to keep a steady readership, although crusaded against unwholesome politics, reaching an occasional circulation of 200,000 without sacrificing quality. Left his wife and children, and moved in with a former railroad owner, E. G. Squier, whom he had invited on to his staff, and his wife, Miriam Squier (Katherine Graham), whom he also had editing several of his publications, after he became involved with her. The trio went on to work together, travel together, and even move from house-to-house together over the next decade or so, while her husband seemed to tolerate their obvious infatuation with one another, even leaving them for a year, so that he could pursue his archaeological interest in Peru. The arrangement was not unusual in libidinous Civil War and post-Civil War upper crust NY society, and its did not end, until his wife finally divorced him and her husband divorced her, allowing the duo to marry in 1874, at which point MS’s ex-husband was committed to an institution, much to the gossiping delight of everyone, who had been deliciously tuned into their antics for the entire length of their odd menage-a-trois. Lived extremely lavishly, and built a huge estate called Interlaken in fashionable Saratoga, where they literally entertained royally, including the emperor of Brazil, and took a prodigious cross-country railtrip with his wife, servants, and their extended retinue, which she would later limn in a book. Thanks to their high-living, he went bankrupt during the panic of 1877, so that his publications were placed in receivership. Had more than $300,000 in debts when he died several years later from neck cancer, which was hastened by litigation over his first marriage. Inner: Lavish, grandiose, both financially creative and self-destructive. Overreaching lifetime of acting on his instincts and impulses to grandiose affect, while serving as mentor and provider for his longtime mate. Celse-Begnigne de Raubutin, baron de Chantal (c1600-1627) - French nobleman. Outer: From old Burgundian noble stock. Mother was the future saint, Jane Frances de Chantal (Michelle Obama). Father was the Baron de Chantal, who died in a hunting accident when his son was one. Youngest of four children. An obstreperous child, who severely tested his mother’s saintly patience, he was left to his grandfather and uncle, the Archbishop of Bourges, for his education, following the death of his sire. Proved to an incorrigible duellist when he came of age. Married into a noble family, and the single issue from their union, Marie de Sevigne (Katharine Graham), became a well-known letter-writer. Killed on the battlefield fighting the English, after his mother had fervently prayed for just such a death, albeit under Christian auspices, to save his damned soul, which probably did not happen. Inner: Hot-headed and impetuous. Live fast, die faster lifetime of pushing everything to the edge, and dying he wished, with sword firmly gripped in hand. Raymond Berenguer IV, Count of Provence and Forcalquier (1198-1245) - Spanish Count of Provence. Outer: Father was the king of Aragon. Succeeded his sire in 1209, only to be imprisoned in a castle in Aragon for a decade, before finally effecting his escape. In 1219, he married Beatrice of Savoy (Katharine Graham), the daughter of the count of Savoy, and part of an extended family whose diplomatic reach would extend around Europe. After two stillborn sons, the pair would have four daughters, all of whom would marry into European thrones. The eldest, Marguerite (Michelle Obama) wed Louis IX (Michael Eric Dyson) of France. The second, Eleanor (Doris Kopf-Schroeder) married Henry III (Jacqueline Kennedy) of England. The third, Sanchia (Daryl Hannah) was betrothed to Henry’s brother Richard, earl of Cornwall (Richard Nixon), who would eventually become king of the Germans. The fourth, Beatrice (Maria Shriver) espoused Louis’s brother Charles (Arnold Schwarzenegger), who also would attain a throne, that of Sicily, by papal dispensation. All five, mother and daughters would be noted beauties, with his wife an extremely shrewd diplomat, who would help his own career immeasurably, while turning his court at Aix into one of Europe’s most celebrated. Because his three oldest daughters were well set off, he designated his youngest as his territorial heir, just before he died, which would cause much familial tension after his exit, since she would marry, after his death, an excessively aggressive and territorial mate. Inner: Extremely energetic, with his early imprisonment an enforced opportunity for self-reflection, a trait he has rarely exhibited in any of the go-rounds in this series. Patriarchal lifetime of exerting far more influence through his progeny and his wife than he ever possibly could, in his ongoing dance around power as a reflector rather than a doer, despite a deep wish to be otherwise.

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PATHWAY OF THE POLITICIAN AS ALTERNATE HERO AND GOAT:
Storyline: The sincere sailor is continually forced to redress his failures in succeeding lives, as he tries to reconcile his love for the higher seas of spirituality with his own propensity for misreading the lower political and martial waters of human interaction.
Jimmy Carter (1924) - American president. Outer: His mother, Lillian, was an extremely strong, dominating character, who had had been a nurse. His father was a serious, driven and hard-working insurance broker and farmer, who, nevertheless, was always smiling, and taught his children to be thrifty. The day he was born, the Georgia governor gave the keynote address at a KKK convention. Ultimately became the first U.S. president to be born in a hospital. Oldest of 4, including his sister, Ruth Stapleton Carter. Had a rural upbringing, rarely wore shoes or a shirt for half the year, and his first playmates were children of black farmhands. 5”9”. Attended 2 Georgia colleges, before graduating the U.S. Naval Academy in 1946. Immediately afterwards, he married Rosalynn Smith, whom he had known since childhood, 3 children from union. Served for 7 years aboard battleships and submarines, including the nuclear submarine program under Hyman Rickover, enabling him to get an M.A. in nuclear physics from Union College. Retired from the Navy with the rank of lieutenant commander to take over the family business as a peanut farmer and warehouseman when his father died in 1953. His wife gradually became his co-equal, allowing him to realize his political ambitions, while she took care of the business. Entered politics as a Democrat and was elected to the Georgia state senate in 1963. Won the governorship of Georgia on his 2nd try in 1970, after feeling betrayed by God in losing to racist Lester Maddox. A devout Baptist and born-again Christian. Decided to try for the presidency, as an honest antidote to the Watergate Era, unconsciously tapping into his earlier run as an honest antidote to the corrupt Grant administration. Though little known, he turned an extremely toothsome smile and a low-key sense of integrity into a narrow White House victory in 1976, over the incumbent Gerald Ford. Code-named Deacon by the Secret Service. Proved indecisive and uninspiring as a cardigan-clad chief executive, despite his insistence on human rights as a governing foreign policy. Wanted to make an initial mark by getting rid of all pork barrel water project, which had been a mainstay of Congress for the entire 20th century. Proved himself naively impolitic, and his presidency never recovered from this inability to gauge the way Congress actually worked, through this honest albeit completely doomed effort, which turned its members permanently against him. A detail-stickler, he would proofread memos to himself, to the astonishment of his aides. Able, however, to effect peace accords between Egypt and Israel, design a Panama Canal Treaty, and effect arms reductions with Russia. Suffered the humiliation of the militant Iranian takeover of the American embassy in Tehran in 1979, and a resultant unresolved hostage crisis, with 52 Americans held in thrall. Also unable to respond to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan the same year, calling off the Olympics in response, while presenting himself as a figure of limitations. Disliked by the media for his outsider status, as well as his apolitical style, which the general populace came to reflect. His last year in office, he promulgated the Carter Doctrine, stating the U.S. would use any means necessary to guarantee access to Middle Eastern oil reserves. In 1980, he was defeated in a landslide for a 2nd term by Ronald Reagan, thanks to manipulations around the hostage situation, and returned home depressed and in debt. As in his Hayes life, his post-presidency saw a rehabilitation of his reputation with social activism through Habitat for Humanity, housing for the poor, and his own Carter Center in Atlanta, which monitors elections of developing countries, helps to eradicate disease, and mediates international disputes. Also took on several diplomatic missions on his own, much to the rage and consternation of his serial successors in the White House, as a broker for peace in Haiti and North Korea, among other places, and as a moral critic of American life, shifting leftward in his overview, while showing a consistent Christian concern for peace. Wrote over a dozen books after leaving the White House, which made him wealthy, and became a professor at Emory Univ. in Atlanta, although the tensions of co-authoring a work on health with his wife made both vow never to co-write another book. Nominated 10 times for the Nobel Peace Prize and finally won it in 2002. The following year, he penned the first novel ever by an ex-president, a look at the revolutionary war period. Caused a furor in 2006, with Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, for its anti-Israeli bias, which would subsequently cause 14 members of his Carter Center’s board of councilors to resign, as well as enflame Jewish groups, thanks to his accusation that they were using their power to stifle debate in the U.S. on the issue. Added to the opprobrium by negotiating with Hamas for a truce with Israel, contra Bush administration wishes in 2008. Inner: Committed Christian, stubborn, occasionally nasty. Obsessed with achievement, rarely wastes a moment, making him a distant character. Great passion for helping the helpless. A determined volunteer, with an engineer’s eye towards reform and change, and a heart that embraces the powerless. Rehabilitated reputation lifetime, once again, of proving far more effective out of office than in, while still searching for the proper balance to express his own sense of the Christian hero into effective moral leadership and activism. Rutherford B. Hayes (1822-1893) - American president. From transplanted New England Puritan stock. Mother was a dominating, protective influence in his life. Posthumous child of a farmer and storekeeper, and the youngest of 3, with his oldest sister dying at 9. Not allowed to play with others for fear of his health. Had a passionate attachment to older sister, Fanny (Ruth Stapleton Carter) who later went insane and died. 5’8”, large nose, deep-set eyes, homely, later bearded. Graduated from Kenyon College and then Harvard Law School, before settling in Cincinnati, where he became city solicitor for 5 years. Married at 30 to Lucy Webb (Rosalynn Carter), 8 children from union, 3 dying in childhood. Extremely close family life, while his wife was a strong support and help throughout his political career. Thought abolitionists were too radical, although he began defending runaway slaves who had crossed into Ohio from Kentucky. Adamantly opposed, however, to women’s suffrage. Volunteered at the outbreak of the Civil War, and was ultimately breveted a major general, suffering a shattered arm in battle. His wife found him and tended his wounds. Following the war, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives, and then was 3 time governor of Ohio. Helped found the Republican Party through his ardent opposition to slavery. In 1876, he lost the popular election to Samuel Tilden (Thomas Dewey), but won the presidency through the electoral college vote in an extremely controversial presidential contest. Didn’t find out until he was en-route to Washington. Followed the U.S. Grant administration, the most corrupt in American his/story, and was known as Mr. Fraudulency throughout his presidency. Refused to serve alcohol at White House functions, and tried to institute a merit system for appointment to federal office, which made him unpopular with his own party leaders, who had long functioned under a patronage system. Competent, colorless, and uninspiring in the White House, he chose not to seek re-election. Enjoyed being ex-president, proving himself a far more effective public figure once out of office, involving himself in education for poor African-Americans, prison reform and the welfare of Civil War veterans. Died from a heart attack. Inner: Extremely honest, ambitious, with a great desire to be admired for his integrity. Good-natured, private sense of humor. Competent, but colorless. Thwarted lifetime of exhibiting the honesty, heart and integrity for leadership without the charisma to back it up. Oliver Hazard Perry (1785-1819) - American naval hero. Outer: Father was a naval officer, mother gave him his basic education. One of 8 children, older brother of Commodore Matthew Perry (Stansfield Turner). Entered the navy as a midshipman at 14, and served initially on his father’s frigate, before experiencing combat from the first time in the West Indies. Spent 4 years in the Mediterranean where he fought in the Tripolitan War, rising to the rank of lieutenant. Built and commanded gunboats with a squadron under him to enforce the Embargo Act, and in 1810, he repossessed an American merchant vessel from nominal British control, which brought him national acclaim. Commanded the Revenge, which ran aground in a fog, but he was later cleared of negligence. At the same time, he married Elizabeth Mason, 4 sons and a daughter from the union. Became a commander during the War of 1812, although had to initially demand more active posts. Built, assembled, outfitted and trained a small fleet, and won a decisive victory over the British on Lake Erie, where he issued his famous message, “We have met the enemy and they are ours.” Cheered as a national hero afterwards. Promoted to captain, and given a Mediterranean command. Became embroiled with a fellow captain over the true credit for the victory at Lake Erie, and demanded a court-martial to resolve the controversy. The proceedings, however, were suspended by the president. Twice challenged to duels by officers, although refused the first one, and on the second he refused to shoot, while his challenger missed him. Decided to resign his commission, although accepted one more mission, to stop pirates in South America preying on U.S. commerce vessels. Died of yellow fever on the Orinoco River in his early 30’s. Inner: Honest, with a strong sense of the heroic about himself. Despite competency, not only in battle, but in preparations, he was given some sense of the frustrations of politics in his future lives. Recompense lifetime of acting out of his sense of the Christian hero to try to erase his earlier blot, and exiting early before his later career would lessen his own sense of competency as it has in continued lives in this series. John Byng (1704-1757) - English admiral. Outer: Father was admiral George Byng (Stanfield Turner), who was a naval hero. 4th son. Entered the navy the same year that his sire defeated a Spanish fleet, 1718. Commanded a frigate in the Mediterranean from 1727 to 1736, then drew an easy post that did not challenge him. Never married and became a rear admiral in 1745. In 1756, at the start of the French & Indian War, he was sent to protect a potential New World British base at Minorca, only to run into a contrary French fleet. When his subordinates misinterpreted his battle plans, he bore the blame for losing the port to the French, and wound up playing public scapegoat for an administration that wanted to draw attention away from its own failings. Court-martialed for neglect of duty in battle, although acquitted of cowardice, he was shot by a firing squad aboard the H.M.S. Monarque. The last sentiment he uttered was, “They make a precedent of me such as admirals hereafter may feel the effects of.” Inner: Careful, conscientious, albeit without a good sense of martial vision. Scapegoat lifetime of failing to live up to his heroic father’s legacy, and bearing his failure in martyred manner. Sebastian Cabot (1474-1557) - English explorer. Outer: Father was Venetian-turned-Englishman explorer John Cabot (Stansfield Turner). His early life is obscured, probably grew up in Venice, and returned to England in his late teens. Named with his father and brothers by king’s license to explore and accompanied his family to the New World on its first voyage there in 1497, as part of the party that discovered Nova Scotia. Probably did not accompany his father on his further voyages. Became a cartographer to Henry VIII (Maxwell Beaverbrook), and then in 1512, served the Spanish king, Ferdinand II (Lucien Bonaparte) in a similar capacity for 4 years as a captain in the Spanish navy, before returning to England at the death of the monarch, where his efforts to sail were stymied. Ferdinand’s son and youthful successor, HRE Charles V (Napoleon Bonaparte), retained his services, and he was made a pilot major and examiner for the Spanish Council of the New Indies in 1518. Returned to England 2 years later, and was offered a naval command, but ultimately opted to lead a 3-ship Spanish expedition to the Orient for trade purposes. He commandeered the expedition for his own purposes, exploring the Rio de la Plata region of South America for the rumored treasures there. Returned to Spain empty-handed 3 years later, and was imprisoned, then banished to Oran in Africa in 1630 for 2 years, before being restored to his old posts. Published an engraved map of the world in 1544, for which he is best remembered. Returned to his native Bristol in 1547, then accepted a naval post in England in 1548, and was also pensioned. Remained useful to the crown as a negotiator and information-dispenser, and he spent the rest of his long life in England, as governor of the Merchant Adventurers, a crew looking for new trade routes. Sponsored several naval disasters in a further fruitless search for a northeast passage from Europe to Asia, although furthered trade with Russia in the process. At life’s near-end, his pension was cut in half by Spain’s frugal Felipe II (Adolf Hitler). Inner: Competent data-gatherer, but once more chasing after an accomplished father’s shadow, distorting his true vision of discovery. Goose-chasing lifetime of heroic ventures besmirched by questions of competence, an ongoing theme of his that has yet to be resolved. Paschal II (Rainerio) (?-1118) - Italian pope. Outer: From a modest family background. Entered a monastery as a boy, and rose through the Church hierarchy to become an abbot, and around 1078, a cardinal-priest of San Clemente. Trusted with an important mission to Spain by Urban II (Eliot Spitzer), he succeeded him in 1099. Inherited the investiture controversy of his predecessor, wherein the Church demanded exclusive power over all higher appointments, and was immediately faced with a hostile German emperor, Heinrich IV (William Paley), and his anti-pope. With the help of Norman money, he ejected two anti-popes, before being forced to confront the emperor over his power of lay investiture. Supported the latter’s son, Heinrich V (Arnold Schwarzenegger) in his successful rebellion against his sire, only to find that he, too, was as intransigent on the issue as his father had been. When Heinrich marched on Rome in 1111, he affected a radical compromise, proposing that the German churches give up all property and rights that came to them from the empire, in return for the emperor to renounce the right of investiture, and instead allow free elections. When the concordat was announced at the latter’s coronation in Rome, a huge protest erupted and the proceedings had to be halted. Heinrich then arrested him, and took him prisoner on his exit from Rome, holding him for two harsh months, before forcing him to grant investiture rights, as well as to never excommunicate him, to which he acceded. Crowned Heinrich emperor, and then fell prey to a thunderous cacophony of criticism. Considered abdicating for compromising everything his reform party had struggled for, then, after one of his underlings excommunicated the emperor, he revoked the privilege. Both the English and French kings subsequently renounced their rights of investiture, in return for other rights, although he had little to do with those decisions. Strongly supported the Crusades, as Jerusalem fell to the Crusaders shortly after his enthronement, although his support of Bohemond’s (Michael Kennedy) adventurism in the east, thoroughly alienated the eastern Church. Failed in further diplomatic attempts to broach the discord, when he insisted on the primacy of the Roman see. Forced to leave the city, when rioting broke out in 1116, then excommunicated the archbishop who had crowned Heinrich V at Easter without his permission. Died soon after returning to Rome, to end a nineteen year run of office that had seen the throne of Peter lose considerable power and influence under his aegis. Inner: Timid and weak, but also highly inflexible as compensation for his failings. Failed lifetime of exercising his authority as spiritual guardian of the realm, causing him to turn to the secular world, and its high seas to try to find his moral compass and his sense of leadership in an up-and-down extended career that still sees him struggling with his failings.

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PATHWAY OF THE DOMESTIC ARTIST AS CO-EQUAL:
Storyline: The synergistic partner teams up with a man of the sea, to see how far she can take herself through him, in preparation for future launches of her own public persona in similar roles of executive privilege, power and accountability.
Rosalynn Carter (Rosalynn Smith) (1927) - American political helpmate. Outer: From a poor, hardworking family. Mother was a seamstress, father was a mechanic, . Eldest of 4. After her father died when she was 13, she took care of the younger children, while her mother worked in the post office. Shouldered the responsibility which forced an early maturity on her, although she frequently resented the added obligation. At 15, she began toiling in a beauty parlor. As close friends with Ruth Carter, she knew her future husband from a young age. Had a crush on him at 13, and finally fell in love with his Annapolis picture, thinking he was the handsomest man she had ever seen. Attended Georgia Southwestern College, while living at home, and helping the family. Married Jimmy Carter in her late teens, 3 children from union. Enjoyed the travel and responsibility of Navy life, and reluctantly returned to Plains when her husband’s father died in 1953. Became the book/keeper of his peanut-farming business, and soon thereafter, his adviser, thank to an expertise in handling information, which inspired him to run for state senator, while she managed the business herself. Close helpmate all through her husband’s political career, with high ambitions for him, and her own liberal political agenda, including equal rights, mental health, prison reform and human rights. Known as “the Steel Magnolia.” Willing to weather a sense of being a political outcast in the Deep South, through her husband’s push for integration, and concomitant threats against her family. Co-partner in his presidency, which he won in 1976, even though she was often criticized for her co-equal role and trying to influence policy decisions. Code-named Dancer by the Secret Service. Extremely bitter at the voter’s rejection of him for a second term in 1980, although like her husband, she plunged into activism and volunteering to try to make the world a better place for her having been in it. Wrote an autobiography, First Lady From Plains, and also worked with her husband on a tome on health that pitted their considerable wills against one another at such a level, that they decided not to collaborate again. Inner: Driven, obsessive hard worker, extremely political and competitive. Close, and occasionally contentious relationship with mate, in their own mutual learning process about power. Partnership-in-power lifetime of being far more directly influential in her husband’s career, perhaps in preparation for her own run in female form for that same office in her next go-round. Lucy Webb Hayes (Lucy Webb) (1831-1889) - American political helpmate. Outer: Descended on both sides from prominent participants in the American Revolution. Father was a doctor, who died of cholera when she was 2, after going to Kentucky to free slaves he had inherited. 2 older brothers. Raised a Methodist, she graduated with highest honors from Cincinnati Wesleyn Female College, one of the first higher educational institutions in America that gave degrees to women. Met Rutherford B. Hayes (Jimmy Carter) at a summer resort and 2 years later, in 1852, she married him, 8 children from union, 3 of whom, all boys, died within their first 2 years. Held strong anti-slavery views, and was up to the challenges thrown at her, although did not pursue women’s suffrage, since her husband didn’t believe in it, even though she had two aunts active in the movement. Took an active part in her husband’s political career, thanks to the help she received from her mother in raising her children. Enjoyed political life, and was very attached to her husband, whom she saw as a beacon for integrity and morality. Searched him out when he was wounded in the Civil War, and tended him as well as others for the remainder of the conflict. Started an orphanage for the children of war veterans when Hayes was Ohio governor. Liked informality, disliked state dinners, and managed a cheerful, folksy White House, when her husband was elected president in the disputed contest of 1876. A gracious hostess with the facility for making people feel important, she also gardened incessantly on the Executive Mansion’s grounds, feeling they belonged to the people. Conscious of the previous Grant regime’s scandals, she tried to create an antidotal atmosphere. Known as ‘Lemonade Lucy’ for no alcohol in White House, which she found amusing. Continued working with veterans and also young people and ballooned to 177 lbs. during her husband’s presidency. Retired with him after their White House run and concentrated on child welfare and missionary work as national president of her church's Woman's Home Missionary Society. Suffered from apoplexy and partial paralysis at life’s nearend, which reduced her to silence. Died a days later from the aftereffects of a stroke. Inner: Lively, unselfconscious, attractive, hardworking. Portrayed as simple and home-loving in the press, despite having strong moral and political convictions. Outdoorsy, and into uplifting the living conditions of the underprivileged. Devout Methodist Episcopal. Had a good singing voice, and loved being surrounded by children and animals, while holding the honor of having the country’s first Siamese cat. Learning lifetime of remaining in a traditional mode as a principled political helpmate, much to her own physical detriment, which would motivate her to play a far more assertive role the next time the opportunity arose to become a national figure.

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PATHWAY OF THE MATRIARCH AS PRODUCER OF POLITICIANS:
Storyline: The domineering doyenne creates a God-fearing and service-oriented domestic foundation to allow both herself and her children to make a Christian difference for having walked the Earth.
Lillian Carter (Bessie Lillian Gordy) (1898-1983) - American political matriarch. Known as ‘Miss Lillian.’ Outer: Father was a school teacher and part-time farmer who was active politically, although never ran for elective office, and ultimately became a postmaster, while remaining very energetic in doing Christian service. Mother, who married at 16, was a devout homemaker, who, in addition to her own brood, took in her dead sister’s 2 children. Had a Baptist upbringing, one of 9 children. Her sire emphasized reading and treated all his children with respect, giving them the perspective of his unconventional ways, while also treating the town’s African-Americans with equal consideration, and as honored guests in his home, an unusual practice at the time. Worked at her father’s post office, then applied to become a nurse in WW I, but the military had stopped training new women. Came to Plains, Georgia, instead, to realize her nursing goal. In 1923, she married James Earl Carter, an insurance broker and farmer, who had several businesses, including a peanut farm. Became pregnant after becoming a surgical nurse, 4 children from union, including future president Jimmy Carter. Moved to a largely African-American community after the birth of her first son. Continued working as a nurse for her husband’s employees and the Plains community, as a strong believer in volunteerism and Christian service, which she passed down to her son. Although not a regular attendee of services, she did Bible study at home. A domineering personality, although her son sought emotional support from his father rather than her, since she was frequently absent working. Later moved back to Plains, and her husband died of pancreatic cancer in 1953, after building a successful peanut business. Insisted her son abandon his naval career to run it, which he did. Joined the Peace Corps in 1966, to help black people, and was trained in Hindi to teach a nutrition program in India. Unprepared for the unbearable poverty, she nevertheless assimilated, and was treated as a celebrity by the media. Felt dual pulls afterwards. Proved to be a compelling character during her son’s presidency, and remained active and outspoken her entire life. Died a month after her daughter, Ruth. Inner: Unafraid of controversy, sought out challenges for her own sense of Christian service, and sacrificed a traditional domesticity for a strong focus outside the house. Good Book guiding lifetime of being made politically and socially aware by an activist father, and passing down her sense of social involvement to her presidential son. Sophia B. Hayes (Sophie Birchard) (1792-1866) - American political matriarch. Outer: Her father was a failed farmer who died when she was 13. Her mother remarried, divorced and died of spotted fever. Married Rutherford Hayes, a farmer and storekeeper at 21 and set out west with her husband. 4 children from union. Her eldest daughter died at 9, and her husband passed on of a fever at 35, shortly before the birth of their son, the future president, Rutherford B. Hayes (Jimmy Carter). A domineering personality and very protective mother, she used her sunny disposition to dispel the ongoing tragic departures of her family, including a younger son who expired at the age of 10. Raised her 2 surviving children on her own, with the help of her brother, who footed the bills. Also outlived her last daughter Fanny Hayes Pratt (Ruth Stapleton Carter), who died in 1856, but did not live long enough to see her son in the White House, although always had high ambitions for him. Inner: Cheerful pessimist. Smart, heavy and oppressive. Loss-strewn lifetime of bearing the serial departure of her whole family, save for her future presidential son, who would unconsciously validate her forbearance.

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PATHWAY OF THE POLITICAL SIBLING AS EVOLVING EVANGELIST:
Storyline: The obsessive spiritualist finds something solid to hang her faith on, after a go-round of absolutely no grounding, and a subsequent disappearance into her own addled mind, instead of her God-loving heart, because of it.
Ruth Carter Stapleton (1929-1983) - American evangelist and faith healer. Outer: Her mother, Lillian, was an extremely dominating figure, who was raised on a strong sense of service and Christian charity. Father was an insurance broker and farmer. 3rd of 4 children, including older brother, president Jimmy Carter. Clearly her father’s favorite, she was very angelic as a child, and told by her sire every day that he loved her. Raised to believe she was God’s gift to the world, a queen of the universe. Treated royally, but was never much of a student. Went to Georgia State College for Women, and 2 years later, married Robert Stapleton, a veterinarian and moved to Fayetteville, N.C. The pair prospered, ultimately having a vacation home in Portugal. With each child, however, she suffered severe postpartum depression and tremendous inner turmoil afterwards over her role as wife and mother, and lack of her own sense of fulfillment, straining the bonds of her marriage. Decided to return to college, where she majored in English and religion, before getting her master’s and teaching high school English. After taking a Bible class at Fort Bragg, her obsessive interests turned to religion. Fired from her teaching job for talking too much about God, she switched to teaching Bible classes for the next 7 years, attracting a modest following. Spent her time praying, speaking and reading the Bible, but still felt empty. Jumped from her car and injured her leg on the way to pick up a motivational speaker, who she later felt healed her through Jesus, so that she no longer felt crippled. Became a faith healer, counselor and orator, traveling the world for the next 15 years, developing a large devoted following. The combination of her handsome appearance and dynamic sense of purpose played extremely well with audiences looking to be pumped up via faith. Became a controversial figure when she revealed her brother was a ‘born again,’ during his presidential run in 1976. Made a well-publicized conversion of pornographer Larry Flynt, although he later went back to his wicked ways. Heavy smoker, like her father, brother and sisters, and like them, died of cancer, of the pancreas, at age 54. Inner: Warm, charismatic, as well as obsessive and depressive. Healing lifetime of finding her grounding through religiosity and a refashioned belief in herself, after unconsciously repeating her previous life’s depressive dynamics to far more satisfying resolution. Fanny Hayes Pratt (1820-1856) - American political sibling. Outer: From transplanted New England Puritan stock. Mother was a dominating, protective influence in her life. Father was a farmer and storekeeper. One of 4 children, oldest sister died at 9, another brother at 10, while her father abandoned his earthly body when she was 12. Her younger brother Rutherford B. (Jimmy Carter) was passionately attached to her. Tomboyish when young, she served as his childhood protector and playmate, while sharing a similar caustic wit. Went to the Female Seminary in Ohio, although did not have the money to continue on to college, much to her regret. Remained an avid reader,however, throughout her truncated life. In 1839, she married William Platt, an undersized jewelry store owner, who was a good provider, eventually establishing several successful businesses. Followed her brother’s career closely, but went looney every time she had a child and had them faithfully every year. Eventually died at 35 after giving birth to stillborn twin girls, much to her sibling’s everlasting grief. Inner: Unbalanced and obsessive, without recourse to any sense of saving grace. Lunatic lifetime of doing her duty as a mother, until neither her mind nor her body could accommodate her role as an ongoing producer of progeny and nothing more.

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PATHWAY OF THE POLITICAL ISSUE AS FIRST DAUGHTER TWICE OVER:
Storyline: The repeat high profile spawn proves to have a mind and rebellious will of her own, while ultimately opting for relatively anonymity, after two highly recorded childhoods as an emblematic White House-raised presidential offspring.
Amy Carter (1967) - American presidential progeny. Outer: Fourth child and only daughter of Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter, prior to the former’s public political career. Three older brothers. At the age of 2, her progenitor became governor of Georgia, and at 9, her family entered the White House as first family. Unlike later children of presidents, she received a full load of publicity as a celebrity child, which reported on her mild antics, and even her views on pressing issues of the time. Given the Secret Service code name of Dynamo, while experiencing a relatively isolated childhood because of her status. Red-haired and bespectacled. Following her father’s one term as president, she continued her public school education before going to Brown Univ., where she garnered publicity as a student protester afterwards against American policy in South Africa and Central America. Arrested although the charges were later dropped after a highly publicized trial. Ultimately asked by Brown to continue her education elsewhere for academic reasons. Got a BFA from Memphis College of Art, and then a master’s at Tulane Univ. Deliberately dropped out of the public eye afterwards, save for her role as a board member at her father’s human rights institute, the Carter Center. Illustrated a children’s book written by her sire, and in 1996, she married James Wentzel, a computer consultant, one son from the union. Kept her own name, while also refusing to be given away in marriage, stating she “belonged to no one.” Subsequently she has lived quietly, declining any and all interviews, quite content to be an ordinary citizen, without any special attention given her. Inner: Independent, feisty and strong-willed. Dual lifetime of experiencing huge celebrity early on only to reject it for a far more normal and quiescent mature life away from the spotlight of renown because of her genetic proximity to power. Fanny Hayes Smith (1867-1950) - American presidential progeny. Outer: Sixth child and only daughter of Rutherford (Jimmy Carter) and Lucy (Roslynn Carter) Hayes. Father was a congressman at the time of her birth, and quickly went on to become governor of Ohio. When she was 10, her sire was elected president of the U.S. Had a formal christening while in the White House, and after her progenitor’s single term, she went to a series of boarding schools, that several fellow presidential progeny also attended. Following her mother’s death in 1889, in fine Electra fashion, she became her substitute, serving as both a close companion to her sire, and a coequal in his desire for education and prison reform, while vowing never to marry, because she feared she would pass on a hereditary tendency towards deafness, with which she was afflicted. Following her sire’s death in 1893, she continued to work with women prisoners, while also traveling to Europe. Despite her earlier vow, she married Harry Smith (James Wentzel) in 1897, a childhood friend, who went on to a naval career as a math teacher. One son from the union. Lived in Annapolis, Maryland until the WW I era, and then in 1919, the couple divorced. Following her husband’s death in 1923, she dropped her married name, and reverted to her familial cognomen. Traveled extensively afterwards, basing herself in NYC, while spending time in both Europe and South Africa, with her son, working for Standard Oil. Moved to Lewiston, Maine towards life’s end, and two months after the death of her son, she passed on as well. Inner: Independent and adventurous, and very much her father’s daughter. Part one lifetime of using the White House as a springboard for her larger life, before the whole family would return as a unit, to see if they could build upon and improve upon the same dynamic it had established in century 19.

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