MENTOR – “Death by Lightning,” a four-part Netflix series chronicling the life of James A. Garfield, the 20th President of the United States, and the man who assassinated him, Charles J. Guiteau, hit the streaming service’s No. 1 ranking in the U.S. shortly after its release on Thursday, Nov. 6 and sits at the No. 5 position as of this publication’s print deadline.
“Death by Lightning” is based on the 2011 nonfiction book “Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President” by Candice Millard.
The four-hour miniseries was filmed in Budapest, Hungary, and stars Michael Shannon (The Shape of Water) as President James A. Garfield and Matthew Macfadyen (Succession) as Charles J. Guiteau, his assassin.
The miniseries chronicles the rise to the presidency of James A. Garfield, and the man who murdered him, Charles J. Guiteau. The title of the series comes from an ironic quote attributed to Garfield, who once said, “Assassination can no more be guarded against than death by lightning; it is best not to worry too much about either.”
The show details Garfield’s unexpected rise to the presidency as an honest and reluctant politician, Guiteau’s delusions of grandeur and his belief that he was owed a political appointment (a consulship in Paris) for his minimal contribution to Garfield’s campaign, the political climate of the Gilded Age, including the fight over the “spoils system” of political patronage and Garfield’s eventual shooting and his slow death from infection caused by his doctors’ unsanitary medical practices, rather than the bullet itself.
The Gilded Age was a period in American history from about 1865 to 1898, marked by rapid industrialization and economic growth, but also by significant corruption, political scandals and wealth inequality. The term was coined by Mark Twain, the term “gilded” refers to the thin, shiny layer of prosperity that covered the poor working conditions and extreme poverty faced by many Americans, including immigrants who settled in crowded urban areas. This era saw the rise of powerful industrialists like Andrew Carnegie, J.P. Morgan and J.D. Rockefeller, while millions earned low wages and lived in difficult conditions.
Tim Garfield, great-great-grandson of James A. Garfield and executive director of the Garfield Trail, arranged a pre-screening of the first episode of “Death by Lightning” in the Hiram College auditorium – where President Garfield was both educated and taught.
Tim Garfield said he and Allison Powell, a park ranger at the James A. Garfield National Historic Site, began talking to Netflix in August about a prescreening, which was attended by close to 500 people and hosted by miniseries creator created by Mike Makowsky.
“The had come from a Monday night preview in New York where they barely had 500 people and were quite impressed at what we put on in a small town,” Tim Garfield said. “To me, it was amazing.”
“Death by Lightning” is rated TV-MA and features course and obscene language, nudity and adult sexual content. Garfield said he’d heard some criticism, particularly regarding the language used in the series.
“I say, ‘Do you know what they said behind closed doors?’” he said.
Outside of northeast Ohio, James A. Garfield is largely relegated to history as a man whose political career was cut tragically short by an insane person in an era of American history largely skimmed over in high school history courses.
In fact, most retellings of President Garfield’s story focus on a six-month period from his speech during the 1880 Republican Convention in Chicago – when he was called on to nominate John Sherman – through his reluctant bid for the presidency, his famous “Front Porch” campaign and his shooting and eventual death.
“I think (the series) says it best,” Garfield said. “If you watch the beginning, it says, ‘This is the story of two men history has forgotten.’ What you learn is the man had a life that was incredible.”
Garfield suggested “Dark Horse: The Surprise Election and Political Murder of President James A. Garfield” by Kenneth Ackerman and “President Garfield: From Radical to Unifier” by C.W. Goodyear as further reading detailing the life and legacy of his great-great-grandfather.
