A.J. Macinerney
Sorkin Similarities
January 27, 2010
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
Before he became the architect of the fictional Bartlet presidency by creating The West Wing, Aaron Sorkin designed a slice of the fictional Shepherd presidency in The American President.
The American President shows us the end of the first term of democrat Andrew Shepherd, a widower whose wife died before the election that sent him to the White House.
The most notable link between The American President and The West Wing is Martin Sheen.
In The American President, Sheen plays Shepherd’s Chief of Staff, A.J. Macinerney.
In The West Wing, Sheen plays President Bartlet.
Anna Deavere Smith is another link between the two stories.
She plays Press Secretary Robin McCall in The American President.
She has a recurring role on The West Wing -- Dr. Nancy McNally, National Security Advisor.
Joshua Malina also has roles in both Sorkin stories.
In The American President, Malina has a minor role -- an associate of President Shepherd’s environmental activist girlfriend, Sydney Ellen Wade, played by Annette Bening.
Malina replaced Rob Lowe in The West Wing. When Lowe’s character of Sam Seaborn runs for Congress, Malina’s character of Will Bailey replaces Sam as Deputy Communications Director.
In West Wing canon, the last real president acknowledged in dialogue is President Nixon. However, one scene takes place outside the Ronald Reagan Institute of Emergency Medicine at George Washington University Hospital. The West Wing does not directly reference Reagan as a U.S. president.
We also do not know whether President Shepherd is part of the post-Nixon history of The West Wing.
david@davidkrell.com
Before he became the architect of the fictional Bartlet presidency by creating The West Wing, Aaron Sorkin designed a slice of the fictional Shepherd presidency in The American President.
The American President shows us the end of the first term of democrat Andrew Shepherd, a widower whose wife died before the election that sent him to the White House.
The most notable link between The American President and The West Wing is Martin Sheen.
In The American President, Sheen plays Shepherd’s Chief of Staff, A.J. Macinerney.
In The West Wing, Sheen plays President Bartlet.
Anna Deavere Smith is another link between the two stories.
She plays Press Secretary Robin McCall in The American President.
She has a recurring role on The West Wing -- Dr. Nancy McNally, National Security Advisor.
Joshua Malina also has roles in both Sorkin stories.
In The American President, Malina has a minor role -- an associate of President Shepherd’s environmental activist girlfriend, Sydney Ellen Wade, played by Annette Bening.
Malina replaced Rob Lowe in The West Wing. When Lowe’s character of Sam Seaborn runs for Congress, Malina’s character of Will Bailey replaces Sam as Deputy Communications Director.
In West Wing canon, the last real president acknowledged in dialogue is President Nixon. However, one scene takes place outside the Ronald Reagan Institute of Emergency Medicine at George Washington University Hospital. The West Wing does not directly reference Reagan as a U.S. president.
We also do not know whether President Shepherd is part of the post-Nixon history of The West Wing.