23 Years Ago...
Today marks the 23rd anniversary of Budd’s suicide. Instead of offering my own thoughts on today’s significance, I’d like to offer some words directly from Budd Dwyer himself. Below you’ll find a link to download the final entry in Budd’s journal. I’m making it available unedited, untranslated and uncensored. I need not say more, as his final entry says it all.
Article Highlight: Budd's letter to Reagan.
After his conviction, Budd wrote a letter to President Reagan asking for a Presidential pardon. A loyal Republican his entire life, Budd thought the President would recognize Budd’s clean record and see how his conviction was politically motivated. Many believe this pardon was the only thing that could have stopped Budd from taking his own life.
At long last, I can speak out...
I was in my first semester at the Academy of Art, studying film, when I accidentally came across the video. At the time I was attempting to download “Bowling for Columbine” via a peer to peer program, but was coming up short. It wasn’t uncommon to download an incorrect file, users would sometime mislabeled videos or songs out of malice or an attempt at humor, so you were never sure what you were going to get. Well, that day I got Budd Dwyer. It’s reasonable to say that it was a mistake that I wouldn’t soon forget.
That was six years ago.
In those six years I’ve been researching, interviewing, filming, editing, running out of money, filming once more, researching, running out of money again, filming and editing. And now I’m fully at the other end. The documentary which I’ve come to carry like some extended creative pregnancy, is finally ready to stand up on it own two legs.
“Honest Man: The Life of R.Budd Dwyer” is my attempt to answer some of the questions that flooded my head when I first saw Budd’s suicide. If you’ve seen the video or are vaguely familiar with Budd’s story I’m sure you have you own questions too. Through this blog, I hope to answer some of those questions and share some of the experiences I’ve had over the last six years. Since the film is complete we’ll also be sharing updates on the premiere and a slew of other news. Stay tuned…
James Dirschberger
Director
