In the end, his enemies respected him — and his friends loved him. With his Machiavellian approach to politics, Lee Atwater, the former head of the Republican National Committee, reshaped the party unlike any other figure in modern politics.
Director Stefan Forbes captures the life of Atwater in the Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story. Forbes interviews a long list of insiders who either worked with Atwater or became his prey, including former Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis. During the 1988 presidential election, Atwater was accused of using dirty, negative campaign tactics. This ad became infamous:
The ad propelled a media storm in which Atwater vehemently denied involvement. Boogie Man presents Atwater as a complex character. Although he was mischievous and cut-throat, in the end, even some his staunchest enemies mourned his passing, when he died of cancer in 1991.
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