In the script, Sorkin writes a wonderful stage direction: "Donna tries to look like the campaign pass isn't actually the first piece of jewelry anyone's ever given her."
Indeed! "When you've been shot at one too many times and your sanity is hanging on by a thread and your mentor/friend has a heart attack and dies after you asked him to be VP, I think you might find me valuable."
It was not an understatement when she said it at all, using hindsight makes your comments get more likes I'm sure. She had no experience and lied about everything. She made that statement from the heart and won his trust. Beautiful moment.
Janel Moloney is such a good, natural actress. She can do Sorkin rapid fire dialogue and emotional scenes, too, and it never feels like she's acting. Her and Josh had some of the best chemistry I've ever seen between two characters.
She auditioned for CJ, and Sorkin gave her this as a consolation, meant to be a bit part like Ginger or Bonnie (no shade to them! they were great!). After her first day on set, John Spencer told her that she'd be there til the curtain came down, and her chemistry with Brad Whitford essentially derailed anything Sorkin was trying to set up with Josh and Mandy.
One of the truly sweet scenes.. I think it cut back to Josh in the hospital and Donna with him. Those first two episodes in Season 2 were just flawless.
@@murrethmedia they never really showed it on the show outside Amy’s brief stint, but it’s a pretty big position and title. It also sets her up very well to go further, and it lets her and Josh have their relationship without there being power imbalance problems
@@murrethmedia It can be a very big deal. Some First Ladies have had a lot of sway in the White House, and many chiefs of staff, policy directors, etc. for them are highly credentialed.
I've watched the entire series twice and watched countless clips on UA-cam. It gets harder and harder for me though as I think to myself if only the people in Washington cared more about us than the people that bribe (campaign contributions) them. With the exception of a few, that is all of DC, both left and right.
@timothy9596 • You've been persuaded by Kremlin propaganda and asymmetric warfare to think it's "only a few" who care. The fact is there are millions of worker bees in agencies you probably don't care about who are doing the best for the people they serve. Your attitude that no one in Washington cares except for a few is exactly what drives people from voting and participating in government. The fewer people who vote and participate, the easier it is for a small, well-organized minority to push through their own agenda. Before you condemn almost everyone out of hand, spend some time going yo the websites of departments and agencies. Read the backgrounds of the heads, their deputies, and down the chain. Then, look over the reports by the Inspector General at each website that has one. How do you rate them? Have they found flaws to be corrected? I know this response is tedious, but I read your comment as a "low information" one. During the pandemic, I had time to go to the government sources, so I didn't have to rely solely on what mainstream media and social influencers (who frequently just provide their own take on those MSM issues) thought was important for me to know. Congressional committee hearings & their reports are another check on the 500+ members. I think if you really look into what people in Washington are doing, rather than relying on second and third hand opinions, you'll be able to change "except for only a few" to "most." At least I hope so.
If the american presidencey was run like this, i think we caould make it as a species. Sadly, it is not and i dont have much confidence in our own ability to save ourselves from ourselves. So i think we are doomed. I cannot understand how anybody can even bring a child into the world we currently live in. While this may sound like i am a pessimist there truly is not much to look forward to, to be honest. A bunch of peaceful, non violent, climate protestors here in the UK were just sentenced to 5 years each in jail for their protest. In the UK rapists and murderers get less time. Let that sink in.
@@suminshizzles6951 I'm far from this pessimistic. Yes we have political problems right now. Putting Trump in a hole somewhere is not going to cure them. But it will make 51% of the voting population happier. There are a number of talking heads that really do have their collective heads up their butts, but if history tells us anything, they eventually fall. Think Joe McCarthy and Newt Gingrich. It takes awhile, but people get bored with the same lies and turn away. My fear is the next guy that is going to try to take Trump's place because he will be more evil than Trump and not as stupid. Let us hope he didn't have a reality show first to make him falsely famous.
You don't really know unless you roll the dice and believe! I got a job as a teenager still in high school using the "same handbook" that Donna was using😊....one of the best gigs I ever had too! I still keep in contact with one of the owners. ☺
I think they make one of the best double act in years. If they didn't work in the White House they could be husband and wife battling how's doing the school run. and it would still be good. It's the timing.
@@m.s.6586 They both get the same job for the a husband and wife and have a 4 week time limit to get it together or give up. I was thinking more of the actors working together and there comedy timing.
Donna and Josh sitting on the airplane going on vacation together as a couple really is where the show should have wrapped since there was not going to be another season.
"What's next." "Look, I think i can be good at this." I love the story but with every passing year it feels more like Alice in Wonderland or The Wizard of Oz or Romeo and Juliet. I'm not saying it doesn't happen or can happen again. We've been here before and it was worse then. Maybe it's time for a re-watch. I'll be there with my tissues.
@Mark-ke1rj • Gosh, and here's little Ole me getting accurate information on canning, student loans, health insurance, banking rights, federal camping, etc. Not one liar in decades for me or my family. I guess I'm blessed or we live in different worlds.
Donna served a useful purpose: when there was an idea the writer wanted to explain to the audience, Josh would explain it to Donna. The problem is it made Donna look at times like a borderline imbecile. That's one part of the West Wing that has not aged well.
I don’t think that the strategy they map out at the beginning is quite realistic. It is extremely difficult for a candidate to win the Democratic nomination without the South. African Americans there are the heart of the Democratic electorate. Sort of like the Evangelicals for the Republicans - can’t win without them.
And she also defected to go work for Bingo Bob. I never understood the adoration from Donna's fans. Josh would have been better off if he ended up with Amy.
@@Dan210871 Donna was sweet and loyal. I don’t think she defected. She just decided to take a better opportunity. Josh ultimately only saw her as an assistant, so she would have been going nowhere career wise had she just stuck with him. They became a good match at the end because she had become his ‘equal,’ which was (I think) important for him. Amy was always his equal of course, but she wad too strong and uncompromising to be a good fit for him. Constant fighting.
@@Dan210871 Of course she defected. By that time, her career was going nowhere and she couldn't get Josh's attention about it. From her pov, she wasn't shipping Lymoss any more, only the fans were, she had to look out for herself. Bingo Bob was the smart choice, because no-one with any political acumen was taking Santos's run seriously. As for Josh ending up with Amy, by season 7 there was so much accumulated narrative momentum in favour of a Josh-Donna finale, it would have been very hard to skew things toward anything else. The writers were pursuing an "up" ending. If Josh gets with Amy, then Donna's heart is broken forever; if he gets with Donna, no-one imagines Amy being heartbroken. It wasn't just Donna's fans who wanted it, it was the emotional weight of the whole series pushing it. (Anyway, as Donna says at the end, they jetted off for a 3-week trial period. Maybe they got it all out of their systems in ten days, and when they got back Amy was there, waiting for him. We can imagine anything we like, after all -- it's only television.) 🤩
@@ER1CwC A) What most people considered "sweet" in Donna, I just saw as bland. Admittedly, I have never found anything or anyone from the Midwest even remotely interesting. B) If she went back to her boyfriend mid-campaign AND she left her job with Josh in order to work for a cardboard cutout like Bingo Bob, that is a pattern I wouldn't describe as "loyal" at all. C) The "constant fighting" between equal partners makes the sex way hotter (speaking from experience). Amy FTW!
I wonder if Trump has seen a single episode of The West Wing. He still hasn't accepted the fact that it is a serious job and not a cool way to jet to Fla for a round of golf to the tune of 2.6m dollars of our money.
In the script, Sorkin writes a wonderful stage direction: "Donna tries to look like the campaign pass isn't actually the first piece of jewelry anyone's ever given her."
They released the script??
Thanks for sharing.
@@swyxTV there is a script book (out of print) available if you can find it.
"I think you might find me valuable." What an MASSIVE understatement!
Indeed! "When you've been shot at one too many times and your sanity is hanging on by a thread and your mentor/friend has a heart attack and dies after you asked him to be VP, I think you might find me valuable."
It was not an understatement when she said it at all, using hindsight makes your comments get more likes I'm sure. She had no experience and lied about everything. She made that statement from the heart and won his trust. Beautiful moment.
And thus began one of the best dynamics in tv
Janel Moloney is such a good, natural actress. She can do Sorkin rapid fire dialogue and emotional scenes, too, and it never feels like she's acting. Her and Josh had some of the best chemistry I've ever seen between two characters.
She auditioned for CJ, and Sorkin gave her this as a consolation, meant to be a bit part like Ginger or Bonnie (no shade to them! they were great!). After her first day on set, John Spencer told her that she'd be there til the curtain came down, and her chemistry with Brad Whitford essentially derailed anything Sorkin was trying to set up with Josh and Mandy.
One of the truly sweet scenes.. I think it cut back to Josh in the hospital and Donna with him. Those first two episodes in Season 2 were just flawless.
I watch them when I need a lift. Works every time. Although Toby cradling Josh's head after the shooting always sets me off 😭
I’ve used the West Wing for years as therapy. Problem is. I keep watching after therapy session is over
@@terrygracy8345 Sorkin is the best medicine 🛟
@@terrygracy8345 You use it for catharsis and emotional boost not ''therapy''. NOT the same.
From no qualifications hoping Josh wouldn't notice, ultimately to Chief of Staff to the First Lady by the end. Talk about a journey.
I hated that they made Donna CoS to FLOTUS. Meaningless job.
@@murrethmedia they never really showed it on the show outside Amy’s brief stint, but it’s a pretty big position and title. It also sets her up very well to go further, and it lets her and Josh have their relationship without there being power imbalance problems
@@SeaTurtle1122 No, it definitely isn't a big position.
This really dose depend on how the first lady is. Some have long lasting legacy than their husbands. And the 4 week rule isn't a problem anymore.
@@murrethmedia It can be a very big deal. Some First Ladies have had a lot of sway in the White House, and many chiefs of staff, policy directors, etc. for them are highly credentialed.
"Bartlett for America, Josh Lyman's office," was the beginning of something beautiful.
One of the finest drama series ever made.
One of the smartest, funniest drama series ever made.
Donna Moss was a brilliant character, maybe a bit quirky, but in the best possible way.
I have a crush on her to this day! And quirkyness has a lot to do with it :-)
CJ's hair lol
"How many people get that far?" hehe Josh is great.
So, that's how they began!👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
What does this mean
Have you not seen the show?
Dammit. I guess I’m going to have to watch WW again. 🤷🏼♂️
Best decision Josh ever made, hands down.
I’m not crying. I just have something in both my eyes.
Same
Fun fact: After this Josh doesn't have his pass and gets thrown out of the building in the director's cut.
I've watched the entire series twice and watched countless clips on UA-cam. It gets harder and harder for me though as I think to myself if only the people in Washington cared more about us than the people that bribe (campaign contributions) them. With the exception of a few, that is all of DC, both left and right.
@timothy9596 • You've been persuaded by Kremlin propaganda and asymmetric warfare to think it's "only a few" who care. The fact is there are millions of worker bees in agencies you probably don't care about who are doing the best for the people they serve.
Your attitude that no one in Washington cares except for a few is exactly what drives people from voting and participating in government. The fewer people who vote and participate, the easier it is for a small, well-organized minority to push through their own agenda.
Before you condemn almost everyone out of hand, spend some time going yo the websites of departments and agencies. Read the backgrounds of the heads, their deputies, and down the chain.
Then, look over the reports by the Inspector General at each website that has one. How do you rate them? Have they found flaws to be corrected?
I know this response is tedious, but I read your comment as a "low information" one. During the pandemic, I had time to go to the government sources, so I didn't have to rely solely on what mainstream media and social influencers (who frequently just provide their own take on those MSM issues) thought was important for me to know.
Congressional committee hearings & their reports are another check on the 500+ members.
I think if you really look into what people in Washington are doing, rather than relying on second and third hand opinions, you'll be able to change "except for only a few" to "most." At least I hope so.
If the american presidencey was run like this, i think we caould make it as a species. Sadly, it is not and i dont have much confidence in our own ability to save ourselves from ourselves. So i think we are doomed. I cannot understand how anybody can even bring a child into the world we currently live in. While this may sound like i am a pessimist there truly is not much to look forward to, to be honest. A bunch of peaceful, non violent, climate protestors here in the UK were just sentenced to 5 years each in jail for their protest. In the UK rapists and murderers get less time. Let that sink in.
@@suminshizzles6951 I'm far from this pessimistic. Yes we have political problems right now. Putting Trump in a hole somewhere is not going to cure them. But it will make 51% of the voting population happier. There are a number of talking heads that really do have their collective heads up their butts, but if history tells us anything, they eventually fall. Think Joe McCarthy and Newt Gingrich. It takes awhile, but people get bored with the same lies and turn away. My fear is the next guy that is going to try to take Trump's place because he will be more evil than Trump and not as stupid. Let us hope he didn't have a reality show first to make him falsely famous.
You don't really know unless you roll the dice and believe! I got a job as a teenager still in high school using the "same handbook" that Donna was using😊....one of the best gigs I ever had too! I still keep in contact with one of the owners. ☺
love these two ❤
And so began a line in the show used over and over again... "DONNA!"
I think they make one of the best double act in years. If they didn't work in the White House they could be husband and wife battling how's doing the school run. and it would still be good.
It's the timing.
You do know how their story ends.. right?
@@m.s.6586 They both get the same job for the a husband and wife and have a 4 week time limit to get it together or give up.
I was thinking more of the actors working together and there comedy timing.
I often wish the actors were put into other shows/movies, like Hepburn and Tracy.
Donna and Josh sitting on the airplane going on vacation together as a couple really is where the show should have wrapped since there was not going to be another season.
0:58 😂 love it
I miss these people
Go Donna , he’s bought the pitch. 😊
All the way to Chief of Staff for the First Lady
I just realise I’m Donna, quirky and crazy organised
That's why people love you to pieces. You've got a wonderful personality and you get things done!
They hadn't worked out the Wisconsin cheese jokes in the early days.
"What's next." "Look, I think i can be good at this." I love the story but with every passing year it feels more like Alice in Wonderland or The Wizard of Oz or Romeo and Juliet. I'm not saying it doesn't happen or can happen again. We've been here before and it was worse then. Maybe it's time for a re-watch. I'll be there with my tissues.
DONNA FOR PRESIDENT!!!!
Lots of product placement.
When the phone rang at the end, Donna could have answered it, but she was respecting Josh.
hehe they mentioned charleston lol
When Kramer just started working somewhere without getting hired… it didn’t go so well
She showed the most important skill in government: Lie and tell people whatever they want to hear to move your career.
Fake it till you make it!
Though, she did turn out to be quite valuable, credit where it's due.
I hope you don't think this skill is limited to people in government. If you do, you may find yourself getting scammed a lot.
@@yvonnetomenga5726 It's just the most common with people in government.
@Mark-ke1rj • Gosh, and here's little Ole me getting accurate information on canning, student loans, health insurance, banking rights, federal camping, etc. Not one liar in decades for me or my family. I guess I'm blessed or we live in different worlds.
@@yvonnetomenga5726 Well at least passed over for the promotion you thought you had locked up.
Donna served a useful purpose: when there was an idea the writer wanted to explain to the audience, Josh would explain it to Donna. The problem is it made Donna look at times like a borderline imbecile. That's one part of the West Wing that has not aged well.
2 credits short of a degree? Dang girl.
Actually two years if you listen closely. So this makes Donna 20 to Josh's 30? This is beginning to have a creep factor to it.
@@cdjhyoung not really. Look at Harrison Ford and Clasita Flockhart, Now thats an age difference.
I don’t think that the strategy they map out at the beginning is quite realistic. It is extremely difficult for a candidate to win the Democratic nomination without the South. African Americans there are the heart of the Democratic electorate. Sort of like the Evangelicals for the Republicans - can’t win without them.
Before 2000 or so, this was a viable path. Ignoring the south while picking up the Northeast and the West is how Dukakis won in 1988.
@@doubledown0411 I meant in the modern Democratic Party, but this is a great answer!
Anymore most southern states go red, although thanks to Trump Georgia could be in play still and AZ The republicans have gerrymandered it quite a bit
@@terrygracy8345 We're talking about a Primary here. Not the general election.
@@doubledown0411 lol. I see it now. Nomination is mentioned.
And she went back to the boyfriend!
And she also defected to go work for Bingo Bob. I never understood the adoration from Donna's fans. Josh would have been better off if he ended up with Amy.
@@Dan210871 God no. Amy was an unbearable arse
@@Dan210871 Donna was sweet and loyal. I don’t think she defected. She just decided to take a better opportunity. Josh ultimately only saw her as an assistant, so she would have been going nowhere career wise had she just stuck with him. They became a good match at the end because she had become his ‘equal,’ which was (I think) important for him. Amy was always his equal of course, but she wad too strong and uncompromising to be a good fit for him. Constant fighting.
@@Dan210871 Of course she defected. By that time, her career was going nowhere and she couldn't get Josh's attention about it. From her pov, she wasn't shipping Lymoss any more, only the fans were, she had to look out for herself. Bingo Bob was the smart choice, because no-one with any political acumen was taking Santos's run seriously.
As for Josh ending up with Amy, by season 7 there was so much accumulated narrative momentum in favour of a Josh-Donna finale, it would have been very hard to skew things toward anything else. The writers were pursuing an "up" ending. If Josh gets with Amy, then Donna's heart is broken forever; if he gets with Donna, no-one imagines Amy being heartbroken. It wasn't just Donna's fans who wanted it, it was the emotional weight of the whole series pushing it.
(Anyway, as Donna says at the end, they jetted off for a 3-week trial period. Maybe they got it all out of their systems in ten days, and when they got back Amy was there, waiting for him. We can imagine anything we like, after all -- it's only television.) 🤩
@@ER1CwC A) What most people considered "sweet" in Donna, I just saw as bland. Admittedly, I have never found anything or anyone from the Midwest even remotely interesting.
B) If she went back to her boyfriend mid-campaign AND she left her job with Josh in order to work for a cardboard cutout like Bingo Bob, that is a pattern I wouldn't describe as "loyal" at all.
C) The "constant fighting" between equal partners makes the sex way hotter (speaking from experience). Amy FTW!
so many of these hero guys of 90s/00s TV now look like creeps. "your boyfriend's older?" lol ew
I wonder if Trump has seen a single episode of The West Wing. He still hasn't accepted the fact that it is a serious job and not a cool way to jet to Fla for a round of golf to the tune of 2.6m dollars of our money.
I wonder if your Trump derangement syndrome is Relapsing/Remitting
Sorkin writes scripts for smug viewers.