shop online at www.missourivalleyshopper.com July 12, 2016 • Page 9 A Female President? Dry, Heat Drive Drought Movies,TV Got There First, Expansion in South Dakota Though Not Always Well By Rich Heldenfels © 2016, Akron Beacon Journal If Hillary Clinton is elected president in November, she may have a lot of sisters on TV. Selina Meyer was the president on “Veep.” On “Scandal,” Mellie Grant is a nominee for president. On “Madam Secretary,” Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord has been offered the vice presidency — and has already temporarily served as president during a crisis. On “House of Cards,” Claire Underwood is the running mate of her incumbent president husband, Frank — and it would surprise no one if she later elbowed him out of the way to become chief executive. It would be easy to say that popular culture is just beginning to pick up on what is happening in the real political world. In fact, pop culture has been ahead of the population when it comes to a woman in the White House, and deciding which party she’d be from. Serena Elavia, writing in The Atlantic last year, argued that TV’s female presidents have not included an “obvious Democrat.” They have been either ambiguous (Meyer, McCord) to avoid getting caught up in party-specific politics, or tilted Republican (Allison Taylor on “24,” Sally Langston’s temporarily holding the office on “Scandal”). One producer told Elavia, “a Republican female president adds an element of unpredictability.” The shortlived series “Commander in Chief” even tried to heighten that unpredictability with a president who had run on the Republican ticket but was politically independent. And where did this all begin? By most accounts, the earliest example of a woman president onscreen was in the science-fiction movie “Project Moonbase” in 1953. Set in 1970, the movie features actress Ernestine Barrier as a character listed only as “Madame President.” In 1964, moviegoers had a chance to see Polly Bergen as newly inaugurated President Leslie McCloud in the comedy “Kisses for My President.” Most moviegoers declined. An article for Turner Classic Movies argues that “all the jokes couldn’t disguise the fact that a still shell-shocked nation was in no mood to laugh about the presidency,” since the movie premiered less than a year after the assassination of John F. Kennedy. But it’s also an awful movie, especially when viewed today. It’s far more interested in the president’s husband, Thad (Fred MacMurray), than the president herself. finding the right job is easier than you think We see Thad surprised by the feminine furniture usually assigned the first lady, distressed when the nation’s business interrupts his canoodling with his wife, and irked that after a successful business career he’s now facing at least four years of being “an absolute nothing.” Yet, after some bumbling, he’s the movie’s hero, stopping a scandal-mongering senator trying to bring down the president. “Kisses” ends with Leslie resigning from office after she discovers she’s pregnant — since doctors insist she can’t run the country while being so. Thad smugly notes that 40 million women elected Leslie, but it took only one man to get her out of office. As Judith B. Walzer wrote in Dissent, the film “seems to have been made in the dark ages of American political culture. Its approach is to show that the ridiculous consequences of electing a woman president make the whole notion impossible.” It doesn’t even treat Leslie as much of a politician, with Thad summing up her credentials as “daughter of an ambassador, niece of a senator, former judge, wife, mother and a graduate of Radcliffe.” The ensuing decades saw the idea of a woman president becoming more plausible; Shirley Chisholm ran for the Democratic nomination in 1972, and Geraldine Ferraro was presidential candidate Walter Mondale’s running mate in 1984. Neither campaign was successful, and a woman president was played for laughs again in 1985 when ABC presented the comedy “Hail to the Chief,” with Patty Duke in the White House. From Susan Harris, who had created the outrageous comedy “Soap,” the series featured “a cabinet of crazies,” says “The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows,” and such crises as the president’s husband being “unable to make love.” It lasted seven episodes. That wasn’t the end of presidential comedy; the 1998 gangster-movie parody “Mafia!” (sometimes called “Jane Austen’s Mafia!”) included a president played by Christina Applegate. But other works tried to show formidable women in the White House. And at times scary women. For example, on Fox’s “Prison Break,” which premiered in 2005, vice president Caroline Reynolds (Patricia Wettig) is hip-deep in conspiracies, takes the top office after poisoning the president and appears to have had an affair with her brother. A less melodramatic effort was the ABC drama “Commander in Chief,” premiering a month after “Prison Break,” starring Geena Davis as President Mackenzie Allen, a veep elevated to the top spot after the death of the president. (Polly Bergen, by the way, played Allen’s mother.) Fox’s thriller “24,” at times credited with making audiences more comfortable with the idea of an African-American president, introduced a woman president, Allison Taylor, in 2008. The TV movie “24: Redemption,” which bridged the sixth and seventh seasons of the Kiefer Sutherland drama, included Taylor’s inauguration; the telecast premiered a few weeks after the election of Barack Obama, who had dueled Clinton for the Democratic nomination earlier in the year. Played by Cherry Jones, Taylor was smart and tough, attacking “apathy, greed and fear” and ready to stare down terrorists. When she returned for the next full season of “24” in 2009, she was pressing on even after the death of her son. More recently, besides the productions already mentioned, we had Sela Ward playing a hard-bitten but far from competent president in “Independence Day: Resurgence.” On TV, NBC’s “State of Affairs” had Alfre Woodard as the first black woman to become president. She was not the main character — that was a CIA analyst played by Katherine Heigl — and the generally silly show lasted a mere 13 episodes. But it was more evidence that, regardless of what happens in the election in November, TV and movies have long since been ready for a woman in the White House. And they will probably look for more. BROOKINGS, S.D. - The U.S. Drought Monitor has shown increases in drought area and severity throughout South Dakota. “The latest map, issued on June 30, 2016 indicates that 38 percent of the state is currently in drought,” said Laura Edwards, SDSU Extension Climate Field Specialist. “Almost six percent of the state is in severe to extreme drought, with the worst areas in the Black Hills and northeast.” Edwards explained that the warm and dry conditions of the last month drove a rapid increase in drought. Many western and northeastern South Dakota locations ranked June 2016 among the top five warmest on record. Edgemont and Hill City recorded the warmest temperatures seen in more Stop searching. The Help Wanted section of the Missouri Valley Shopper lists many possible new job opportunities. Find a career that’s right for you. Get your display ad here! MV Shopper MV Shopper M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y www.missourivalleyshopper.com 665-5884 M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y AUCTIONS MV Shopper M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y FOR SALE Registered Angus Bulls For Sale Bred for calving ease & growth. Performance tested, guaranteed. Out of top bloodlines in the Angus breed. Call: Hauger’s Stock Farms IRENE, SOUTH DAKOTA Steven: 605.263.3774 5.5 (+/-) ACRE FARMSTEAD AUCTION Address: 54233 Hwy 12 (Hwy Access) 2-Story, 4-Bedroom, 2-Bath Home with 2-Car Attached Garage, New Vinyl Siding, Gas Fireplace, 4 Out Buildings - 3 with steel siding; ALL with steel roofs. Large Garden Area - Fruit Trees LOCATED: 611 1st Street SE, Wagner, SD - east of city park GILL REALTY and AUCTION, LLC Saturday, July 23 -- 11 a.m. Auction includes pickup, trailer, lawn, garden, shop, gun, sporting goods, household, miscellaneous items plus some consigned. Most items on this auction are in immaculate condition. Bloomfield, NE Kelly Bruns A complete listing of items appears in next week’s issue. Richard Hoffman, Owner Peterson Auctioneers Glen Peterson, RE #234 www.petersonauctioneers.com Lee Wittmeier - Tyndall, SD Cody Peterson - Avon, SD Terms: Cash or check accompanied by photo ID. We do not accept debit or credit cards. Not Responsible for Accidents. Large ESTATE AUCTION Saturday, July 16 -- 9:30 a.m. TRAILERS: 7x16 bumper car trailer; Shopmade 8x25 GN ?atbed. ANTIQUES, COLLECTABLES & PRIMITIVES: 20 +/- dump rakes; IHC stationary silage cutter; Horse machinery; Horse collars; Hames; Fly nets; Hoof trimmers; Line spreaders; Bits; Tack; Horse shoes; Neck yokes; Wagon tongues; Eveners; Cast iron and tin seats; Many steel wheels; Many well pumps; Pump handles; Well cups; Cream seperators; Corn shellers; Several cast iron stoves; Platform scales; Large cast iron kettle; Numerous cast iron items; Ice tongs; Pulleys; Sausage stuffers; Dehorners; Lightning rods; Husking hooks; Feed and seed sacks; Machinery manuals; Coca cola pop machines; Many coke items; Trunks; Egg cases; Old radios; Advertising items; Tins and signs; Sleds; Wall telephone parts; Washboards; Sad irons; Wood ironing boards; Many barn lanterns; Lamps; Various crocks; Churn parts; Many old collectable tools; Keen Kutter; Wood planes; Enamel items; Old silverware and utensils; Blue jars; Collectable glass and many more unique and unusual items. MACHINERY, SHOP & MISCELLANEOUS: JD 4 bottom mt plow; JD F-145 4 bottom plow; JD AW disc; 250 bu gravity wagon; Rowse dump rake; JD 494 planters; Many tons of iron and machinery for salvage; Cement mixers; 110V 90 amp wire welder, new; Rolling tool cabinets; New 2000 lb elec winch; Small gas generator; Snapper rider; Miter saw; Side grinders; Drills; Bits; Many electric and rechargeable power tools; Tap and dies; Battery chargers and booster packs; Jacks; Many shop shelves and cabinets; Ladders; Jack stands; 4”x4”x20’ lumber; Wood fence; Fencing supplies; Culvert; Hydrants; Tires; Machinery and automotive parts; Tarps; Tires; Shovels; Forks; Hundreds of small hand tools, lawn and garden tools and supplies. Plus much more. 12x16 utility building HOUSEHOLD: Refrigerator; Washer and dryer; Electric range; 2 ?atscreen TVs; Sofa; Dressers; Miscellaneous furniture; Ice maker; Coolers; Files; Heaters; Small electric appliances; Pots; Pans; Plus more. ALVIN MOYSIS ESTATE Peterson Auctioneers Glen Peterson, RE #234 M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y month ahead. “It is not clear yet if it will be near record warmth as we experienced in June 2016,” Edwards said. She added that the precipitation outlook for July 2016 indicates equal chances of being wetter, drier and near average conditions. “Summertime precipitation can be challenging to forecast as thunderstorms can produce locally heavy rainfall,” Edwards said. Some drought impacts have already been reported across the state. “Notably, dry vegetation in the western counties has increased the risk of wildland fire and grassland/ prairie fire,” Edwards said. “Several small fires have already been reported due to hay baling and other related activities.” niGrow Need people to find your business? LOCATED: 39872 307th Street, Wagner, SD (from Wagner city park 10 miles south and 3 3/4 miles east or from Dante, SD, 7 miles south and 1 1/4 miles west) when you’ve got the right direction than 30 years. Camp Crook, Lead, Mt Rushmore and Summit ranked this June as the second warmest on record. “These stations have 55-109 years of record and were between 4.35 to 9.28 degrees above average for June 2016,” Edwards explained. July 2016 Precipitation Outlook Fifteen climate stations in South Dakota ranked June 2016 among the top five driest on record. Interior and Waubay had their driest June in more than 60 years, with 0.61 and 0.75 inches of rain. Other stations that were exceptionally dry included Alexandria, Edgemont, Philip and Ashton. The climate outlook for July 2016, also updated on June 30, shows an increase in likelihood of warmer than average conditions for the www.petersonauctioneers.com Lee Wittmeier - Tyndall, SD Cody Peterson - Avon, SD Terms: Cash or check accompanied by photo ID LUNCH SERVED Not Responsible for Accidents. Sales Associate Cell: 402-841-7320 or Home: 402-373-4906 E-mail: brredangus@gmail.com Home and Contents at AUCTION Sunday, July 17 -- 12 noon LOCATED: 1 block south of Tabor Lumber, Tabor, SD REAL ESTATE WILL SELL FIRST Real Estate consists of a 1366 sq ft 2 story 4 bedroom home with partial basement, 2 car detached garage with attic storage and other outbuilding. Located on a large 150x220 lot this unique property is a diamond in the rough. LEGAL DESCRIPTION: Lots 9,10 & 11 Block 2, Wagner’s 2nd Add. TERMS & CONDITIONS: $2,500 non-refundable down payment day of auction with balance due at closing. Title Insurance and closing service fees split 50-50 between buyer and seller. 2016 RE tax will be prorated to closing. Possession upon receipt of ?nal payment. Announcements day of auction take precedence over printed material. Peterson Auctioneers are representing sellers. HOUSEHOLD: GE refrigerator; Kimball spinet piano; China cabinet; Dining table and chairs; Kitchen table and chairs; Sofa; Easy chairs; 2 -- 3 pc bedroom sets; Miscellaneous stands; Electric roaster; Fans; Radios; Lamps; Pictures and wall hangings; Small electric appliances; Dishes; Cookware; Plus more household items. ANTIQUES & COLLECTABLES: Old violin hand made by Joseph Dvorak in 1925; Unusual Bonvicint keyboard organ; Old coronet; Many ladies hats; Hat pins; Old purses; Fancy work; Linens; Old pictures; Old records; McCoy; Jadite; Czech dolls; Figurines; Misc collectable glass. Miscellaneous tools and lawn and garden items. 1967 Olds 98 4 dr, not running, some body damage Heirs of JoAnn Stepanek Relf, Owners Peterson Auctioneers Glen Peterson, RE #234 www.petersonauctioneers.com Lee Wittmeier - Tyndall, SD Cody Peterson - Avon, SD For more information or to view property call Glen Peterson 605-369-2638 TERMS: Cash Not Responible for Accidents