---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One of the series of decisions that the…"
description: "\"One of the series of decisions that the great screenwriter John McNamara made was about who to depict. [Ronald] Reagan had a role in HUAC, he was a fri..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b75/jay-roach-8154_decision_one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the_1132287.png"
---

#  One of the series of decisions that the great screenwriter…

![“One of the series of decisions that the great screenwriter John McNamara made was about who to depict. &#91;Ronald&#93; Reagan had a role in HUAC, he was a friendly witness, but never went over-the-top about it.” quote by Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b75/jay-roach-8154_decision_one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the_1132287.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b75/jay-roach-8154_decision_one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the_1132287.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b75/jay-roach-8154_decision_one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the_1132287.png)

> “One of the series of decisions that the great screenwriter John McNamara made was about who to depict. \[Ronald\] Reagan had a role in HUAC, he was a friendly witness, but never went over-the-top about it.”

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Choosing how to portray historical figures shapes public perception.

**In simple terms:** Depiction influences legacy.

Key Takeaway

Present nuanced, factual portrayals.

Themes

media history representation ethics

Mood

thoughtful critical

Type

media philosophical

When to use this quote

- film production
- documentary making
- educational curricula
- media criticism

Key Concepts

narrative framing public memory political bias

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you balance storytelling with accuracy?
- What responsibilities do creators have to history?

A Different Perspective

Simplified portrayals can mislead audiences.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [Over the top](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/over-the-top/) [Screenwriters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/screenwriters/)

## Related quotes

> [Keep it simple. You don't want to overdo it with too much makeup or crazy, over-the-top hairstyles. Let your natural beauty show through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-klum/keep-it-simple-you-don-t-want-to-overdo-it-with-too-much-makeup-or/)

[Heidi Klum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-klum/)

> [Every time I see a guy walk out of an over-the-top sports car, I think they need a cold shower.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gia-allemand/every-time-i-see-a-guy-walk-out-of-an-over-the-top-sports-car-i-think/)

Gia Allemand

> [I don't read all the junk. I joke if I did, I wouldn't get out of bed in the morning. But, Sometimes the comments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-carlson/i-don-t-read-all-the-junk-i-joke-if-i-did-i-wouldn-t-get-out-of-bed/)

[Gretchen Carlson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-carlson/)

> [Wayne Wang, the director, really helped me become a more mature actress. When I first started filming, I was really over the top. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annasophia-robb/wayne-wang-the-director-really-helped-me-become-a-more-mature-actress/)

[AnnaSophia Robb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annasophia-robb/)

> [I am a little crazy but when I'm on-stage, then I really get to play it up and perform and be over the top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-mckee/i-am-a-little-crazy-but-when-i-m-on-stage-then-i-really-get-to-play/)

[Bonnie McKee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-mckee/)

> [Kuwait City is not gorgeous, actually, but it's got a kind of Epcot Center thing going for it. It's not pretty. But it's striking,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/kuwait-city-is-not-gorgeous-actually-but-it-s-got-a-kind-of-epcot/)

[P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/)

> [My father was very intense, passionate and over-the-top. He was my hero and my tyrant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-jordan/my-father-was-very-intense-passionate-and-over-the-top-he-was-my-hero/)

[June Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-jordan/)

> [If you're going to be ridiculous, be over-the-top ridiculous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-nielsen/if-you-re-going-to-be-ridiculous-be-over-the-top-ridiculous/)

[Rick Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-nielsen/)

> [Let's not forget, Sarah Palin may not have a golden touch, but she gave Christine O'Donnell candidate a big touch that got her over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-matthews/let-s-not-forget-sarah-palin-may-not-have-a-golden-touch-but-she-gave/)

[Chris Matthews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-matthews/)

> [Fact is, the work place to a great extent is "where we live." We need star accountants. Boffo saleswomen. Over-the-top creatives in marketing and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/fact-is-the-work-place-to-a-great-extent-is-where-we-live-we-need/)

[Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/)

> [Part of what made 'The Bling Ring' such a fun, freeing experience was that we got to wear these really over-the-top clothes we'd never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taissa-farmiga/part-of-what-made-the-bling-ring-such-a-fun-freeing-experience-was/)

[Taissa Farmiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taissa-farmiga/)

> [On nights that I'm feeling a need to stretch personally and artistically, I tend to put together outfits that are very quirky, mismatched and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esperanza-spalding/on-nights-that-i-m-feeling-a-need-to-stretch-personally-and/)

[Esperanza Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esperanza-spalding/)

> [Everyone plays the ball over the top and, at the moment, we only concede goals from crosses or balls over the top. I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arsene-wenger/everyone-plays-the-ball-over-the-top-and-at-the-moment-we-only/)

[Arsene Wenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arsene-wenger/)

> [Figure skating is theatrical, and a part of it is wearing costumes. My costumes were very over-the-top and outrageous for figure skating. But for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-weir/figure-skating-is-theatrical-and-a-part-of-it-is-wearing-costumes-my/)

[Johnny Weir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-weir/)

> [I don't usually prefer over-the-top action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naga-chaitanya/i-don-t-usually-prefer-over-the-top-action/)

[Naga Chaitanya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naga-chaitanya/)

## More by Jay Roach

> [You could get in rehearsals, pre-production, anything that would actually contribute to the understanding of how a film gets made. I actually find those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/you-could-get-in-rehearsals-pre-production-anything-that-would/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [But I always reassure them that as far as my contractual rights can go, I will protect them and make sure that they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/but-i-always-reassure-them-that-as-far-as-my-contractual-rights-can/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [ That's why we had Louis C.K. portray the harder line Communist, to accuse \[Dalton\] Trumbo of being a hypocrite. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/that-s-why-we-had-louis-c-k-portray-the-harder-line-communist-to/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [It was an interesting process trying to get Bob to talk about the film because he's such a shy person. He generally likes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/it-was-an-interesting-process-trying-to-get-bob-to-talk-about-the/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [The commentary track became a lot like the movie and there are some funny, long, awkward pauses that you can tell we're just trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/the-commentary-track-became-a-lot-like-the-movie-and-there-are-some/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [ For Bryan \[Cranston \] to go back in time and become this larger-than-life and somewhat theatrical guy, who performed his ideas and rhetoric in… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/for-bryan-cranston-to-go-back-in-time-and-become-this-larger-than/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [When Dalton Trumbo and his friends joined the Communist Party it was 1943, and Russia was our ally in World War II. This was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/when-dalton-trumbo-and-his-friends-joined-the-communist-party-it-was/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [We had to do the same thing here. To top that sequel was quite a task. Mike had a couple of good conceptual humour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/we-had-to-do-the-same-thing-here-to-top-that-sequel-was-quite-a-task/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [I figure if it's turns out well the film will have its own momentum and will carry into the video release. So it's hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/i-figure-if-it-s-turns-out-well-the-film-will-have-its-own-momentum/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [ \[Dalton\] Trumbo wrote this incredible pamphlet, almost on the level of Tom Paine's 'Common Sense,' called 'The Time of the Toad.' It's an exquisitely… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/dalton-trumbo-wrote-this-incredible-pamphlet-almost-on-the-level-of/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [People are willing to throw our civilization under the bus to discredit the existing system, without any proposed solution to the problems that they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/people-are-willing-to-throw-our-civilization-under-the-bus-to/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [I was very interested in politics in college and was heading to be a lawyer. I have a degree in economics and I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/i-was-very-interested-in-politics-in-college-and-was-heading-to-be-a/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [I like to shoot a lot of choices. I like a lot of stuff - and so I push to go faster, to shrink…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/i-like-to-shoot-a-lot-of-choices-i-like-a-lot-of-stuff-and-so-i-push/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [Sometimes perfecting the one thing can be the enemy of getting any traction on anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/sometimes-perfecting-the-one-thing-can-be-the-enemy-of-getting-any/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

> [ Mini-Me was the pint sized clone that was the perpetuation of Dr. Evil's own legacy \[in Austin Powers\]. That concept earned the sequel. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/mini-me-was-the-pint-sized-clone-that-was-the-perpetuation-of-dr-evil/)

[Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

[Explore all 83 Jay Roach quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/)

## More Decision quotes

> [Making the right decision is hard,telling someone your decision is even harder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/making-the-right-decision-is-hard-telling-someone-your-decision-is/)

[Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/)

> [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/)

[Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/)

> [Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/elections-belong-to-the-people-it-s-their-decision-if-they-decide-to/)

[Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/)

> [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/)

[Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/)

> [“How can you make an informed decision about whether to save the world if you never leave your tiny part of it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaun-david-hutchinson/how-can-you-make-an-informed-decision-about-whether-to-save-the-world/)

[Shaun David Hutchinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaun-david-hutchinson/)

> [Love is the foundation from which your decisions about your life should be made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-the-foundation-from-which-your-decisions-about-your-life/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Indecision becomes decision with time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/indecision-becomes-decision-with-time/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [If you think of people as making decisions actively, every time we think about the cup of coffee, we say, "How much will I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-ariely/if-you-think-of-people-as-making-decisions-actively-every-time-we/)

[Dan Ariely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-ariely/)

> [It was a conscious decision on my part to take up fewer films. And if you're not seen that often on screen, nobody calls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-lever/it-was-a-conscious-decision-on-my-part-to-take-up-fewer-films-and-if/)

[Johnny Lever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-lever/)

> [Decision is a risk rooted in the courage of being free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tillich/decision-is-a-risk-rooted-in-the-courage-of-being-free/)

[Paul Tillich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tillich/)

> [I never think of things rationally or intellectually. I swear, every single decision I make is just instinct and my instincts tend to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neill-blomkamp/i-never-think-of-things-rationally-or-intellectually-i-swear-every/)

[Neill Blomkamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neill-blomkamp/)

> [“it is either you happen to life or life happens to you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sesan-kareem/it-is-either-you-happen-to-life-or-life-happens-to-you/)

[Sesan Kareem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sesan-kareem/)

> [How strange that something so simple could have been instrumental in my decision to ruin one of my most relationships and friendships, and damage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/how-strange-that-something-so-simple-could-have-been-instrumental-in/)

[Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/)

> [I am encouraged President Obama now says he will fulfill his constitutional obligation to seek authorization for any potential military action in Syria. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-am-encouraged-president-obama-now-says-he-will-fulfill-his/)

[Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/)

> [In New York, you are constantly faced with this very urgent decision that you have to make, about every twenty minutes...you have to decide,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cross/in-new-york-you-are-constantly-faced-with-this-very-urgent-decision/)

[David Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cross/)

[Browse all 9,145 Decision quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "One of the series of decisions that the great screenwriter John McNamara made was about who to depict. [Ronald] Reagan had a role in HUAC, he was a friendly witness, but never went over-the-top about it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jay Roach"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the-great-screenwriter-john/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Decision"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the-great-screenwriter-john/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b75/jay-roach-8154_decision_one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the_1132287.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b75/jay-roach-8154_decision_one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the_1132287.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b75/jay-roach-8154_decision_one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the_1132287.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“One of the series of decisions that the great screenwriter John McNamara made was about who to depict…” — Jay Roach",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Jay Roach",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "One of the series of decisions...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the-great-screenwriter-john/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/one-of-the-series-of-decisions-that-the-great-screenwriter-john/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
