Authors Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack have captured the heart of Aaron Sorkin’s goal to have the first few seasons of The West Wing serve as a “love letter to public service.” They should know it well. Fitzgerald and McCormack portrayed Carol Fitzpatrick and Kate Harper, respectively, in the watershed political drama and released “What’s Next” in 2024.
This book may be the first in a long line of others to come. It fulfills its subtitle and then some, which is appropriately length as “A Backstage Pass to The West Wing, Its Cast and Crew, and Its Enduring Legacy of Service.”
Then again, this is the show that perfected the walk-and-talk, so that’s probably only half a hallway outside the Oval Office.
As an avid Wingnut (fan of The West Wing) who owns the entire series on DVD, has watched it all the way through more than a few times, and as a listener of the watchalong podcast The West Wing Weekly, hosted by Joshua Malina and Hrishikesh Hirway, I wasn’t really expecting to learn more than I already knew.
While Fitzgerald and McCormack definitely used and cited The West Wing Weekly, they also sat down with their fellow cast and crew, as well as public servants who have been called to serve with at least some inspiration from The West Wing.
As the book does its best to put you behind the scenes, it also describes what service means to the cast, the crew, and those who have held or served under real elected officials. If you aren’t someone who volunteers or who has taken up the higher calling of any form of public service, this book may do more than inspire you. It can also give you so many places, organizations, and causes that could use your help.
Each of the main characters and the actors behind them is profiled for their on-screen creation and the causes and organizations that they champion off-screen.
I could explore how the show was smart and steal Kathleen York’s (Congresswoman Andrea Wyatt, AKA Toby’s ex-wife) line: “It was a broadcast network series that didn’t spoon-feed information or emotional moments. That was really novel. In network television, the note you always get is: clarify, explain… simplify, so no one’s left out. But Aaron Sorkin is a rocket–you get on or you don’t.”
And that is true; it was basically a different kind of television. But we can also laugh that NBC had concerns before shooting the pilot because “an hour-long drama about public service–and public servants–remained a tough sell in any climate, let alone one as toxic as American politics in 1999.” Who wouldn’t lament the opportunity to go back to the proverbial halcyon days of politics before the turn of the century?
Aside from the love letter to public service, this book offers two things: an exemplar of how to treat people, and an inspirational call to service.
Producer, writer, and director John Wells talks about treating people with respect, something that seems to be more and more rare as we move along. “If we don’t allow talented people to live their lives outside of their work, they’re not going to be available to us to be on the show and be good. We do that in all kinds of areas. People get sick, and we keep them on the payroll and tell them to get better. You’ve got to create that world.”
This sentiment is something that my mother, a legitimate expert in the field of internal marketing, has been harping on since before I could fully grasp the concept as a toddler. Sadly, more people still miss that message, even as adults.
But the call to serve is perfectly summed up by co-author Fitzgerald: “The thing is, most people aren’t area experts. You don’t have to be an area expert to care about and fight for the issues that impact your life and the lives of your loved ones and community.”
Not every book needs to move you. Sometimes they can teach you something, entertain you, or even inspire you to serve. Somehow, this book does all of it and more.
If you’re interested or know someone in public service, this book would make a great gift. If you know someone who works or volunteers for a non-profit, they’ll find a reinforcement of their own call to service in these pages. Or perhaps, you just know a West Wing fan, who will certain also enjoy this book.
Irrespective of your political party or a lack thereof, “What’s Next” has a little bit of something for everyone.
Read the Secret File of technical information and quotes from What’s Next.