HBO Documentary Breslin And Hamill: Deadline Artists Chronicles Two Legendary NYC Journalists Writing Through Legendary Times

To the left, the larger-than-life Jimmy Breslin. To the right, the calm to Jimmy’s storm, Pete Hamill. In the middle, their beat. Photo courtesy of TMDB.

New York City is a creature all unto its own. What is birthed from her streets isn’t always pretty, but it’s real, it’s raw, and something that can, in our peak hours of historic times, change a nation. Two such examples of NYC maelstroms, Jimmy Breslin and Pete Hamill, worked their way out of working class obscurity to become legends in America’s journalistic landscape through their gritty proses, unflinchingly real news stories, and a steadfast belief that people without a voice deserve to be heard. They made numerous friends, and even more enemies, but when it was all said and done, the truth was always set free between the pages of every newspaper who dared to print Jimmy and Pete’s columns. HBO’s documentary Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists, dives deep into these two giant’s legacy to bring to light the story behind the men who dared to be the change they wanted to see. And won.

They were street, they were celebrity, they befriended political demigods, partied like rock stars, survived scandal, and left their mark on American journalism like no other.

This is their story. Photo courtesy of Meaww

Their background story is fairly all American: two children from different  immigrant families had a dream of writing professionally, so much so both made it a reality without a college degree or solid formal training. While not becoming acquainted with one another until later in life, their friendship, regardless if they were working at the same paper or on rivaling ones, lasted a life time. In their careers they covered some of the most incredible moments in history, including the Kennedy’s assassinations, the Bernhard Goetz “death wish” subway shootings , the Son Of Sam murders, the assassination of Malcolm X, the war in Vietnam, even up to the terrorist attacks on 9/11. Each had their own way of how they conveyed their reporting, but it was always with raw passion and an uncompromising take on the entirety of the story, not the angle made you feel better or who should be blamed to suit a political motive. If mainstream news presented a muddied story, Breslin and Hamill would strip it clean and present it to the masses in all its naked truth.

The documentary is ripe with archived footage of news events plus photos and interviews with family and friends who knew Jimmy and Pete best, interviews with celebrities such as Tom Wolfe, Guy Talese, Gail Collins, Gloria Steinem, Spike Lee, Colin Quinn, Robert De Niro, Shirley MacLaine, Andrew Cuomo, Shane Smith, James Duff, Earl Caldwell, Richard Esposito, Mike Lupica, Sam Roberts, Charlie Carillo, Robert Krulwich and Garry Trudeau, and even interviews with both journalistic mavericks while also delving into their private lives and public scandals.  It all builds a very human picture of not only Breslin and Hamill, but of the world of news they lived through, and how their work impacted the way that Americans discussed and digested world events.

Official trailer can be seen here

Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists is directed and produced by Jonathan Alter, John Block and Steve McCarthy; edited by Geof Bartz, A.C.E. and Angela Gandini; director of cinematography, Steve McCarthy; voice of Jimmy Breslin, Michael Rispoli; original music composed by Wendy Blackstone. For HBO Documentary Films: executive producer, Nancy Abraham.