Tilden Film Script Celebrates his Birth and Presidents Day

Feb. 9, 2012 - PRLog -- Presidential disinformation corruption was born in 1876. As the saying goes, history does repeat itself, and author Nikki Oldaker, in her screenplay “Tilden” takes us back in time behind the scenes of the 1876 Tilden vs. Hayes election. The screenplay adapted from her book, “Samuel Tilden the Real 19th President, Elected by the Peoples’ Votes has been posted online free for all to read to celebrate former New York Governor Samuel J. Tilden’s birthday February 9th  and President’s Day, February 20, 2012. The script is available in two formats. http://www.SamuelTilden.com
Tilden nicknamed the Greatest Democrat/Reformer ever gained his fame when he busted up the Tammany and Canal Rings while Governor or New York. The day after the November 7th election in 1876 Tilden was declared the winner when the popular vote put him ahead of Hayes by 254,000 votes. Hayes wrote his personal diary election night the results meant to him his Presidency was not meant to be.
Oldaker wrote the screenplay and hopes Tilden’s story will be picked up by HBO or another history channel and would be a great sequel to HBO’s award winning mini-series John Adams.
Tilden’s Biographer, one of the main characters in the story, John Bigelow wrote: “I am disposed to regard as my duty to a faithful friend, as well as to the great community of which he had been for full half a century a devoted servant and benefactor.  His public life spanned a larger portion of the history of our Republic than that of any other eminent American statesman, and he occupied the unique position in our history of being the only one selected by the nation for its chief magistracy, who was never clothed with its responsibilities.” Tilden left the bulk of his estate to build the New York Public Library which he considered his “pay it forward” after making his great wealth as a railroad attorney.
Another character, President Grant who was attending the closing ceremonies at the Centennial International Exhibition of 1876 (America’s first World’s Fair) was peeved when he found out his administration was moving troops to the disputed states without his approval. He believed Tilden was his replacement. There are a few comical moments in the story, when Bigelow almost gets knocked off the carriage when Tilden tips the carriage while speeding through Central Park. This happens after Bigelow reads a quote from Governor Marcy, “Tilden’s mind is like putting a two hundred-horse power engine in a craft built for only one hundred horse-power. He has too much mind for his body.” The cast of characters is mostly male between the ages of forty to late sixties. Some recognizable names are Generals who served in the Civil War and turned to politics afterwards. .
Nikki Oldaker plunged into her political breech at the 1992 Democratic Political Convention and three more successive ones managing “The VIP Backstage Room” for candidates and speakers who went before the TV cameras. She discovered Samuel Tilden’s at Yale Law Library while researching another project. Tilden’s stance against high property taxes and especially his opposition to the income tax intrigued her to dig deeper. Two books published and now the screenplay completed she’s determined to find a studio to green-light the history project to create jobs in Florida and New York.    
Nikki Oldaker, was raised, educated and worked in Longboat Key and Orlando, Florida, as well as Fairfield, Branford and Milford, Connecticut. She currently resides in Clearwater with her husband, Eric. Nikki can be reached at: noldaker@tampabay.rr.com