I stumbled across this film last week when I was curious to see if anyone had ever played James Madison in a starring cinematic role. The description of the plot reads: “Ginger Rogers is the daughter of boardinghouse owners in Washington, DC who falls in love with Aaron Burr and James Madison.”

There is so much wrong with that sentence. They met in Philadelphia, and Burr actually introduced Dolley to his friend James — there was no rivalry. So the whole premise of the movie is a fabrication. But, Ginger Rogers!

Anyway, after seeing two short clips on youtube, I knew I had to see this ridiculous movie in full. I managed to find a DVD on ebay for a mere $6, and it’s on its way to me now. What was most tempting to me was this hilarious scene with Hamilton and Burr:

Alexander Hamilton, played by someone named Arthur Space, looks and speaks like an undertaker here. In reality, he was always fashionably attired and well-mannered, and never would have just stated out loud his political goals to Aaron Burr’s face. Also, the gentlemen would have addressed him properly as General Hamilton. But I digress.

Madison is played by Burgess Meredith, who if you can believe it, was still a bit too tall to play the 5′ 4″ James. I can’t wait to see this thing. The anachronisms and inaccuracies will no doubt be extensive and greatly amusing. I only wish I could watch with some other fellow history nerds. I am sure no one else I know locally will “get it.”

In my browsing I learned that among many others, James Madison has also been portrayed onscreen (usually TV) by Rob Lowe (HA!), Randy Travis, Warren Buffet (??), and Rachel Dratch.