The Life of Huey P. Long

The Life of Huey P. Long

In Robert Penn Warren's novel All the King's Men, there are many similarities between the fictional character Willie Stark and the 1928 to 1932 governor of Louisiana Huey Long. In order to cast for the character of Willie Stark for a production, one must first understand the complex man Huey Long such as his journey through life, political career, the impacts of his career after his death.

In 1893, in the impoverished Winn parish in north Louisiana, Huey Pierce Long was born. North Louisiana was a breeding ground of economic and political nonconformist at this time. Long's journey through life seemed almost tailor-made for a politician. Long was born to a land owning middle-class family inside a log cabin. His father, a farmer, worked hard to provide for the family. Long's father worked long enough and hard enough to send six of his nine children to college--long was not one of those. As a child, Huey Long showed an interest in education and learning. Long loved to read books. In the book Huey Long by Harry Williams, Williams states that due to Long's photographic memory, Long was able to "[memorize] large sections of [text]." Not only did Long have the exceptional ability to store large amounts of text to his mind simply be reading, but more remarkably, Long retained the information and "carried their import with him all his life" Long's favorite genre of novels were those dealing with leadership and power. Since Long's interest in education shaped him as a person, it would be important to take this into accord when casting for Willie Stark. One of the casting director's main priority should be to cast the role accordingly so that Huey Long's thirst for knowledge is shown through on the screen through Willie Stark. Surprisingly, Huey Long did not receive much formal education. During his childhood he attended a meager elementary school. During his enrollment there he found more value in teaching himself. Huey Long's practice of self-education became his main source of knowledge. He attended Oklahoma University Law School for one term, then transferred to Tulane University. In merely eight months Long completed the law program at Tulane University, becoming a lawyer at 21.

"The years between his graduation and his becoming a member of the Louisiana bar at twenty-one tested to the limit of [Long's] extraordinary physical energy and driving mental discipline. (Carter 4)" Long's political career got started soon after he got married and started selling "Cottolene", a cooking agent, in order to support his family. By traveling door to door, Long became a recognizable face and made many friends. These friends soon became the core of his political organization. In concurrence of his dream, Long sought after the only political seat opened to someone of his tender age of 24--state railroad commerissionership. He won. From 1925 to 1928 Long "kept himself in the headlines and built up a large and lucrative practice as an attorney. (Carter