Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
HBO, May 27, 2007
Lee Tergesen plays Daniel Royer in this HBO
movie, which was filmed in Calgary, Alberta, Canada in
October-November 2006.
Daniel Royer was the U.S. government's Bureau
of Indian Affairs agent for the Pine Ridge reservation of Lakota
Sioux. He called for military backup to protect against an Indian
uprising in 1890 that resulted in the Wounded
Knee Massacre.
Lee's part is small -- he has about two minutes of screen time in the
2.25-hour telefilm, which is an adaptation of author Dee
Brown's Pulitzer Prize-winning book from 1970, "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West."
The dramatization starts with Sioux victory
over General Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn and ends with
the Wounded Knee Massacre. Along the way, it intertwines the perspectives of three
main characters:
-
Charles Eastman (played by Adam Beach), a Dartmouth-educated, Sioux doctor held up as living proof of the alleged success of
assimilation. His wife is played by Anna Paquin.
-
Sitting Bull (August Schellenberg), the Lakota chief who refuses to submit to U.S. government policies designed to strip his people of their
identity, their dignity and their land.
-
Senator Henry Dawes (Aidan Quinn), who was one of the architects of the government policy on Indian affairs.
Lee's
"Oz" co-star J.K. Simmons plays James McLauglin, the agent
in charge of the Standing Rock reservation. "Law & Order" executive producer
Dick Wolf is one of the executive producers behind this HBO telefilm.
Lee first appears about an hour into the
production, welcoming Charles Eastman to the Pine Ridge reservation.
He then has a couple of scenes where he is merely "at the
table" as Sen. Dawes tries to make a deal with the
Indians.
Lee's second speaking scene is a brief
confrontation with Eastman about the threat of an Indian uprising.
Shortly thereafter, the events are put in motion that result in the
Wounded Knee Massacre. Lee's character is seen briefly, dazed amidst
the carnage.
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