Cultural depictions of Abraham Lincoln

Since his death in 1865, Abraham Lincoln has been an iconic American figure depicted, usually favorably or heroically, in many forms. Lincoln has often been portrayed by Hollywood, almost always in a flattering light.[1][2]

Further information: Memorials to Abraham Lincoln
The Apotheosis of Abraham Lincoln, greeted by George Washington in heaven, who is holding a laurel wreath (an 1860s work, post-assassination)
This article is part of
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Abraham Lincoln
  • Farewell Address
President of the United States
First term
Second term
Presidential elections
Assassination and legacy

Statues
Statue of Lincoln at the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.

Statues of Abraham Lincoln can be found in other countries. In Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico, is a 13-foot (4 m) high bronze statue, a gift from the United States, dedicated in 1966 by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The U.S. received a statue of Benito Juárez in exchange, which is in Washington, D.C. Juárez and Lincoln exchanged friendly letters during the American Civil War. Mexico remembers Lincoln's opposition to the Mexican–American War. (For his part, Juárez refused to aid the Confederacy and jailed those Confederates who sought his help.) There is also a statue in Tijuana, Mexico, showing Lincoln standing and destroying the chains of slavery. There are at least three statues of Lincoln in the United Kingdom—one in Parliament Square in London by Augustus St. Gaudens, one in Manchester by George Grey Barnard and another in Edinburgh by George Bissell. There is also a bust of the President at St Andrews Church in Hingham, Norfolk, where Lincoln's ancestors lived. In Havana, Cuba, there is a bust of Abraham Lincoln in the Museum of the Revolution, a small statue of him in front of the Abraham Lincoln School, and a bust of him near the Capitolio. In Quito, Ecuador, a statue of Lincoln can be found in the Plaza Abraham Lincoln. Avenida Abraham Lincoln, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic is one of the capital city's most important and trafficked streets.

Poetry

Walt Whitman was especially fascinated by Lincoln during the Civil War and wrote several famous poems about him. Lincoln was fond of Whitman's poetry even before the war.[3]

Songs

Over 1000 pieces of music spanning every generation since his presidency have been written about Lincoln.[4]

Classical music
  • A Lincoln Portrait, by Aaron Copland, for narrator and orchestra. The subject is Lincoln's words. Contains excerpts from his 1862 annual address to Congress, the Lincoln-Douglas Debates, and the Gettysburg Address. The narrator is usually a distinguished person the orchestra wishes to honor; among them have been Bill Clinton, Al Gore, and Barack Obama.

Film, drama, and fiction

Lincoln has been portrayed in many films and television shows since 1908.[6][7]

1846

Lincoln himself wrote poetry and at least one piece of fiction loosely based upon one of the murder cases he defended as a young lawyer. In April 1846, The Quincy Whig published Lincoln's short story under the title "A Remarkable Case of Arrest for Murder". The story was republished in March 1952 by Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine and retitled "The Trailor Murder Mystery." Lincoln refers to his own unnamed character as "the defense" and "the writer of this".[8]

Late 1800s
  • In Jules Verne's 1870 novel, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, a fictitious steam frigate, the Abraham Lincoln, is sent to hunt down the "monster" that has been attacking ships at sea, and is attacked itself. Captain Nemo also has a portrait of Lincoln hanging in his study on board the Nautilus. In the sequel The Mysterious Island, the five shipwrecked Union prisoners name the island which they discover, "Lincoln Island".
  • The German writer Karl May wrote two stories about Canada Bill Jones: Ein Self-man (1878) and Three carde monte (1879).[9] The narrator meets several times with the young Abraham Lincoln and together they oppose "Kanada-Bill". Both stories have in common the first meeting of the heroes: The narrator finds Lincoln in a forest training to orate.[10]

1900–1909

1910–1919

1920–1929
Lincoln depicted on the cover of the March 1924 issue of Popular Mechanics

1930–1939

1940–1949

1950–1959

1960–1969

1970–1979

1980–1989
  • Lincoln impersonator Rex Hamilton was introduced in the opening credits of each episode of Police Squad! shooting back at John Wilkes Booth, though he would not further appear in any episodes.[12]
  • Gregory Peck portrayed Lincoln in the 1982 television movie, The Blue and the Gray.
  • In the miniseries North and South, Hal Holbrook played Lincoln (once again) in Books I and II
  • In the 1986 miniseries Dream West, Lincoln was played by F. Murray Abraham
  • The 1987 American TV series Amerika displays an America occupied by Soviet troops. Lincoln's image is displayed along Marx's and Lenin's in parades, exemplifying the re-interpretation of American symbols by the new state.
  • He appeared in the 1987 film The Garbage Pail Kids Movie inside the State Home of the Ugly for being "too skinny", along with Mohandas Gandhi for being "too bald" and Santa Claus for being "too fat."
  • In the sketch comedy series SCTV, Joe Flaherty plays a time-traveler Lincoln going to the past to chase the child John Wilkes Booth through time with a gun to prevent his assassination, repeatedly failing attempts to kill Booth. Catherine O'Hara plays Mrs. Lincoln who asks her time traveler husband where her future is to lead her. When he casually responds "in an insane asylum", she proclaims her foresight ability, responding "I knew it!"
  • Based on a novel by Gore Vidal, the 1988 telefilm Lincoln starred Sam Waterston in the title role, and Mary Tyler Moore as his wife.
  • Robert V. Barron appeared as Lincoln in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989), and in episodes of Out of This World (#2.15, 1988).
  • Appears as Joshua Speed in Parke Godwin's sci-fi novel The Snake Oil Wars.
  • Appears in a This Is America, Charlie Brown episode titled "The Smithsonian and the Presidency", with his segment focusing on the Gettysburg Address. He is voiced by Frank Welker.

1990–1999
  • The Civil War (1990) Sam Waterston played Lincoln
  • In the Red Dwarf episode "Meltdown", Lincoln (played by Jack Klaff) was featured as a Waxdroid in a theme park planet called Waxworld, where evil waxdroids and good waxdroids are fighting.
  • In the first installment of Sid Meier's Civilization (1991) Lincoln is featured as the playable leader of the Americans.
  • In Harry Turtledove's alternate history novel The Guns of the South (1992), several members of the South African white supremacist organisation Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging traveled back in time from 2014 to January 1864 and provided Confederate army general Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia with AK-47s, allowing the Confederate States of America to win the American Civil War, which became known as the Second American Revolution. Lincoln remained in Washington, D.C. even with the defeat of the U.S. Army in the face of the Confederate AK-47s at the Battle of Bealeton. Upon the arrival of the Army of Northern Virginia, Lincoln invited General Lee into the White House to negotiate an armistice, ending the war. He spent the remainder of his term attempting to negotiate favorable terms with the Confederacy in the final peace. In the 1864 election, Lincoln and incumbent Vice President Hannibal Hamlin carried twelve states (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Michigan, West Virginia, Illinois, Minnesota, Iowa, and Nevada) with 83 electoral votes. However, he was narrowly defeated by the Democratic ticket of Horatio Seymour and Clement Vallandigham, who carries ten states with 138 electoral votes. After leaving office, Lincoln toured Missouri and Kentucky, agitating tirelessly in favor of the two disputed states remaining in the Union. In the post-war plebiscites, Missouri voted to remain in the Union whereas Kentucky voted to join the Confederacy. Lincoln then returned to Illinois where he practiced law.
  • In Sid Meier's Civilization II (1996), Lincoln appears as one of the two leaders of the Americans, the other being Eleanor Roosevelt.
  • A&E Biography: "Abraham Lincoln - Preserving the Union" (1997)
  • An Abraham Lincoln robot acts as a defense attorney for African-American children Leon, Kahlil, LaShawn and Pee-Wee in Bebe's Kids (1992).
  • Lincoln appears in the Animaniacs episode "Four Score and Seven Migraines Ago" (1993), voiced by Peter Renaday. He is assisted in writing the Gettysburg Address by the Warners.
  • Lincoln appeared as an occasional guest host on Histeria!, especially in two episodes centered on the Civil War. Pepper Mills mistakes him for Lurch from The Addams Family, and one sketch shows the Civil War politics like an episode of Seinfeld, with Lincoln as Jerry and George B. McClellan as George Costanza. In another sketch, Loud Kiddington demands he explain the parts of the Gettysburg Address that he doesn't understand (such as what "four score" means). On Histeria!, Abe acts like Johnny Carson and was voiced by Maurice LaMarche.
  • In the 1993 film Coneheads, Dan Aykroyd's character dresses as Lincoln for a costume ball, as the President's stovepipe hat effectively covers his cone-shaped head.
  • Tad (1995), played by Kris Kristofferson.
  • The Speeches of Abraham Lincoln (1995)
  • In an episode of the HBO sketch comedy series Mr. Show, Abraham Lincoln is portrayed (in an openly historically inaccurate skit) as the man who designed the American flag. Tom Kenny portrayed Lincoln as speaking in a thick New York accent.
  • In Harry Turtledove's alternate history novel How Few Remain (1997), part of the Southern Victory Series, Lincoln is a viewpoint character. He serves as President for one term from 1861 to 1865, where he saw the Confederate States win their independence during the War of Succession. He loses the 1864 election in a landslide. Feeling that the Republican Party was no longer true to its original roots, Lincoln leads a left-wing fraction of Republicans into the Socialist Party in 1882 during the Second Mexican War. The Socialists soon replace the Republicans as the primary opposition to the Democrats, which Benjamin Butler lead most of the right-wing Republicans to them. Despite this, the Republican Party survives, but as a central third party. Mr. Lincoln himself is referred to in later novels in the series as the father of American socialism, as his eloquence and political influence after leaving office.
  • Talk show Late Night with Conan O'Brien started in 1993, with Dino Stamatopoulos as the original portrayer of Lincoln. In 1999, Mike Sweeney took over this role.
  • In an episode of Cartoon Network's Dexter's Laboratory, Dexter faces his rival, Mandark, using the statue of Lincoln (voiced by Frank Welker) from Mount Rushmore that he has brought to life, and fights Mandark who is using the giant animated statue of George Washington.
  • In the DC Comics Elseworld title Superman: A Nation Divided, a reimagining of Superman's origins as coming into his powers during the American Civil War, President Lincoln features heavily. He is first seen reading field reports by General Ulysses S. Grant that describe "Atticus" Kent's special abilities. Lincoln then assumes Grant has been drinking until Kent himself shows up at the White House. After Kent helps win the war, he accompanies Lincoln to the Ford Theater where he prevents John Wilkes Booth's assassination attempt. After this, Lincoln is seen to be one of the most popular presidents in history, serving two full terms.
  • In 1998, Scott McCloud wrote and drew the graphic novel The New Adventures of Abraham Lincoln, in which the president seemingly returns to life in the present day; however, it is in fact a disguised Benedict Arnold, working for aliens in a plot to conquer the world. He is unmasked by the true Lincoln, who also returns from the dead.
  • In 1998, TNT aired The Day Lincoln Was Shot, with Lance Henriksen as Abraham Lincoln and Rob Morrow as John Wilkes Booth. The film is a remake of Ford Star Jubilee: The Day Lincoln Was Shot (1956).
  • In 1998, Dann Florek played Lincoln in the short-lived comedy television series The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer
  • In 1999, a comic book story featuring The Phantom was made called Lincoln's Murder, and published in Europe and Australia.
  • In the MTV claymation television series Celebrity Deathmatch, he appears as a fighter facing off against George Washington.

2000–2009

2010–2019
An Abraham Lincoln reenactor in 2015
  • Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter (2010) is a novel by Seth Grahame-Smith, in which Lincoln makes it his life's goal to destroy all evil vampires in the United States. The film adaptation was released in July 2012.[14]
  • The Conspirator (2010) deals with the assassination of Lincoln, centering on Mary Surratt.
  • In the 2011 director's cut of Gods and Generals based on the book of same name Lincoln was played by Christian Kauffman during a few added scenes, including one where Lincoln watches Macbeth featuring John Wilkes Booth where Booth gives the "Dagger of the Mind" soliloquy while staring intently at Lincoln.
  • In the 2010-2019 TV show Adventure Time, Abraham Lincoln (voiced by Pendleton Ward) is depicted as the King of Mars in the 2007 short and in the main series episode "Sons of Mars". He is also mentioned in other episodes throughout the series.
  • Abraham Lincoln appears in the cold opening of the Batman: The Brave and the Bold episode "Mitefall", voiced again by Peter Renaday. This version of Abraham Lincoln is from Parallel Universe 5501. While watching "Our American Cousin" with Mary, he is saved from John Wilkes Booth's assassination attempt by a Multiverse-hopping Batman who considers himself a longtime admirer of Abraham Lincoln. When John Wilkes Booth activated his steam-powered armor, Abraham Lincoln helped Batman to defeat John Wilkes Booth. Afterwards, Abraham Lincoln thanked Batman and states that reconstruction of their union can go on unabated. As Mary embraces Abraham Lincoln, Batman quotes "It was an honor to fight by your side President Lincoln." As Batman opens a portal to his next destination, he adds on to his comment "of Parallel Universe 5501" as he enters the porter.
  • Lincoln, a 2012 film based upon Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Daniel Day-Lewis, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the role. The film focuses on Lincoln's determination to assure that Congress passed the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery.
  • In the Two and a Half Men episode "What a Lovely Landing Strip", Walden tells Bridget that Mary Todd was a "rebound" relationship for Lincoln.
  • Louis C.K. parodied his show Louie as Lincoln on Saturday Night Live, portraying Lincoln as a stand up comedian. (Season 38, Episode 6)
  • Portrayed by Billy Campbell in Killing Lincoln.
  • The film Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies, from The Asylum, is a mockbuster of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter where Abraham Lincoln is portrayed by Bill Oberst Jr.
  • In the music video for the comedy song "Cold Dead Hand", one of The Eels members is dressed up like Lincoln.
  • The 2013 film Saving Lincoln depicts the friendship between Lincoln and his bodyguard Ward Hill Lamon.
  • The 2013 video game BioShock Infinite features Lincoln being demonized by the Founders of Columbia for freeing the slaves. The Vox Populi even hijack Motorized Patriots and remake them in Lincoln's likeness.
  • In the video game Sid Meier's Civilization V, Lincoln is added in the expansion pack Sid Meier's Civilization V: Brave New World (2013) as the leader of the Union in the American Civil War scenario.
  • In The Lego Movie, Abraham Lincoln (voiced again by Will Forte) is one of the Master Builders. Abraham Lincoln's toy bio states that he lives in a log cabin that he built all by himself, in the middle of a forest that he built all by himself, then cut down, and then rebuilt all by himself again. Abraham Lincoln is among the Master Builders that meet in Cloud Cuckoo Land and to express his disdain towards Emmet where he commented "A house divided against itself... would be better than this!" Then he rode his rocket chair out of the "Dog" in Cloud Cuckoo Land much to the dismay of Emmet. He later joined in the battle against Lord Business and his forces in Bricksburg where his rocket chair carried Michelangelo Buonarroti and William Shakespeare. In the sequel, Lincoln was falling into the black hole during "Armamageddon" as he says that he has tickets to the theater as a reference to John Wilkes Booth assassinating him during the production of "Our American Cousin."
    • Abraham Lincoln is a playable character in The Lego Movie Videogame. He attacks by throwing the Gettysburg Address at enemies.
  • Abraham Lincoln is one of the historical figures who appeared in Mr. Peabody & Sherman, voiced by Jess Harnell. He is among the historical figures that rain down into the present due to an incident with the space-time continuum. Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Bill Clinton support Peabody's legal custody of Sherman and award Peabody a presidential pardon. When the space-time continuum is fixed, Abraham Lincoln is returned to his own time.
  • Lincoln is featured in the novel The Great Abraham Lincoln Pocket Watch Conspiracy.
  • Lincoln is featured in four episodes of Epic Rap Battles of History: "Mitt Romney vs. Barack Obama", "Chuck Norris vs Lincoln", "NicePeter vs. EpicLloyd", and "Donald Trump vs. Hillary Clinton".
  • Lincoln is featured as central character in the 2015 videogame Code Name: S.T.E.A.M., voiced by Wil Wheaton. This version of the character staged his own assassination, allowing him to disappear from the public eye and concentrate on running the S.T.E.A.M. strike force to combat the impending alien invasion.
  • Starting in 2016, author Jonathan F. Putnam has penned three historical mystery novels featuring Lincoln, and his friend Joshua Fry Speed as the protagonists.
  • Lincoln appears in the season 1 episode "The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln" of the NBC series Timeless, portrayed by Michael Krebs. In that episode, Abraham Lincoln was killed by time-traveler and former NSA asset Garcia Flynn despite Juliet Shakesman's attempt to warn him of an attempt on his life. Though she does prevent Garcia in also taking out Ulysses S. Grant who was also present.
  • The Better Angels, aka, The Green Blade Rises, produced by Terrence Malick, focused on Lincoln's upbringing, showing the events and tragedies that forged him into the man he became.
  • Lincoln is featured in the 2018 film documentary The Gettysburg Address, voiced by David Morse.
  • The Booker Prize-winning novel Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders depicts Lincoln in a state of mourning after the death of his son, Willie.

2020–present
  • Abraham Lincoln will be portrayed by Carel Nel in Grant, a miniseries airing from May 25, 2020 to May 27, 2020.
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References
  1. Steven Spielberg, Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Tony Kushner, "Mr. Lincoln Goes to Hollywood", Smithsonian (2012) 43#7 pp. 46–53.
  2. Melvyn Stokes, "Abraham Lincoln and the Movies", American Nineteenth Century History 12 (June 2011), 203–31.
  3. David S. Reynolds, Lincoln and Whitman History Now (2013) online
  4. McCall, Matt (February 15, 2016). "In music, Abraham Lincoln's image evolves for each new generation". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 27 May 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  5. Barry Schwartz, "Rereading the Gettysburg address: Social change and collective memory." Qualitative sociology 19#3 (1996): 395-422.
  6. Mark S. Reinhart, Abraham Lincoln on Screen: Fictional and Documentary Portrayals on Film and Television (McFarland, 2009).
  7. Sarah Miles Bolam; Thomas J. Bolam (2007). The Presidents on Film: A Comprehensive Filmography of Portrayals from George Washington to George W. Bush. McFarland. p. 108. ISBN 9780786424818.
  8. Lundin, Leigh (14 February 2016). "Abe Lincoln's Mystery". SleuthSayers. SleuthSayers.org.
  9. Online texts of Ein Self-man and Three carde monte (in German)
  10. Ekkehard Koch: Der »Kanada-Bill«. Variationen eines Motivs bei Karl May. In: Jahrbuch der Karl-May-Gesellschaft 1976, pp. 29–46. (in German)
  11. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031573/
  12. Berhman, John (March 9, 1985). "Escondido teacher Rex Hamilton is dead at 60". The San Diego Union. p. II-1.
  13. Scott Sharkey, "EGM's Top Ten Videogame Politicians: Election time puts us in a voting mood", Electronic Gaming Monthly 234 (November 2008): 97.
  14. Michael Cieply (May 9, 2011). "Aside From the Vampires, Lincoln Film Seeks Accuracy". New York Times.

Further reading
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