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Wacky Claim: ‘How a 1993 Craig T. Nelson TV Movie Predicted the Climate Debate’

Back then, CBS went the extra mile on climate change, depicting a family (headed by Bonnie Bedelia and Craig T. Nelson) struggling in a world with widespread drought, floods and hurricanes. “The Fire Next Time” is now available on DVD and well worth watching as we segue into what will surely be the trying times of 2016, and especially now as headlines about the current COP21 meeting play out worldwide.

In the movie, the main characters even watch a televised interview with a scientist that is remarkably prescient:

Host: ”Hurricane Rachel, which has devastated Southern Louisiana, Mississippi, and the coastline of Alabama, has once again focused attention on the global pattern caused by the greenhouse effect. Dr. Schneider?”

Schneider: ”Even though some people still won’t admit it, the effects of global warming have been with us for a long time. . . Had the global community taken concerted action 25 years ago, much of this might have been mitigated.”

It’s hard to imagine that despite this TV movie having aired in 1993, the Hollywood film and TV industry has more or less ignored the pressing climate change themes that we faced then — and even more so now.

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