By Dan Szczesny
HippoPress.com

Despite never holding office in New Hampshire, few figures are more synonymous with Granite State politics than that of former Union Leader publisher William Loeb. Even 20 years after his death, in the minds of some Loeb’s grip on conservative ideology in the state has barely loosened in the minds of some.

To most, Bill Loeb was one of two highly contradictory characters - either a power-driven demagogue or a kind-hearted family man. But few would dare to refer to him - or even remember him - as simply being human.

On March 1, Manchester residents may for the first time be introduced to Bill Loeb, human, as Accompany Films presents “Powerful as Truth: William Loeb and 35 Years of New Hampshire,” a documentary by John Gfroerer. The free one-hour film will premiere at 7 p.m. in the Manchester Public Library.

Loeb served as The Union Leader’s hard-as-nails publisher from the late 1940s through the early 80s and was well known, and in some cases feared, for his scathing editorials.

HippoPress was granted a sneak peek of the film last week, as Gfroerer prepared the final edit for showing.

“This film is not a sympathetic look at the man, but a balanced look,” he said. “We tied to present him not as a demon or as a saint, but as a real human being.”

The film is shot in documentary fashion similar to A&E’s “Biography” show, with news clips and historical photos accompanying interviews with historians and friends. One fascinating series of black and white photos shows Bill Loeb and Nackey Scripps (who would later become his wife and succeed him as publisher of the UL) on vacation in the front seat of a convertible in the early 1950s.

One focus of the film is Loeb’s political efforts on behalf of, and against, some of the state’s most prominent public officials. The late Governor William Powell’s son, Peter, donated archival footage to Gfroerer, some never seen before.

Loeb was one of Powell’s allies through the governor’s three terms in office, until Powell refused to take Loeb’s advice to appoint Sen. Styles Bridges’ widow to the Senate after the senator passed away in office. Loeb turned on Powell in the editorial pages of the Union Leader and the governor lost reelection.

Though not as powerful as it was during Loeb’s time, Gfroerer said The Union Leader still holds great sway over the course of New Hampshire politics, due mainly to Loeb’s legacy.

Gfroerer, whose company has produced several biographies and tourist films, said that filming a documentary on Loeb made sense.

“If you want to look at the political history of New Hampshire, there is no better character than William Loeb,” he said.

Gfroerer began the film in 1999 after receiving a grant from the Humanities Council. He gained access to rare archival footage and the Loeb family’s photos and archives. The film is narrated by NHPR’s Lisa Peakes, said Gfroerer.

The only other biographical look at Loeb is the book “Who the Hell is William Loeb?,” written in the mid-seventies by former Union Leader employee Kevin Cash.

The book is a highly unflattering look at the publisher, and Gfroerer called it “useless.”

“It’s full of creative history and factual errors,” he said.

Gfroerer said that with no index or footnotes, the book was rarely used for reasearch of the film.

The Manchester City Library is located at 405 Pine Street. The film will be shown again on Friday, March 9 at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord. The show time for both films is 7 p.m. The showings are free, though reservations are required. Call 226-3130 to reserve seats.