of got the sense that he went away, when, of course, he didn t, he just sort of went into the background as an actor. but that s exactly what he was. he was a background player, would lob in a few funny lines, background player on screens, but behind the scenes, he was a driving force. and i didn t appreciate harold ramis enough. i count myself with the masses who read these obits and appreciations today and thought, oh, my goodness, the level of the quality of these films, the lasting quality of these wonderful comedies, he was sensational. the laughter to tears in some cases. ben makeowitz, turner classic movies host, thank you so much. and a quick reminder to all of you, turn in thursday night when cnn films brings you, and the oscar goes to, airs thursday night, 9:00 eastern right here on cnn. right now, states are racing to be the first to prosecute el chopo, the drug kingpin locked up in mexico. and while we wait to see if and when he s coming to the u.s., we
amendment ending slavery. the current congressman wrote that placesing the state of connecticut on the wrong side of the fight over slavery is verifiable facts. agreed said turner classic movies host. i think if the movie is a movie about the passage of the 13th amendment or it s a movie about whether we re going to torture people in the united states of america, you bet. their feet should be held to the fire. reporter: oscar celebrated dozens of films based on true stories and imagined characters and dialogue and whole scenes. from patton to a beautiful mind to the king s speech there s historical dramas, not documentaries. that does worry historians. as a teacher i find what students know or think they know often comes from movies. you have to disabuse them and give them a broader context of