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Traficant documentary to premiere next month at Cleveland film fest
YOUNGSTOWN
A documentary about James A. Traficant Jr., likely the Mahoning Valley’s most controversial politician of the last half century, will get its premiere next month at the Cleveland International Film Festival.
“I wrote a treatment in 2009 and started filming a little bit that year,” said Eric Murphy, the film’s director, producer, writer and editor. “But my fascination with Traficant started as a paperboy rushing to open newspaper bundles and look for Traficant on the front page.”
“Traficant: The Congressman of Crimetown” is a 90-minute documentary.
The first screening will be at 6:20 p.m. March 21 at the Akron Art Museum, 1 S. High St. in that city. It will then be shown at 4 p.m. March 22 and at 11:55 a.m. March 23 at the festival’s main location, Tower City Cinemas, 230 W. Huron Road in Cleveland.
“What better place to have the premiere than Northeast Ohio?” said Murphy, who grew up on the west side of Warren and is a Youngstown State University graduate. “Cleveland is a great film festival — one of the 10 best in the country. We’ll show it in Youngstown at some point.”
Murphy said he is putting the “finishing touches” on the film — including adding some music, graphics, sound mixing and the end credits — and it will be done in two weeks.
There are plans to enter the documentary in other film festivals, Murphy said.
“There’s so much that could be put in the film about him,” he said. “The challenge was boiling it down to 90 minutes. It’s not just Jim Traficant’s story, but Youngstown’s story during that time.”
Traficant served as Mahoning County sheriff from 1981 to 1985, leaving after he was elected to the U.S. House. He served 17 years before the House expelled him in July 2002 as a result of being convicted of 10 felonies including racketeering, bribery and tax evasion. He spent seven years in federal prison before being released in September 2009.
While in Congress, Traficant was known for his bombastic speeches, his office’s focus on helping constituents, his outrageous wardrobe and his toupee.
The film was largely done when Traficant died Sept. 27, 2014, as a result of injuries he suffered in a tractor accident.
However, Murphy chose to include Traficant’s death as part of the film. Those additional costs were covered by a successful $27,000 online Kickstarter campaign.
Traficant “had come to some peace in his life and then had this tragedy,” Murphy said. “It changes the tone of the film.”
While Traficant didn’t cooperate with the filmmaker, Murphy received a lot of assistance from Ed O’Neill, the prominent actor and Youngstown native, with the documentary.
Others interviewed in the film include filmmaker and former world champion boxer Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, YSU President and its former football coach Jim Tressel, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan and Vindicator columnist Bertram de Souza.