Before reality tv, before Jerry Springer, there was the 70s movie Network…

A respected anchorman, Howard Beal, gets fired then goes on the air angry, cursing and threatening suicide. The ratings skyrocket.

So, the network reverses its opinion and hires him to be an angry prophet. They want him to be as scandalous as possible this time. Unfortunately, Beal’s not scandalous enough so writers are hired to make his anger more “real.”

The same network also hires domestic terrorists to have a weekly show where they showcase the footage of their latest bank robbery. The zeal from the good ratings from Beal’s initial outburst overtakes the company and nothing is sacred any longer.

If you’ve ever wondered where the catch phrase, “I’m mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it anymore!” came from, this is the flick. Beale, Dunaway, and Straight all won Oscars for their performances and the movie was named one of the American Film Institute’s Top 100 films.