EXCLUSIVE: The story of former First Daughter Alice Roosevelt Longworth, a socialite, a writer and a force in 20th Century American politics, will be the subject of a half-hour comedy series in development at HBO Max.
Based on the book Alice: Alice Roosevelt Longworth from White House Princess to Washington Power Broker by Stacy A. Cordery, the project comes from the Santa Clarita Diet team of writer-producer Victor Fresco, Tracy Katsky’s KatCo and Aaron Kaplan Kapital Entertainment.
Co-written by Fresco and Alexandra Petri, a Washington Post columnist, Alice kicks off in 1901.
Teddy Roosevelt is suddenly thrust into the presidency, bringing his seventeen-year-old daughter into the spotlight. The country has never seen anyone like Alice Roosevelt in the White House: a whip-smart, out-of-control teenager who races cars, parties unchaperoned with boys, and dares to speak her mind. Teddy’s at wits’ end, “I can be Alice’s father, or I can be president of the United States. I cannot do both.” But the country loves her.
Dubbed “Princess Alice,” she becomes America’s first female celebrity. She will hold that spotlight for seven more decades. This true story series follows Alice as she grows from rebellious teenager to “Washington’s other monument”— a power broker with a deadly wit capable of making or breaking careers with a single quip.
Fresco executive produces alongside Katsky of KatCo and Kaplan and Melanie Frankel of Kapital. Petri serves as co-executive producer. Frankel and Jessie Abbott oversee for Kapital.
Comedy veteran Fresco most recently created and executive produced KatCo/Kapital’s horror comedy series Santa Clarita Diet, starring Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant, which ran on Netflix for two seasons. He is repped by Untitled Entertainment and attorney Jared Levine. Petri is repped by Sugar23 and Neon Literary.