Aaron Sorkin

The story behind the massive social networking site Facebook gets the big-screen treatment with this Columbia Pictures production scripted by The West Wing's Aaron Sorkin. The film will focus on Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg's ladder to the top after creating one of the biggest Internet sensations. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide

You've seen Hollywood's version of this remarkable tale, now take the opportunity to look behind the scenes and find out how boisterous Texas congressman Charlie Wilson and aggressive CIA operative Gust Avrakotos (aka "Dr. Dirty") really armed the Afghan Mujahideen in the most expansive campaign in CIA history. The effects of Wilson and Avrakotos' efforts are still being felt around the globe nearly two decades after the fact, making their story as relevant in the new millennium as it was when they first began plotting together back in the 1980s. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

One of the two NBC series debuting in the fall of 2006 which took place backstage at a Saturday Night Live-style comedy show (the other was 30 Rock), Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip was the brainchild of The West Wing's Aaron Sorkin. This weekly, hour-long dramedy concerned itself with the million-and-one intrigues behind the hallowed walls of the fictional "NBS" network, where ambitious new president Jordan McDeere (Amanda Peet) was determined to pump fresh blood into the network's anemic Prime Time schedule. Over the objections of imperious NBS chairman Jack Rudolph (Steve Weber), McDeere rehired writer Matt Albie (Matthew Perry) and director Danny Tripp (Bradley Whitford), who had been fired from the staff of the network's weekly ensemble-comedy offering "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" two years before. It was hoped that Albie and Danny could save the flagging property from cancellation, a formidable task in that "Studio 60" was already collapsing from within thanks to a surfeit of egotism and ill-will. For head writer Matt Albie, the challenge was doubly difficult: it so happened that "Studio 60"'s star Harriet Hayes (Sarah Paulson) was his former lover. Fortunately, Matt and Cal worked together so harmoniously that it would seem that Jordan McDeere's strategy for rescuing her network from oblivion was sheer brilliance. . .maybe. Other regulars included D.L.. Hughley and Nathan Corddry, respectively, as popular "Studio 60" cast members Simon Styles and Tom Jeter. Filled to overflowing with smart-and-savvy inside references to the state of network TV in the first decade of the 21st century (many of the "jokes" were at the expense of the series' host network NBC), Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip premiered September 18, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A crisis arises over Vice President Hoynes' (Tim Matheson) place on Bartlet's re-election ticket. Later on, Hoynes shows up at the same meeting as Leo (John Spencer) -- but it isn't a political meeting. In other developments, the staff ponders the likelihood of terrorist activity in Idaho; Donna (Janel Moloney) encounters difficult securing a Presidential Proclamation for her favorite teacher; and the tax debate hits home for President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) and his aide Charlie (Dulé Hill). This episode was based on a story by former Clinton advisor Dee Dee Myers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Josh (Bradley Whitford) is embarrassed to no end by a worshipful website dedicated to him. Toby (Richard Schiff) cannot wait to meet new U.S. Poet Laureate Tabatha Fortis (Laura Dern), who unfortunately has several choice non-rhyming words to say about American policy. The national press has a field day with President Barlet's (Martin Sheen) comment about his opponent ("a .22-caliber mind in a .457-magnum world"). And after running interference for the president, Republican staffer Ainsley Hayes (Emily Procter) is rewarded. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

On the eve of her birthday party, First Lady Abbey Bartlet (Stockard Channing) runs afoul of the medical board vis-à-vis her controversial treatment of Jed's (Martin Sheen) multiple sclerosis. Elsewhere, Sam (Rob Lowe) must deal with prickly Senator Enlow (Robin Thomas) over the issue of a controversial superconductor. British ambassador Lord Marbury (Roger Rees) protests the administration's decision to invite an IRA terrorist to the White House. And Donna (Janel Moloney) loses her security clearance...because, technically, she is not an American citizen. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Josh (Bradley Whitford) expects Donna (Janel Moloney) to perform some "retail politics" to help President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) win the all-important New Hampshire primary, which this year is being held in the tiny community of Hartsfield's Landing. Meanwhile, Bartlet divides his time between a war of intellects with Sam (Rob Lowe) and Toby (Richard Schiff) in a chess game and a more serious war of nerves and diplomacy involving China's outrage over the testing of U.S.-built patriot missiles in Taiwan. And on a lighter note, C.J. (Allison Janney) and Charlie (Dulé Hill) challenge one another to a duel of practical jokery. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

On the night that President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) is to deliver the State of the Union Address, the staff wrestles with the problem of Bartlet's (Martin Sheen) congressional censure. Also at issue is the anti-cancer initiative which the president may or may not include in his speech. Before the night is over, several other mini-dramas have played themselves out, including a conflict between Sam (Rob Lowe) and his ex-fiancée -- and current Vanity Fair correspondent -- Lisa Sherbourne (Traylor Howard), and the ongoing romantic tribulations between Josh (Bradley Whitford) and lobbyist Amy Gardner (Mary-Louise Parker). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Lily Tomlin makes her first appearance as President Bartlet's new secretary, Debbie Fiderer, in this final episode of The West Wing's third season. Debbie arrives amidst a great deal of tumult and tension, as Bartlet (Martin Sheen) weighs the option of assassinating Qumar's terrorist defense minister. Elsewhere, Sam (Rob Lowe) and Toby (Richard Schiff) settle scores with Bartlet's political opponent Ritchie (James Brolin); Josh (Bradley Whitford) and Amy (Mary-Louise Parker) cannot overcome their ideological differences; and the would-be killer who is stalking C.J. (Allison Janney) finally shows his hand. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

During the investigation of the MS "coverup," Donna (Janel Moloney) is questioned by Republican counsel Clifford Calley (Mark Feuerstein), whom she has been dating -- and to whom she tells deliberate lies. In the wake of a fatal church shooting in Texas, President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) squares off against Vice President Hoynes (Tim Matheson) on the issue of gun control. Leo (John Spencer), likewise, has a confrontation with an old friend, Air Force General Adamley (Gerald McRaney), over details of an international war-crimes tribunal. Foreign correspondent Will Sawyer (Michael O'Keefe) gets wind of an embarrassing statement made by Toby Ziegler (Richard Schiff). And Sam (Rob Lowe) is whimsically sidetracked by an effort to abolish the penny. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) finds himself in another rock-and-a-hard-place crisis when an American spy submarine goes silent in North Korean waters. How, he wonders, can the U.S. mount a search and/or rescue mission without alerting the Korean authorities? Complicating matters is the presence of curmudgeonly, advice-dispensing Assistant Secretary of State Albie Duncan (Hal Holbrook). In other developments, Abbey's (Stockard Channing) previous malpractice suits may hurt her husband in the ongoing MS cover-up investigation. Toby (Richard Schiff) butts heads with an Appropriations Committee representative over the issue of funding avant-garde artists. And C.J. (Allison Janney) finally has something to be happy about vis-à-vis the re-election campaign. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

C.J. (Allison Janney) passionately objects to an arms-sale deal to build an airstrip in the Persian Gulf state of Qumar, where women are subjected to deplorable treatment. President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) tangles with feminist lobbyist Amy Gardner (Mary-Louise Parker, in her first series appearance) over the wording of a treaty addressing the issue of prostitution. Toby (Richard Schiff) tries to mollify a group of veterans who are angry over the Smithsonian's Pearl Harbor exhibition. Sam (Rob Lowe) ponders the possibility of a national seatbelt law. And casting a sinister shadow over all these events is the likelihood of a mad cow disease outbreak. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

It is two days before Christmas, and all through the White House, no one is sleeping, not even....Well, to get down to business: Leo (John Spencer) engages the very expensive services of lawyer Jordon Kendall (Joanna Gleason) in preparation for his testimony before the committee investigating Bartlet's (Martin Sheen) failure to disclose his MS. During the hearings, it becomes obvious that Leo is the specific target of a ruthlessly ambitious congressman. Elsewhere, the FBI joins forces with the White House staff to investigate warnings that several black churches will be firebombed on Christmas Eve. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide