L ong overshadowed by footnote four, footnote three of the Carolene Products case may soon get his due, with a new fall docudrama on HBO chronicling his long struggle with alcoholism and drug abuse, which began shortly after release of the case. “I’m finally ready ready for prime time now,” footnote three said in a prepared statement. “I’m a fighter.”
Though footnote four has received extensive scholarly discussion and analysis since the U.S. Supreme Court released Carolene Products in 1938, HBO publicists say that footnote three’s story “is no less riveting and compelling.”
“Here was an important footnote about filled milk, whole milk, and butterfat,” explained Arlen K. Spriggins, one of the producers of the four-hour docudrama. “Something to be proud of, tell your kids about. But then ‘WHAM,’ footnote four comes along and steals all the thunder. Footnote three barely survived over the years, at one point pawning himself off to less ambitious legal decisions, even some from Albania.”
Footnote three, though, says he’s not bitter. “I’m wiser, have a good life now, even drink milk now and then. It’s all good. Just wait for the fall. My story will finally be there for all to see.”
