Howard Beale in Network

E307537

fictional character television news anchor

Howard Beale in *Network* is the fictional, mentally unraveling television news anchor famous for his on-air rant declaring, "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!"

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All labels observed (5)

Label	Occurrences
Howard Beale	10
Howard Beale in Network canonical	2
Howard Beale / the mad prophet of the airwaves	1
Howard Beale – Peter Finch	1
Peter Finch as Howard Beale	1

How this entity was disambiguated

This entity first appeared as the object of triple T2892136 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.

NED1 Entity disambiguation (via context triple) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Howard Beale in Network
Context triple: [Peter Finch, role, Howard Beale in Network]

A. Don Traeger
Don Traeger is a video game industry figure best known as a co-founder of the game development studio Treyarch.
B. Travis Bickle
Travis Bickle is the mentally unstable, alienated Vietnam War veteran who becomes a vigilante in Martin Scorsese’s film "Taxi Driver."
C. Archie Bunker
Archie Bunker is a fictional working-class, conservative New Yorker known for his bigoted yet often humorous views on social and political issues in the classic American sitcom "All in the Family."
D. Craig Michael Brockman
Craig Michael Brockman is a songwriter best known for co-writing Christina Aguilera’s hit single "Dirrty."
E. Paul Benedict
Paul Benedict was an American character actor best known for his comedic roles on television and in film, including his portrayal of the eccentric English neighbor Harry Bentley on the sitcom "The Jeffersons."
F. None of above. chosen
G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.

NED2 Entity disambiguation (via description) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Howard Beale in Network
Target entity description: Howard Beale in *Network* is the fictional, mentally unraveling television news anchor famous for his on-air rant declaring, "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!"

A. Don Traeger
Don Traeger is a video game industry figure best known as a co-founder of the game development studio Treyarch.
B. Travis Bickle
Travis Bickle is the mentally unstable, alienated Vietnam War veteran who becomes a vigilante in Martin Scorsese’s film "Taxi Driver."
C. Archie Bunker
Archie Bunker is a fictional working-class, conservative New Yorker known for his bigoted yet often humorous views on social and political issues in the classic American sitcom "All in the Family."
D. Craig Michael Brockman
Craig Michael Brockman is a songwriter best known for co-writing Christina Aguilera’s hit single "Dirrty."
E. Paul Benedict
Paul Benedict was an American character actor best known for his comedic roles on television and in film, including his portrayal of the eccentric English neighbor Harry Bentley on the sitcom "The Jeffersons."
F. None of above. chosen

Statements (47)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	fictional character ⓘ television news anchor ⓘ
appearsIn	1976 film Network ⓘ linked to: screenplay "Network" Network ⓘ
awardAssociation	Peter Finch Academy Award for Best Actor ⓘ
catchphrase	"I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!" ⓘ
characterIn	satirical drama about television news ⓘ
creator	Paddy Chayefsky ⓘ
culturalImpact	iconic representation of public anger in popular culture ⓘ symbol of media-driven outrage ⓘ
deathCause	assassination on live TV ⓘ
employerInStory	UBS network ⓘ
famousFor	"I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!" speech ⓘ breaking the fourth wall with television audience ⓘ on-air rants ⓘ
fictionalUniverse	Network universe ⓘ
firstAppearance	Network (1976 film) ⓘ
friendOf	Max Schumacher ⓘ
gender	male ⓘ
genreContext	drama ⓘ satire ⓘ
interactsWith	Diana Christensen ⓘ Frank Hackett ⓘ
killedBy	hired assassins on live television ⓘ
languageSpoken	English ⓘ
medium	film ⓘ
mediumOfBroadcast	television ⓘ
mentalState	emotionally distressed ⓘ mentally unstable ⓘ
narrativeRole	protagonist ⓘ tragic figure ⓘ
nationality	American ⓘ
nickname	the mad prophet of the airwaves ⓘ
notableScene	being presented as "the mad prophet of the airwaves" ⓘ live on-air breakdown announcing his firing ⓘ urging viewers to shout out of their windows ⓘ
occupation	news anchor ⓘ television journalist ⓘ
portrayedBy	Peter Finch ⓘ
setting	New York City television newsroom ⓘ
themeAssociatedWith	corporate control of television ⓘ exploitation of mental illness for ratings ⓘ media sensationalism ⓘ public anger and disillusionment ⓘ
timePeriod	1970s ⓘ
worksFor	UBS ⓘ UBS Evening News ⓘ

How these facts were elicited