Nicolae Ceausescu: The Unrepentant Tyrant

• Documentary

Episode overview

For 24 years, he ruled his country with an iron hand. But the waves of freedom that swept Europe in 1989 cost him his life. Nicolae Ceausescu will be remembered as much for his sudden death as his long tenure as dictator of Rumania. Through extensive archival footage and interviews with those who served him, Biography chronicles the rise and fall of the man who was utterly consumed with a desire to be the best. See how, together with his wife, he fashioned an image of perfection for himself--and how he eliminated any who dared challenge it. Former communist activists share their memories of the young man who would become a despot, while Richard Nixon (in an interview conducted shortly before his death) talks about his dealings with the inflexible leader. And relive the events that finally toppled his regime and turned the people against him. From his childhood in rural Rumania to his execution by firing squad, this is the story of one of the most infamous tyrants of the 20th century.

60 minutes