But as we got older, many of us learned that the story of Martin Luther King, Jr.was a bit more complicated than that. The FBI harassment and King’s infidelity to his wife, the tragically beautiful Coretta Scott King, tarnished the image we’d all held onto since elementary school. America’s original icon for change was actually a complex person with concrete fears, anxieties, and, yes, flaws.

And now that Steven Spielberg has finally gotten the green light from the King children to produce and possibly direct a biopic about MLK, Jr., how much light will this ambitious project really shed on such a familiar man and icon?

We watched Mr. Spielberg tell the great untold story of a nineteenth-century slave ship in Amistad. Saving Private Ryan tugged at the old heartstrings and grabbed five Oscars. Obviously, Spielberg loves a good, heart-wrenching story and few stories are more bittersweet than that of Dr. King.

But despite his ability to create such monumental films, how will Steven Spielberg portray Martin Luther King, Jr.? No matter what he does, there will be complaints. A saintly portrayal of King will be condemned as being sugar-coated and weak, but really delving into the ugly stuff will make it seem disrespectful. The King children won’t be any help, either. They have been notoriously controlling when it comes to their father’s life rights, even suing USA Today and CBS for using the “I Have A Dream” speech without paying.

It was a tough battle for Dreamworks to get the go-ahead for the biopic, but even now, siblings Bernice and Martin are not happy. Ideally, the children wouldn’t have any say over their famous father’s Hollywood treatment, but Dreamworks doesn’t want to make a movie that all three children don’t approve of. And while we all know Spielberg can do warm and fuzzy (think E.T.), it’s the more shocking stuff, like the combat scenes in Saving Private Ryan, that he does best. We know he’s not afraid to get into the grittier stuff, so how gritty is he willing to get with such an iconic historical figure?

And then there’s the question of who will take on the role of King. The movie is still very much in the beginning stages, but Denzel Washington, Jamie Foxx and Will Smith are already shortlisted. It’s easy to see why, but none of them would work, as their past work and images would follow them into this role. Denzel Washington is too old (while he’s still handsome, King was assassinated at age 39). Besides, the irony of the man who played Malcolm X then playing King, X’s perceived ideological opposite, is a tough one to swallow. Smith is known, at best, for his fine portrayal of Muhammad Ali and, at worse, for bombs like Wild, Wild West. Jamie Foxx, on the other hand, seems to work best in biopics, but doesn’t have the thespian persona to carry King. The good folks at Dreamworks are too smart to gamble such a huge project on a nobody actor, so the role will probably fall to one of the go-to serious black actors, Washington, Smith or Foxx. Yawn.

Even if the actor nails his role, there will most likely still be questions about who, exactly, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was. And that’s the problem with any biopic; a complicated human being, especially one working in something so much bigger than himself, is very difficult to capture in two and a half hours.

I am worried about the final product of a movie like this. With so many opportunities for it to go wrong, I wonder if Spielberg can make it right. I guess at the end of the day the most important thing the movie can do is get us interested enough to learn more about King through biographies, documentaries, and speech transcripts and to keep King’s story alive and in our minds year round, instead of just on the 3rd Monday in January every year.

On one hand, I’m undeniably an Obama supporter—even if I don’t have a graphic tee with his face emblazoned on it like most of my friends do. I read Dreams from my Father, voted for him (twice), and watched the election results breathlessly last year while furiously checking FiveThirtyEight every ten seconds. I love his eloquence, his poise, and everything he represents: the return of intellectualism to the White House and the possibility of improved race relations across the country. Plus, he graduated from my alma mater, even if he hates talking about it. And his wife is pretty kickass.

On the other hand… when I saw this SNL sketch last week, I couldn’t laugh because I was too busy cringing. I agree with most of the points that the Saturday Night Live crew is making: Obama’s rhetoric has rarely been matched by decisive action. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are still dragging on, healthcare is still a mess, and the recession hasn’t exactly ended, despite what some media outlets are saying. (Also, the sketch itself was just horrifically unfunny. SNL kind of blows this season… but I digress.)

Other Nobel Peace Prize laureates—Martin Luther King, Jr., Mother Teresa, even Al Gore—achieved specific things that unarguably changed the world for the better before they got their awards. Obama, though, is almost more of a symbol than an actual agent of change—at least so far. If nothing else, this award seems incredibly premature. Why not wait until he’s at least been president for an entire term, after he’s actually had enough time to make good on his promises?

I’m also hesitant about congratulating Obama because this honor can only fuel the awful, hateful things that his enemies say about him. Republican pundits are already snidely responding to the award by calling it a “joke,” and I’m sure that crazy, right-wing internet commentators everywhere are also having a field day with it. The Nobel Committee has accidentally done something that will only widen the political gulf between red and blue by increasing the opposition to Obama, which will make it even more difficult for him to actually achieve any of his goals.

I wish I could be proud of my president right now, but there are just too many problems that come along with him getting the Peace Prize. At least I can count on him delivering a beautiful acceptance speech.

What do you think—does Obama deserve the Nobel?

At least Scotland has the Edinburgh Festival; here in the States, August is the month where summer days go to die, and when poor little children have to put down their toys and go back to school.

BUT, I’m here to tell you it doesn’t have to be all bad; we’re just going to make the best of it. And it’s really not hard. There’s lots goin’ on in August.  Like cheese? It’s National Goat Cheese Month. Wanna be like Tiger Woods? National Golf Month. Starting your own business? Home Business Month and National Inventors Month. August doesn’t have to be all bad.

Aug 1- MTV Debuted
On this day in 1981, music videos found their home on the instantly-popular, new music channel: MTV. As you know, they’ve expanded now to not only include music (or, should I say, not include music at all), but reality shows as well. Get your 15 seconds (or an entire season) of fame by being on the Real World, which is casting right now! Or if the 24/7 camera-in-the-face non-stop-drama lifestyle doesn’t appeal to you, then apply for Made or True Life, both of which have considerably less screaming and flashing.

Aug 2 – National Ice Cream Sandwich Day
Ok, these may not be in sandwich form, but custom-made, mix-your-own ice cream?! I SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM.

Aug 12- Middle Children’s Day (who knew it existed? And does this mean us middle kids can finally get the love and attention we deserve?!)
Aug 13- International Left-Handers Day

Aug 15 - International Homeless Animals Day
Observed on the third Saturday of August every year, this day promotes the safety and well-being of animals, which you can be a part of by attending a vigil, or simply lighting a candle. Or, if you’re really feeling charitable, you can head to a local shelter and bring a puppy home! Those are allowed in the dorms, right?

Aug 19- Bill Clinton‘s birthday
Aug 21- Ramadan begins
Aug 22- Be An Angel Day (Do what you will with this one…)
Aug 24- Strange Music Day
Aug 26- National Dog Day
Aug 27- Mother Teresa’s birthday

Aug 28- Dream Day
Martin Luther King Jr. gave the “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963 and inspired the world to follow his example. Dare to dream.

Aug 31- National Trail Mix Day
Just like ice cream- mix your own at YouBar!

Of course, there is also the whole back to school thing, and while studying doesn’t sound like fun, Welcome Week does!