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Language
English
Description
The fourth in the series, this episode charts the story of entertainment in the 20th century. This episode sees Hollywood star Kathleen Turner examine the achievements and legacies of four of the century's greatest entertainers. The story of entertainment in the 20th century ranged from vaudeville clowns to Space Oddities, and everything in between. This was 100 years where technological developments changed the face of entertainment forever - giving...
Language
English
Description
Three guests' families have long been engaged in the battle for freedom and civil rights, but they had no idea that those principles were passed down through generations of ancestors. Ben Affleck's mother was a Freedom Rider in 1964 and her roots include the 19th-century spiritualist Almon French, who attempted to heal the bereaved masses in the aftermath of the Civil War. NAACP president Ben Jealous learns the heroic story of his great-grandfather...
3) Jack Dempsey
Language
English
Description
I can't sing; I can't dance; but I can lick every man in the place, said Jack Dempsey, and he was right. A superb boxer, the "Manassa Mauler" brought about the Golden Age of Sports in the 1920s.
4) Joe Louis
Language
English
Description
Called the "Brown Bomber," the slugging personality of Joe Louis in the ring stood in stark contrast to the kind, gentle man he was in everyday life. In his time, he represented the United States and the black population, to worldwide acclaim.
5) Babe Ruth
Language
English
Description
Babe Ruth, the home-run king, never took himself seriously - until he put on a uniform. In his 22-year career, he made baseball America's favorite sport, always with the promise of an exciting game.
Language
English
Description
These three celebrated Americans share not only a Jewish heritage but also a history of perseverance in the face of withering opposition. Tony Kushner delves into the history of the Holocaust to discover his ancestors' fate; Carole King discovers the origins of her family name and confronts the reality of the discrimination her ancestors faced once they arrived in America; and Alan Dershowitz discovers that the first Hassidic synagogue in Brooklyn,...
Language
English
Description
Trace three guests' roots into the heart of slavery, revealing that there is no singular narrative and challenging preconceptions of an era that profoundly shaped our nation's sense of itself. Hip-hop artist Nas discovers a web of his slave ancestors and their intimate relationship with their slave master; award-winning actress Angela Bassett meets ancestors whose slave family tragedy is rivaled only by a triumphant emancipation story; and presidential...
Language
English
Description
Three celebrity chefs who cook the food of their ancestors discover family members who have shaped their lives - and America's cuisine. Tom Colicchio of "Top Chef" learns the hardships his family endured (famine, bandits) living in a tiny town in Northern Italy and celebrates the courage of his original immigrant ancestor, a man who crossed the Atlantic many times to bring the Colicchios to the United States; Ming Tsai, the child of immigrants who...
Language
English
Description
Three iconic American storytellers have spent their lives chronicling the lives of others, while knowing almost nothing about their own family history. Ken Burns confronts the reality of his southern ancestors' role in the Civil War, including Confederate soldiers held captive and a slave-owning Virginian. Anderson Cooper, scion of one of America's most storied families, the Vanderbilts, longs to know more about his father's southern roots - including...
Language
English
Description
Sally Field discovers that she descends from William Bradford, who arrived on the Mayflower and helped his fellow English Puritans establish their new lives in colonial America and later discovers that her ancestors sided with the British crown during our nation's War of Independence and paid the ultimate price. Deepak Chopra's family made a similar gamble while living under harsh British colonial rule in India, where his grandparents pledged their...