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Season 6

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Season 10

Season 11

Season 12

Season 13

Season 14

  • S14E01 Hitchcock, Selznick and the End of Hollywood

    • November 1, 1999
    • PBS

    A chronicle of the clash between two film-making legends when they tried to work together in the 1940s.

  • S14E02 Norman Rockwell: Painting America

    • November 24, 1999
    • PBS

    A presentation of the award-winning PBS series American Masters, Norman Rockwell: Painting America etches a warm and indelible portrait of one of America's most beloved artists. Insightful commentary by art experts and historians enhances one's appreciation of Rockwell's deceptively simple work. To look at Rockwell's paintings, one observer notes, is to enter "a mythical land of childhood innocence and exuberance." Director Steven Spielberg, who paid homage to a Rockwell tableau in his film Empire of the Sun, adds, "He dealt with every touchstone in life and made a meal out of it.... He captured us in the blink of an artistic eye." Norman Rockwell: Painting America traces the artist's life and career. One might be surprised, for example, that Rockwell was not born and raised in a small town but in cosmopolitan New York City. We also get a privileged look inside Rockwell's studio for a glimpse into how he created his masterworks. One of his daughters relates an anecdote with the same impish smile her father so wonderfully captured in a famous painting depicting a disheveled schoolgirl sitting outside the principal's office, the victor in a playground tussle with a boy. Rockwell's paintings captured the way we were and how we should be. His legacy and spirit can be seen, for example, in Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life. "He told us we were good," one historian states. Seen in a Person to Person broadcast with host Edward R. Murrow, Rockwell himself remarks, "I paint life as I would like it to be." --Donald Liebenson

  • S14E03 Ella Fitzgerald: Something to Live For

    • December 8, 1999
    • PBS

    Narrated by Tony Bennett, the first comprehensive documentary portrait of legendary singer Ella Fitzgerald movingly tells the dramatic but true story of an ambitious girl who raised herself out of poverty to become the most accomplished vocalist of all time. This definitive look at "The First Lady of Song" chronicles Ella's entire career, from her amateur night appearance at the Apollo Theater in New York to her unparalleled success on the stage and screen. The film includes never-before-seen performance footage and interviews with many of the great musicians who worked with and admired this truly amazing performer.

  • S14E04 Paul Taylor: Dancemaker

    • January 5, 2000
    • PBS

    The story of a choreographer who contributed much to the style of American performance dance in the modern era.

  • S14E05 Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light

    • February 2, 2000
    • PBS

    A biography of one of the first African-American actors to regularly star in mainstream movies.

  • S14E06 Isaac Stern: Life's Virtuoso

    • April 12, 2000
    • PBS

    An installment on the violin master with comments from his musical colleagues.

  • S14E07 The Source: The Story of the Beats and the Beat Generation

    • May 31, 2000
    • PBS

    When Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs met in New York City in the 1940s, they had no intention of starting a social revolution. According to Ginsberg, “We were just trying to propose our own souls to ourselves.” In the midst of post-war conservatism, these young writers had become disenchanted and were experimenting with new forms of communication.

Season 15

  • S15E01 Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows

    • September 27, 2000
    • PBS

    Profile of the actor who rose from niche westerns to movie industry fame and influence.

  • S15E02 Mailer on Mailer

    • October 4, 2000
    • PBS

    The American writer Norman Mailer and his bristling personality - in his own words.

  • S15E03 On Cukor

    • November 22, 2000
    • PBS

    A profile of the half-century career of George Cukor, one of the most beloved motion picture directors and producers, and the impact he had on those in the industry.

  • S15E04 Lucille Ball: Finding Lucy

    • December 3, 2000
    • PBS

    The incredible career of Lucille Ball, from youth through the movies, from television star to media mogul. Some of the personalities that comment in this film include Fran Drescher, Van Johnson, Dick Martin, Edie Adams, and Carol Burnett. This episode won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Non-Fiction Program.

  • S15E05 Bob Marley: Rebel Music

    • February 14, 2001
    • PBS

    A profile of reggae superstar Bob Marley (1945-1981), featuring performance and newsreel footage, still photos and interviews with the singer, members of his family and musicians, and music-industry execs he worked with.

  • S15E06 A Conversation with Gregory Peck

    • April 9, 2001
    • PBS

    Documentary following the Hollywood star Gregory Peck on a tour of speaking engagements, as well as at home with his family in America and Italy. His career is illustrated by extracts from such movies as To Kill a Mockingbird, Roman Holiday, Cape Fear and McArthur.

  • S15E07 Alfred Stieglitz: The Eloquent Eye

    • April 16, 2001
    • PBS

    Biography of a photographer and leader in bringing modern art works to the galleries of the United States.

  • S15E08 Coming to Light: Edward S. Curtis and the North American Indians

    • April 23, 2001
    • PBS

    A documentary on a photographer who spent decades trying to record the authentic Native American life.

Season 16

Season 17

  • S17E01 Willie Nelson: Still is Still Moving

    • October 2, 2002
    • PBS

    An up-close look at the songs and lifestyle of the popular country western personality.

  • S17E02 Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces

    • October 30, 2002
    • PBS

    A biography of the influential actor and director of silent film classics and his contributions to character expression and make-up effects.

  • S17E03 Juilliard

    • January 29, 2003
    • PBS

    A retrospective on the history and work of the famous American school for academic mastery of the performing arts.

  • S17E04 Alice Waters and her Delicious Revolution

    • March 19, 2003
    • PBS

    Follow Alice Waters (b. April 28, 1944) through a year of seasonal shopping and cooking, and discover both the recipes and vision of an artist and an advocate. She and her now-famous restaurant Chez Panisse became a major force behind the way Americans eat and think about food, launching the explosion of local farmers' markets and redesigned supermarket produce departments. Distressed by the food she saw in public schools, Waters started an organic garden with an integrated curriculum at the Martin Luther King Middle School near her house, an idea inspired by The Garden Project at the San Francisco county jail. The idea of an Edible Schoolyard has now spread across the US - and inspired similar programs worldwide. She is an activist with a flawless palette who has taken her gift for food and turned it into consciousness about the environment and nutrition, and a device for social change.

  • S17E05 Joni Mitchell: A Woman of Heart and Mind

    • April 2, 2003
    • PBS

    The life of the folk singer and songwriting artist and the evolution of her work over three decades.

  • S17E06 Muddy Waters: Can't Be Satisfied

    • April 23, 2003
    • PBS

    Biography of the legendary blues player from the deep South who's music contributed to the origins of rock-and-roll.

  • S17E07 Robert Capa: In Love and War

    • May 28, 2003
    • PBS

    A documentary on the famous war photographer and the life he led.

  • S17E08 The Education of Gore Vidal

    • July 30, 2003
    • PBS

    A spotlight on the eclectic and often humorous American writer and his many accomplishments.

Season 18

  • S18E01 Arthur Miller, Elia Kazan and the Blacklist

    • September 3, 2003
    • PBS

    The dispute between one of America's most influential playwrights and a respected movie director over actions taken during the "red scare" of the 1950s.

  • S18E02 James Brown: Soul Survivor

    • October 29, 2003
    • PBS

    The highs and lows of the life of James Brown, the colorful and controversial "Godfather of Soul."

  • S18E03 Cary Grant: A Class Apart

    • January 7, 2004
    • PBS

    “Eternally elegant” screen superstar Cary Grant (1904-86) is profiled. Included are clips from his films and interviews with ex-wife Betsy Drake and widow Barbara Grant. There are also comments from biographers and film critics, and costars Eva Marie Saint and Martin Landau. Helen Mirren is the narrator, and Jeremy Northam provides the voice of Grant.

  • S18E04 Balanchine

    • January 14, 2004
    • PBS

    A retrospective on the life and work of George Balanchine, a founder of American ballet.

  • S18E05 Judy Garland: By Myself

    • February 25, 2004
    • PBS

    A detailed examination of the celebrated vocalist's career, from her amazing successes to her self-doubts and personal problems.

  • S18E06 Henry Luce and Time-Life's America: A Vision of Empire

    • April 28, 2004
    • PBS

    The remarkable work of Luce in combining timely reporting and exciting photography - leading to one of the US's most formidable media empires.

  • S18E07 Hank Williams: Honky Tonk Blues

    • June 23, 2004
    • PBS

    The brief but impressive career of the man most responsible for defining what is modern "country music."

  • S18E08 Julia! America's Favorite Chef

    • August 18, 2004
    • PBS

    Julia Child was not a natural-born cook - when she married, she could barely boil an egg. But she fell in love with French food, and soon enrolled at the Cordon Bleu where she learned the great tradition of Classical French cuisine. Later, with two French women, she devoted years to writing a manuscript finally published as "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" which became a culinary classic and sold over one million copies. Warm and exuberant, Julia was a natural television star. In 1963, she appeared on public television in "The French Chef," a cooking series unlike anything yet seen on TV. Scooping up a spilled potato pancake or coaxing a reluctant soufflé, Julia was not afraid of making mistakes. Soon a nation fed on Shake n' Bake and Tang would be experimenting with quiche Lorraine and boeuf bourgignon and cooking would become a national pastime. This is the story of Julia's two great loves-love for her husband Paul and for cooking. Through an interview with Julia herself, filmed in her fabled kitchen, and rare images from the photo collection of Paul Child and from family photo albums, Julia Child is revealed as few have seen her before in this tribute and testament to a great American icon.

Season 19

Season 20

  • S20E01 Willa Cather: The Road is All

    • September 7, 2005
    • PBS

    An analyis of the writings of the early 20th century prairie writer and the inner conflicts they exposed.

  • S20E02 Ernest Hemingway: Rivers to the Sea

    • September 14, 2005
    • PBS

    The famous author and his colorful life as told through his writings, letters, and interviews with family and scholars.

  • S20E03 Bob Dylan: No Direction Home

    • September 27, 2005
    • PBS

    A journey through the poetry and music of Bob Dylan.

  • S20E04 John Ford/John Wayne: The Filmmaker and the Legend

    • May 10, 2006
    • PBS

  • S20E05 The World of Nat King Cole

    • May 17, 2006
    • PBS

    Archival performances, home movies and interviews illustrate singer Nat King Cole's achievements during a 30-year music and television career.

  • S20E06 Woodie Guthrie: Ain't Got No Home

    • July 12, 2006
    • PBS
  • S20E07 Marilyn Monroe: Still Life

    • July 19, 2006
    • PBS
  • S20E08 Walter Cronkite: Witness to History

    • July 26, 2006
    • PBS

    Walter Cronkite was the man who gave us the news for two tumultuous decades in the late 20th century. As historian, journalist and author David Halberstam says in praise of the great CBS newsman: "Most Americans really learned of the evening news and learned of Vietnam and learned of the civil rights movement and learned of Watergate with Walter Cronkite as the man who ushered it into their homes. And did it with great professionalism over a very long time and was I think absolutely true to himself." In AMERICAN MASTERS Walter Cronkite: Witness to History, a documentary narrated by Katie Couric, historians, fellow journalists and CBS colleagues appraise the career of the man who was called "the most trusted man in America." CBS writer and commentator Andy Rooney, legendary producer/director Don Hewitt, correspondents Mike Wallace, Morley Safer, Lesley Stahl and Barbara Walters, columnists Molly Ivins and Helen Thomas, Senator John McCain and President Jimmy Carter guide the viewer from Cronkite's early days as a foreign correspondent in World War II through his thirty-year career at CBS News.

Season 21

  • S21E01 Andy Warhol: A Documentary Film, Part 1

    • September 20, 2006
    • PBS

    Ric Burns unearths rarely seen footage and offers keen observations on the life and artistic influence of Andy Warhol. Ric Burns' absorbing profile of Andy Warhol (1928–1987) traces the pop icon's rise from poverty to an artist who said art critic Dave Hickey, “changed the world.”

  • S21E02 Andy Warhol: A Documentary Film, Part 2

    • September 20, 2006
    • PBS

    Ric Burns unearths rarely seen footage and offers keen observations on the life and artistic influence of Andy Warhol. Ric Burns' absorbing profile of Andy Warhol (1928-87) traces the pop icon's rise from poverty to an artist who said art critic Dave Hickey, “changed the world.”

  • S21E03 Sketches of Frank Gehry

    • September 27, 2006
    • PBS

    Frank Gehry loves to sketch. It is the beginning of his architectural process. From Gehry’s sketches flow the models, one after another, each a refinement, that will eventually become finished buildings unlike any others in the architectural world. It is this sketch quality, what he calls the “tentativeness, the messiness,” that Gehry clings to as a way of guarding against formula or repetition. And it is this sketch quality that Sydney Pollack was so keen to explore in the film SKETCHES OF FRANK GEHRY, seen on AMERICAN MASTERS. Beginning with Gehry’s own original sketches for each major project, Pollack’s film explores Gehry’s process of turning these evanescent, abstract drawings into tangible, three-dimensional form: finished buildings of titanium and glass, concrete and steel, wood and stone. Working closely with his colleagues, Gehry takes his sketch ideas and, as quickly as possible, makes them three-dimensional, the better to see how his buildings work, how they fit with their neighbors, how they function in the most essential way. Model after model is scanned into a sophisticated computer and rendered into working drawings.

  • S21E04 Annie Leibovitz: Life Through a Lens

    • January 3, 2007
    • PBS

    This film traces the artistic self-realization of Annie Leibovitz, from childhood through the death of her beloved friend, Susan Sontag, and includes snippets of Leibovitz's last visual memories of Sontag. The film traces the arc of her photographic life, her aspirations to artistry, and the trajectory of her career through phases that included the tumultuous sixties in Berkeley, CA., touring with the Rolling Stones, a mentorship by Hunter S. Thompson, and, later, capturing the last candid moments of John Lennon's life with Yoko Ono. It closes with her reflections on life, children, and the the wake of her relationship with Sontag. The archival material presented here is invaluable for framing an understanding of this immeasurably influential visual artist.

  • S21E05 Novel Reflections on the American Dream

    • April 4, 2007
    • PBS

    Contemporary scholars and novelists give fresh perspectives on some of the great American written works of the 20th century.

  • S21E06 Atlantic Records: The House That Ahmet Built

    • May 2, 2007
    • PBS

    How Ahmet Ertegun built a recording industry empire in the decades after World War II.

  • S21E07 Les Paul: Chasing Sound

    • July 11, 2007
    • PBS

    The musical career and startling technical innovations of a 20th century guitar and sound recording master.

  • S21E08 David Hockney: The Colors of Music

    • July 18, 2007
    • PBS

    The story of an internationally renowned production and set designer for the greatest opera houses in the world, a music lover who is going deaf.

  • S21E09 John James Audubon: Drawn From Nature

    • July 25, 2007
    • PBS

    A documentary on the wildlife art of an early American naturalist who achieved long-lasting acclaim.

Season 22

  • S22E01 Tony Bennett: The Music Never Ends

    • September 12, 2007
    • PBS

    The musical career of one of America's most enduring popular singers.

  • S22E02 Orozco: Man of Fire

    • September 19, 2007
    • PBS

    A portrait of the dramatic work of a Mexican-born muralist and artist, Jose Clemente Orozco, as he made his mark on the United States.

  • S22E03 Good ol' Charles Schulz

    • October 29, 2007
    • PBS

    The motivations behind the man who created one of America's most beloved comic strips.

  • S22E04 Carol Burnett: A Woman of Character

    • November 5, 2007
    • PBS

    The career of funny woman Carol Burnett, from Broadway to television stardom.

  • S22E05 Pete Seeger: The Power of Song

    • February 27, 2008
    • PBS

    The folk music of a world-famous performer as interested in social change as in the history of American roots music.

  • S22E06 Zora Neale Hurston: Jump at the Sun

    • April 9, 2008
    • PBS

    A recounting of the versatile and controversial work of one of the most flamboyant African-American writers from the first half of the 20th century.

  • S22E07 Marvin Gaye: What's Going On

    • May 7, 2008
    • PBS

    An in-depth profile of the talented but troubled star who brought more contemporary issues to soul music.

Season 23

  • S23E01 You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: You Ain't Heard Nothin' Yet (1923-1935)

    • September 23, 2008
    • PBS

    Clint Eastwood narrates the history of Warner Bros., which opens with "You Ain't Heard Nothin' Yet (1923-35)," about the studio's first years, when its biggest star was Rin Tin Tin. Also remembered is its move into gritty fare, featuring James Cagney, Edward G. Robinson and Barbara Stanwyck, and its musicals. Included: "The Jazz Singer," "Public Enemy," "42nd Street," "Baby Face" and "Little Caesar"; interviews with Busby Berkeley, Alfred Hitchcock, Robinson and William Wellman.

  • S23E02 You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: Good War, Uneasy Peace (1935-1950)

    • September 23, 2008
    • PBS

    "Good War, Uneasy Peace (1935-50)" focuses on how Warner Bros. responded to the Great Depression and World War II, when such stars as Humphrey Bogart, Bette Davis and Errol Flynn graced its pictures. Also: the post-war film noirs are explored. Included: "Casablanca," "Now, Voyager," "The Adventures of Robin Hood," "Kings Row" and "White Heat"; interviews with James Cagney, Howard Hawks, Ronald Reagan and Alexis Smith. Clint Eastwood narrates.

  • S23E03 You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: A New Reality (1950-1970)

    • September 24, 2008
    • PBS

    "A New Reality (1950-70)" details how Warner Bros. fought back against TV with such innovations as CinemaScope and 3-D, as well as with such new stars as Doris Day and James Dean. Also: how a battle between Jack and Harry Warner changed the studio's direction. Included: "A Streetcar Named Desire," "East of Eden," "Cool Hand Luke," "A Face in the Crowd" and "My Fair Lady"; interviews with Warren Beatty, Elia Kazan, Kim Hunter, Arthur Penn and Carroll Baker. Clint Eastwood narrates.

  • S23E04 You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: Woodstock Notions (1970-1989)

    • September 24, 2008
    • PBS

    "Woodstock Notions (1970-89)" recalls the creative renaissance of Warner Bros. during the 1970s and '80s. Included: "Mean Streets," "The Exorcist," "Superman: The Movie," "The Shining" and "Body Heat"; interviews with Dustin Hoffman, Clint Eastwood, Jack Nicholson and Robert Redford. Eastwood narrates.

  • S23E05 You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: The Big Tent (1980-Present)

    • September 25, 2008
    • PBS

    "The Big Tent (1980-Present)" chronicles the success of Warner Bros. during the 1980s, '90s and 2000s, including Clint Eastwood's Oscar winners, "The Matrix" franchise and the Harry Potter films. Included: "The Color Purple," "Unforgiven," "Mystic River," "Michael Clayton" and "The Departed"; interviews with Tim Burton, George Clooney, Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg. Eastwood narrates

  • S23E06 The Brothers Warner

    • September 25, 2008
    • PBS

    An intimate portrait of the four Warner brothers and their rise to movie-making greatness.

  • S23E07 Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About

    • February 18, 2009
    • PBS

    The work of the American dance pioneer and choreographer who brought ballet techniques to the Broadway stage.

  • S23E08 Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts

    • April 8, 2009
    • PBS

    Scott Hicks' acclaimed 2007 film on a year in the life of the modern experimental composer.

  • S23E09 Hollywood Chinese

    • May 27, 2009
    • PBS

    From the first Chinese-American film produced in 1916, to Ang Lee's triumphant Brokeback Mountain nine decades later, this films brings together a group of actors, writers, directors -- and iconic film images -- to examine Chinese contributions to an industry that was often ignorant and dismissive about race. Such artists as Wayne Wang, Joan Chen, David Henry Hwang, Nancy Kwan and Amy Tan share their experiences of being "the other." These stories and film clips from more than 90 films -- some dating back to the 1890s -- weave a rich tapestry and complex history.

  • S23E10 Neil Young: Don't Be Denied

    • June 10, 2009
    • PBS

    The work of the legendary rock musician and his artistic and intellectual transitions over the decades.

  • S23E11 Garrison Keillor: The Man on the Radio in the Red Shoes

    • July 1, 2009
    • PBS

    A retrospective on the famed radio personality and author centering on A Prairie Home Companion.

Season 24

  • S24E01 Trumbo

    • September 2, 2009
    • PBS

    An account of Dalton Trumbo, a powerful motion picture screenwriter who refused to succumb to the stigma of the Hollywood "blacklist" and rose to prominence once again.

  • S24E02 Joan Baez: How Sweet the Sound

    • October 14, 2009
    • PBS

    The folk music career of Joan Baez and the progressive movements she both participated in and influenced.

  • S24E03 Louisa May Alcott: the Woman Behind 'Little Women'

    • December 28, 2009
    • PBS

    The author of 'Little Women' is an almost universally recognized name whose reputation as a morally upstanding New England spinster masked a literary double life.

  • S24E04 Sam Cooke: Crossing Over

    • January 11, 2010
    • PBS

    Sam Cooke put the spirit of the black church into popular music, creating a new American sound and setting into motion a chain of events that forever altered the course of popular music and race relations in America.

  • S24E05 I.M. Pei: Building China Modern

    • March 31, 2010
    • PBS

    The work of the innovative Chinese-American architect with a focus on his efforts to build an historical museum in China.

  • S24E06 The Doors: When You're Strange

    • May 12, 2010
    • PBS

    A documentary that traces the roots of Jim Morrison's iconic rock group and their live and studio performances.

  • S24E07 Merle Haggard: Learning to Live with Myself

    • July 21, 2010
    • PBS

    Merle Haggard actually lived the rambling, gambling, love ‘em and leave ‘em, often brutal life that remains the bedrock of country music lyrics.

Season 25

  • S25E01 Cachao: Uno Más

    • September 20, 2010
    • PBS

    A feature on the Cuban-born bassist Israel "Cachao" Lopez, an internationally renowned musician, composer, and pioneer of Mambo.

  • S25E02 A Letter to Elia

    • October 4, 2010
    • PBS

    Martin Scorsese pays tribute to the life and work of noted American film director Elia Kazan.

  • S25E03 Lennon NYC

    • November 22, 2010
    • PBS

    A look at the period of time musician John Lennon and his family spent living in New York City during the 1970s.

  • S25E04 Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould

    • December 27, 2010
    • PBS

    A fresh look at the life of a singular pianist and poet who made an international impact with his music and recordings.

  • S25E05 Jeff Bridges: The Dude Abides

    • January 12, 2011
    • PBS

    A retrospective on the laid-back actor who has entertained audiences for close to 40 years.

  • S25E06 Troubadors: Carole King/James Taylor & the Rise of the Singer-Songwriter

    • March 2, 2011
    • PBS

    Focusing on musicians ranging from James Taylor and Carol King to Elton John.

  • S25E07 John Muir in the New World

    • April 18, 2011
    • PBS

    This documentary explores the life and legacy of America’s first environmentalist and Sierra Club’s founder. Mountaineers portray Muir in reenactments filmed in Yosemite, the Sierra Nevada, Alaska, Wisconsin, and Alhambra Valley.

  • S25E08 James Levine: America's Maestro

    • June 1, 2011
    • PBS

    A behind-the-scenes lok at the internationally-renowned conductor of New York's Metropolitan Opera.

Season 26

  • S26E01 Pearl Jam Twenty

    • October 21, 2011
    • PBS

    Told in big themes and bold colors with blistering sound, Pearl Jam Twenty chronicles the years leading up to the band’s formation, the chaos that ensued soon-after being catapulted into superstardom, their step back from the spotlight with the instinct of self-preservation, and the creation of a trusted circle that would surround them — giving way to a work culture that would sustain them. Part concert film, part insider hang, part testimonial to the power of music and uncompromising artists, the film celebrates the freedom that allows Pearl Jam to make music without losing themselves, their fans, or the music lovers they’ve always been. Pearl Jam Twenty features new interviews with original band members Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, drummer Matt Cameron, and friend and Soundgarden singer/guitarist Chris Cornell, as well as archival performance and interview footage of Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam, Temple of the Dog, Kurt Cobain, and Neil Young.

  • S26E02 Bill T. Jones: A Good Man

    • November 11, 2011
    • PBS

    Bill T. Jones, the recipient of a prestigious MacArthur "genius" grant and winner of two Tony Awards, has been named "an irreplaceable treasure" by the The Dance Heritage Coalition. Above all, he is a socially conscious choreographer who never shies away from controversy -- tackling thorny subjects such as race and politics with elegance and intelligence, artistry and originality.

  • S26E03 Woody Allen: A Documentary (1)

    • November 20, 2011
    • PBS

    A film that traces the life and accomplishments of America's unique and recognized comedian/writer/filmmaker.

  • S26E04 Woody Allen: A Documentary (2)

    • November 21, 2011
    • PBS

    Iconic writer, director, actor, comedian, and musician Woody Allen allowed his life and creative process to be documented on-camera for the first time. With this unprecedented access, Emmy®-winning, Oscar®-nominated filmmaker Robert Weide followed the notoriously private film legend over a year and a half to create the ultimate film biography.

  • S26E05 Charles & Ray Eames: The Architect and the Painter

    • December 29, 2011
    • PBS

    From 1941 to 1978, this husband-and-wife team brought unique talents to their partnership. He was an architect by training, she was a painter and sculptor. Together they are considered America’s most important and influential designers, whose work helped, literally, shape the second half of the 20th century and remains culturally vital and commercially popular today. They are, perhaps, best remembered for their mid-century modern furniture, built from novel materials like molded plywood, fiberglass-reinforced plastic, bent metal wire and aluminum – offering consumers beautiful, functional, yet inexpensive products. Revered for their designs and fascinating as individuals, Charles and Ray have risen to iconic status in American culture. But their influence on significant events and movements in American life – from the development of modernism, to the rise of the computer age – has been less widely understood. Charles and Ray Eames are now profiled as part of American Masters. A film by Jason Cohn and Bill Jersey. Narrated by James Franco.

  • S26E06 Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune

    • January 23, 2012
    • PBS

    Three-time Emmy®-nominated filmmaker Kenneth Bowser examines one of American history’s most iconic folk music heroes and political agitators. Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune is a revealing biography of a conflicted, truth-seeking troubadour who, with guitar in hand, stood up for what he believed in and challenged us all to do the same.

  • S26E07 Cab Calloway: Sketches

    • February 27, 2012
    • PBS

    A singer, dancer and bandleader, Cab led one of the most popular African American big bands during the jazz and swing eras of the 1930s-40s, with Harlem’s famous Cotton Club as his home stage. Best known for his “Hi de hi de hi de ho” refrain from signature song “Minnie the Moocher,” portrayal of Sportin’ Life in Porgy and Bess (1952), and role in The Blues Brothers (1980), Cab influenced countless performers, including Michael and Janet Jackson, and many of today’s hip-hop artists.

  • S26E08 Margaret Mitchell: American Rebel

    • April 2, 2012
    • PBS

    Margaret Mitchell: American Rebel engages leading historians, biographers and personal friends to reveal a complex woman who experienced profound identity shifts during her life and struggled with the two great issues of her day: the changing role of women and the liberation of African Americans.

  • S26E09 Harper Lee: Hey, Boo

    • April 2, 2012
    • PBS

    One of the biggest bestsellers of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) is the first and only novel by a young woman named Nelle Harper Lee, who once said that she wanted to be South Alabama’s Jane Austen. Lee won the Pulitzer Prize and became a mystery when she stopped speaking to press in 1964. More than 50 years after its publication, To Kill a Mockingbird has been translated into more than 40 languages worldwide, still sells nearly one million copies each year and is required reading in most American classrooms, making it quite possibly the most influential American novel of the 20th century. The 1962 film version, starring Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, won a trio of Academy Awards. Harper Lee: Hey, Boo chronicles how this beloved novel came to be written, provides the context and history of the Deep South where it is set, and documents the many ways the novel has changed minds and shaped history. For teachers, students or fans of the classic, Hey, Boo enhances the experience of reading To Kill a Mockingbird.

  • S26E10 Johnny Carson: King of Late Night

    • May 14, 2012
    • PBS

    Quite possibly the biggest star that television has ever produced, Carson commanded, at his peak, a nightly audience of 15 million viewers – double the current audience of Leno and Letterman – combined. Rarely giving interviews, Carson chose to remain a very private man whose public persona made him an American superstar.

Season 27

  • S27E01 The Day Carl Sandburg Died

    • September 24, 2012
    • PBS

    For much of the 20th century, Sandburg was synonymous with the American experience, a spokesman on behalf of the people. One of the most successful writers in the English language, Sandburg was a three-time Pulitzer Prize-winner for his poetry as well as part of his six-volume Lincoln biography. Yet, after his death, Sandburg’s literary legacy faded and his poems, once taught in schools across America, were dismissed under the weight of massive critical attack.

  • S27E02 Inventing David Geffen

    • November 20, 2012
    • PBS

    David Geffen’s far-reaching influence — as agent, manager, record industry mogul, Hollywood and Broadway producer, and philanthropist — has helped shape American popular culture for the past four decades.

  • S27E03 Joffrey: Mavericks of American Dance

    • December 28, 2012
    • PBS

    Documenting how the Joffrey revolutionized American ballet – combining modern dance with classic technique, art with social statement and rock music with traditional choreography – this film is a palpable expression of Robert Joffrey and Gerald Arpino’s vision and artistry.

  • S27E04 Sister Rosetta Tharpe: The Godmother of Rock & Roll

    • February 22, 2013
    • PBS

    Despite not being a household name today, Sister Rosetta Tharpe is one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. Her flamboyance, skill, and showmanship on the newly electrified guitar played a vital role in the conception of Rock & Roll as a genre of music. Featuring archival performances and using new interviews with fellow musicians, producers, friends, and colleagues, this film tells the story of a talented and determined woman that introduces spiritual passion of her gospel music background into Rock & Roll. Learn more about Sister Rosetta Tharpe, her life story, and lasting artistic legacy.

  • S27E05 Philip Roth: Unmasked

    • March 29, 2013
    • PBS

    American Masters explores the life and career of Pulitzer Prize- and National Book Award-winning novelist Philip Roth, often referred to as the greatest living American writer. Reclusive and diffident, Roth grants very few interviews, but for the first time, allowed a journalist to spend 10 days interviewing him on camera.

  • S27E06 Mel Brooks: Make a Noise

    • May 20, 2013
    • PBS

    Mel Brooks: Make a Noise journeys through Brooks’ early years in the creative beginnings of live television — with Sid Caesar on Your Show of Shows — to the film genres he so successfully satirized in Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles, High Anxiety, and Spaceballs — to the groundbreaking Broadway musical version of his first film, The Producers. The documentary also delves into his professional and personal ups and downs — his childhood, his first wife and subsequent 41-year marriage to Anne Bancroft — capturing a never-before-heard sense of reflection and confession. Robert Trachtenberg is writer, director, producer, and editor. Susan Lacy is American Masters series creator and executive producer.

Season 28

  • S28E01 Billie Jean King

    • September 10, 2013
    • PBS

    For the first time, American Masters profiles a sports figure: Billie Jean King, a determined woman who has been a major force in changing and democratizing the cultural landscape. American Masters Billie Jean King premieres nationally Tuesday, September 10, 2013 at 8 p.m. on PBS (check local listings) to commemorate the 40th anniversaries of the Billie Jean King v. Bobby Riggs “The Battle of the Sexes” match on Sept. 20, 1973, and the founding of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) by King on June 20 of that year. This new documentary traces the incredible life of the single most important female athlete of the 20th century as her 70th birthday nears.

  • S28E02 Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train a Comin'

    • November 5, 2013
    • PBS

    The documentary unveils previously unseen performance footage and home movies while sourcing an extensive archive to provide new insight into the musician's personality and genius with interviews with those closest to him. The film details the meteoric rise of the Experience, the creation of his groundbreaking music, the building of Electric Lady Studios, and concludes with his final performance in Germany in September 1970, just 12 days before his death at age 27. Directed by Bob Smeaton.

  • S28E03 Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did For Love

    • December 27, 2013
    • PBS

    Composer, conductor, genius, mensch: Marvin Hamlisch (June 2, 1944 – Aug. 6, 2012) earned four Grammys, four Emmys, three Oscars, three Golden Globes, a Tony Award and a Pulitzer Prize before his untimely death, making him one of only two PEGOT winners ever. Hit after hit — “The Way We Were,” “Nobody Does It Better” and scores for The Sting, Sophie’s Choice and the Broadway juggernaut A Chorus Line — made him the go-to composer and performer for film, Broadway, every U.S. President since Reagan and concert halls worldwide. With exclusive access to Hamlisch’s personal archival treasure trove and complete cooperation from his family, Dramatic Forces and THIRTEEN’s American Masters explore his prolific life and career in the series’ Season 27 finale, Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did For Love, premiering nationally Friday, December 27, 2013, 9 -10:30 p.m. ET on PBS

  • S28E04 Salinger

    • January 21, 2014
    • PBS

    Featuring never-before-seen photographs, personal stories and moments from J.D. Salinger’s (Jan. 1, 1919 – Jan. 27, 2010) life and harrowing service in World War II, Salerno’s new director’s cut expands his intimate portrait of the enigmatic author of The Catcher in the Rye. American Masters was the first to close a deal with Salerno for Salinger, securing the exclusive domestic television rights to the documentary in January 2013. An official selection of the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival and Telluride Film Festival, the film made front page news all over the world with its revelations. Associated Press called the research yielded during Salerno’s 10-year investigation “unprecedented” and “thoroughly documented.”

  • S28E05 Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth

    • February 7, 2014
    • PBS

    Writer and activist Alice Walker (b. Feb. 9, 1944) made history as the first African-American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for her seminal novel The Color Purple (1982), for which she won the National Book Award. American Masters presents Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth, premiering nationally Friday, February 7 at 9 p.m. on PBS in honor of Walker’s 70th birthday and Black History Month. Filmmaker Pratibha Parmar’s new documentary tells Walker’s dramatic life story with poetry and lyricism, and features new interviews with Walker, Steven Spielberg, Danny Glover, Quincy Jones, Gloria Steinem, Sapphire and the late Howard Zinn in one of his final interviews. American Masters — Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth charts Walker’s inspiring journey from her birth into a family of sharecroppers in Eatonton, Georgia, to the present. The film explores Walker’s relationship with her mother, poverty, and participation in the Civil Rights Movement, which were the formative influences on her consciousness and became the inherent themes in her writing. Living through the violent racism and seismic social changes of mid-20th century America, Walker overcame adversity to achieve international recognition as one of the most influential — and controversial — writers of the 20th century.

  • S28E06 A Fierce Green Fire

    • April 22, 2014
    • PBS

    An exploration of the environmental movement from the 1960s through 2009. Included: the battle in the 1960s to block dams from the Grand Canyon; the Love Canal scandal of the 1970s; Greenpeace's efforts to save whales and baby harp seals; the global resource crises of the 1980s; and the 25-year effort to address climate change. Narrators include Robert Redford, Meryl Streep, Ashley Judd, Van Jones and Isabel Allende.

  • S28E07 Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself

    • May 16, 2014
    • PBS

    Famed participatory journalist George Plimpton (1927–2003) was a writer, editor, amateur sportsman, actor, and friend to many. Plimpton’s remarkable life is showcased in a documentary that is both a chronicle of one of the last century’s most intriguing characters, as well as a cinematic adaption of his nuanced and funny literary style. Using Plimpton’s own narration, new interviews with friends, family and contemporaries, and extensive archival material, the film creates a compelling portrait of a one-of-a-kind person who lived fully, strangely and incredibly. Plimpton co-founded and worked as the editor of influential literary magazine The Paris Review for 50 years (1953-2003). The Paris Review and Plimpton’s widow Sarah Dudley Plimpton, granted filmmakers Tom Bean and Luke Poling full access to George’s private archives, including previously unseen material. Aside from his work at The Paris Review, Plimpton wrote for Sports Illustrated; hung out with U.S. presidents and was part of the Kennedys’ inner circle; played quarterback for the Detroit Lions; got Willie Mays to pop out in Yankee Stadium; photographed Playboy models; played goalie for the Boston Bruins; performed with the New York Philharmonic; boxed against light-heavyweight champion Archie Moore; acted alongside John Wayne, Warren Beatty and Matt Damon; and authored more than 15 books, including Out of My League (1961), Paper Lion (1966) and The Bogey Man (1967). Some of Plimpton’s DIY journalism stunts were turned into primetime network television films, including his circus flying trapeze act, African wildlife photography for Life magazine, and attempt at stand-up comedy. Sharing these experiences and more, American Masters: Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself is about football, literature, magazines, fireworks, hockey, movies, presidents, lawn chairs, geniuses, and the true tall tale that brought them all together. Featured interviews include Robert Kennedy, Jr.; Hug

  • S28E08 Tanaquil Le Clercq: Afternoon of a Faun

    • June 20, 2014
    • PBS

    Tanaquil Le Clercq (1929–2000) was a star ballerina with the New York City Ballet who greatly influenced choreographers George Balanchine (her husband) and Jerome Robbins (her friend). Filmmaker Nancy Buirski spotlights Le Clercq’s ballet career, influence on dance, and her struggle with polio, which paralyzed her at the height of her fame.

  • S28E09 Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning

    • August 29, 2014
    • PBS

    Her celebrated photograph Migrant Mother is one of the most recognized and arresting images in the world, a haunting portrait that came to represent the suffering of America’s Great Depression. Yet few know the story, struggles and profound body of work of the woman who created the portrait: Dorothea Lange (May 26, 1895 — Oct. 11, 1965). American Masters — Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning premiering nationwide Friday, August 29 at 9-11 pm on PBS (check local listings) explores the life, passions and uncompromising vision of the influential photographer, whose enduring images document five turbulent decades of American history, including the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl and World War II Japanese internment camps. Peabody- and five-time Emmy award-winning cinematographer Dyanna Taylor — the granddaughter of Lange and writer/social scientist Paul Schuster Taylor — directs and narrates this intimate American Masters documentary. Taylor, who learned to see the visual world through her grandmother’s eyes, combines family memories and journals with never-before-seen photos and film footage to bring Lange’s story into sharp focus. The result is a personal documentary of the artist whose empathy for people on the margins of society challenged America to know itself. The film features newly discovered interviews and vérité scenes with Lange from her Bay Area home studio, circa 1962-1965, including work on her unprecedented, one-woman career retrospective at New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Showcasing more than 800 works by Lange, her first husband Maynard Dixon and second husband Paul Schuster Taylor combined, American Masters — Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning reveals the camera as Lange’s first muse and the confluence of artists at work and in love. Explaining the impact of these relationships on Lange’s life and documentary photography style, filmmaker/narrator Dyanna Taylor demonstrates the challenges of balancing

Season 29

  • S29E01 The Boomer List

    • September 23, 2014
    • PBS

    From the time of its birth, the baby boomer generation (1946-1964) has significantly and uniquely changed our world. 2014 marks an important shift in American culture, as the last boomers turn 50. American Masters: The Boomer List, tells the story of this influential generation through the lives of 19 iconic boomers—one born each year of the baby boom:

  • S29E02 Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work

    • September 23, 2014
    • PBS

  • S29E03 Bing Crosby Rediscovered

    • December 2, 2014
    • PBS

    Bing Crosby (1903-77) is remembered via home movies, Dictabelt recordings, photos and insights from wife Kathryn, daughter Mary and sons Harry and Nathaniel. He scored nearly 400 hit singles, including the classic "White Christmas"; and appeared in such popular films as "White Christmas" and "Going My Way." The profile details the allegations of abuse leveled against him by son Gary (1933-95); and explains how his beloved duet with David Bowie on "Little Drummer Boy-Peace on Earth" came about.

  • S29E04 Ricky Jay: Deceptive Practice

    • January 23, 2015
    • PBS

    This portrait of the inimitable magician Ricky Jay delves into the mysterious world of sleight-of-hand and its small circle of eccentric devotees. Jay is also a best-selling author, historian, actor and a leading collector of antiquarian books and artifacts. Told largely in Jay’s own distinctive voice, the documentary traces the story of his achievement and that of other master magicians.

  • S29E05 August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand

    • February 20, 2015
    • PBS

    Unprecedented access to Wilson’s theatrical archives, rarely seen interviews and new dramatic readings bring to life his seminal 10-play cycle chronicling a century of African-American life. Wilson won two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama.

  • S29E06 Jascha Heifetz: God's Fiddler

    • April 16, 2015
    • PBS

    A profile of legendary violin virtuoso Jascha Heifetz (1901-87), featuring remarks from violinists Itzhak Perlman, Ivry Gitlis and Ida Haendel; former students Ayke Agus and Sherry Kloss; and biographers John Anthony Maltese and Arthur Vered.

  • S29E07 American Ballet Theatre: A History

    • May 15, 2015
    • PBS

    Delving into the rich history of one of the world’s preeminent ballet companies, Ric Burns combines intimate rehearsal footage, virtuoso performances and interviews with American Ballet Theatre’s key figures.

  • S29E08 Harper Lee

    • July 10, 2015
    • PBS

    One of the biggest American bestsellers of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) was thought to be the first and only novel by Harper Lee. However, on July 14, 2015, Go Set a Watchman was released, featuring characters from Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Newly updated version of Mary McDonagh Murphy’s 2012 documentary, Harper Lee: Hey, Boo.

Season 30

  • S30E01 Pedro E. Guerrero: A Photographer's Journey

    • September 18, 2015
    • PBS

    An exclusive interview with Mexican-American photographer Pedro E. Guerrero explores his life and work. He collaborated with iconic American artists of the 20th century -- architect Frank Lloyd Wright and sculptors Alexander Calder and Louise Nevelson -- and became one of the most sought-after photographers of the “Mad Men” era.

  • S30E02 Althea

    • September 4, 2015
    • PBS

    This is the story of Althea Gibson (1927-2003), a truant from the rough streets of Harlem, who emerged as the unlikely queen of the highly segregated tennis world in the 1950s. She was the first African American to play and win at Wimbledon and the U.S. Nationals (precursor of the U.S. Open) — a decade before Arthur Ashe. Interviewees include Wimbledon champion Dick Savitt and Billie Jean King.

  • S30E03 The Women's List

    • September 25, 2015
    • PBS

    Meet 15 women who define contemporary American culture in Timothy Greenfield-Sanders’ new “List” film featuring Madeleine Albright, Margaret Cho, Edie Falco, Betsey Johnson, Alicia Keys, Nancy Pelosi, Rosie Perez, Wendy Williams and more. All trailblazers in their fields, these women share their experiences struggling against discrimination and overcoming challenges to make their voices heard.

  • S30E04 Mike Nichols

    • January 29, 2016
    • PBS

    The life and 50-year career of director Mike Nichols, one of only two people who have won Peabody, Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards.

  • S30E05 B.B. King: The Life of Riley

    • February 12, 2016
    • PBS

    The challenging life and career of blues guitarist B.B. King; candid interviews feature Bono, Bonnie Raitt, Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton, John Mayer, and Ringo Starr.

  • S30E06 Carole King: Natural Woman

    • February 19, 2016
    • PBS

    Rare home movies, performances and photos help illustrate the life and career of singer-songwriter Carole King, from 1960s New York to Los Angeles in the 1970s to the present.

  • S30E07 Fats Domino and The Birth of Rock 'n' Roll

    • February 26, 2016
    • PBS

  • S30E08 Loretta Lynn: Still a Mountain Girl

    • March 4, 2016
    • PBS

    A profile of country music icon Loretta Lynn, whose hard-fought road to stardom was dramatized in the 1980 film "Coal Miner's Daughter." Included: home movies, photos and concert footage, plus insights from family, friends and fellow musicians, including Garth Brooks, Sheryl Crow, Miranda Lambert, Reba McEntire, Willie Nelson, Jack White and Trisha Yearwood.

  • S30E09 Janis: Little Girl Blue

    • May 3, 2016
    • PBS

    One of the most revered and influential rock ’n’ roll singers of all time, Janis Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) thrilled audiences and blazed new creative trails before her death at age 27. Oscar-nominated director Amy Berg (Deliver Us From Evil, West of Memphis, Prophet’s Prey) examines Joplin’s story in depth, for the first time on film, presenting an intimate portrait of a complicated and driven artist.

  • S30E10 The Highwaymen: Friends Till the End

    • May 27, 2016
    • PBS

    Discover the story behind the pioneering outlaw country music supergroup that featured Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson, told through vintage performances and new interviews about life on the road and in the studio.

Season 31

  • S31E01 Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You

    • October 25, 2016
    • PBS

    Writer/producer Norman Lear's turbulent childhood, early success with sitcoms ``All in the Family,'' ``The Jeffersons,'' ``Good Times'' and ``Maude,'' and social activism.

  • S31E02 Eero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future

    • December 27, 2016
    • PBS

    The film explores the life and visionary work of Finnish-American modernist architectural giant Eero Saarinen (1910-1961). Best known for designing National Historic Landmarks such as St. Louis’ iconic Gateway Arch and the General Motors Technical Center (Warren, Mich.), Saarinen also designed New York’s TWA Flight Center at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Yale University’s Ingalls Rink and Morse and Ezra Stiles Colleges, Virginia’s Dulles Airport, and modernist pedestal furniture like the Tulip chair.

  • S31E03 By Sidney Lumet

    • January 3, 2017
    • PBS

    In a 2008 interview, director Sidney Lumet talks about his life and career, which included 44 films in 50 years.

  • S31E04 Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise

    • February 21, 2017
    • PBS

    The life of author and activist Maya Angelou, with comments from Oprah Winfrey, Common, Bill and Hillary Clinton and others.

  • S31E05 Patsy Cline

    • March 1, 2017
    • PBS

    A profile of influential country singer Patsy Cline (1932-63), featuring archival performances of such songs as "Walkin' After Midnight," "I Fall to Pieces" and "Crazy"; and remarks from artists who knew her and others influenced by her.

  • S31E06 James Beard: America's First Foodie

    • May 19, 2017
    • PBS

    Experience a century of food through the life of one man, James Beard (1903-1985). Dubbed the “Dean of American Cookery” by The New York Times, Beard was a Portland, Ore., native who loved and celebrated the bounty of the Pacific Northwest. He spoke of the importance of localism and sustainability long before those terms had entered the vernacular.

  • S31E07 Jacques Pépin: The Art of Craft

    • May 26, 2017
    • PBS

    Discover the story of Chef Jacques Pépin (b. December 18, 1935), a young immigrant with movie-star looks, a charming Gallic accent, and a mastery of cooking and teaching so breathtaking he became an early food icon—joining James Beard and Julia Child among the handful of Americans who transformed the way the country views the food world

Season 32

  • S32E01 Richard Linklater: Dream Is Destiny

    • September 1, 2017
    • PBS

    A trove of never-before-seen archival footage provides an unconventional look at the fiercely independent style of filmmaking that emerged out of Austin, Texas in the late 1980s and 1990s with Linklater as its poster boy.

  • S32E02 Tyrus Wong

    • September 8, 2017
    • PBS

    The unlikely story of 106-year old Chinese American artist Tyrus Wong, and how he overcame poverty and racism in America to become a celebrated modernist painter, Hollywood sketch artist, and “Disney Legend” for his groundbreaking work on the classic animated film, Bambi.

  • S32E03 Edgar Allan Poe: Buried Alive

    • October 30, 2017
    • PBS

    A profile of Edgar Allan Poe (1809-49), who's best known for his Gothic horror tales and narrative poem "The Raven." He also created the detective fiction genre with "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" in 1841; and published more comedies than horror. After Poe's untimely death, a literary rival penned a high-profile, decidedly unflattering obituary that made him sound like one of the narrators of his horror tales. The truth, of course, is far more complex. Here, Poe experts correct the record.

  • S32E04 Inspiring Woman Web Series

    • November 8, 2017
    • PBS

    Six innovators tell their own stories and explain how they’re changing their respective industries: podcast host Tracy Clayton, Chef Angie Mar, JavaScript developer Sara Chipps, web-cam performance artist Molly Soda, entrepreneur Rakia Reynolds, and visual artist Tatyana Fazlalizadeh.

  • S32E05 This Is Bob Hope

    • November 13, 2017
    • PBS

    A candid look at a remarkable life with unprecedented access to Bob Hope’s personal archives, including writings voiced by Billy Crystal and clips from Hope’s body of work to reveal a gifted and very human individual who recognized the power of fame, embraced its responsibilities and handled celebrity with extraordinary wit and grace.

  • S32E06 Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes/Feeling Heart

    • January 19, 2018
    • PBS

    Explore the inner life and works of the activist, playwright and author of “A Raisin in the Sun,” Lorraine Hansberry. Narrated by actress LaTanya Richardson Jackson and featuring the voice of Tony Award-winning actress Anika Noni Rose as Hansberry.

  • S32E07 Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story

    • May 18, 2018
    • PBS

    A profile of Hollywood star Hedy Lamarr (1914-2000), who was known as the world's most beautiful woman. Behind the pretty face, however, was the mind of an ingenious inventor whose pioneering work helped revolutionize modern communication. An Austrian Jewish emigrant, she invented a covert communication system to try to help defeat the Nazis; and it was her concept that is now used as the basis for secure WiFi, GPS and Bluetooth technologies.

  • S32E08 Ted Williams: “The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived”

    • July 23, 2018
    • PBS

    American Masters: Ted Williams (w.t.) will also look at the impact the iconic hitter has had on the current generation of stars in Major League Baseball. Superstars like Kris Bryant, Daniel Murphy and Josh Donaldson have credited Williams’ methods to hitting as guides in their own approach today.

  • S32E09 Artists Flight: Eva Hesse

    • August 31, 2018
    • PBS

    As the wild ride of the 1960s came to a close, Eva Hesse, a 34 year-old German-born American artist was cresting the wave of a swiftly rising career. One of the few women recognized as central to the New York art scene, she had over 20 group shows scheduled for 1970 in addition to being chosen for a cover article in ArtForum Magazine. Her inventive sculptures were finally receiving both the critical and commercial attention they deserved. When she died May 1970 from a brain tumor, the life of one of that decades’ most passionate and brilliant artists was tragically cut short. American Masters deepens the understanding of this extraordinary artist, not only in terms of her innovative work with fiberglass and latex, but also the life that provided the fertile soil for her achievements. Through dozens of new interviews, Hesse’s artwork and a wealth of newly discovered archival imagery, the documentary traces Hesse’s path and delves deep into the creative communities of 1960s New York and Germany. Written and directed by Marcie Begleiter.

Season 33

  • S33E01 Andrew Wyeth

    • September 7, 2018
    • PBS

    Wyeth tells the story of one of America’s most popular, but least understood, artists – Andrew Wyeth. Son of the famous illustrator N.C. Wyeth, Andrew had his first exhibition at age 20, and his painting “Christina’s World” was acquired by the Museum of Modern Art in 1948. While Wyeth’s exhibitions routinely broke attendance records, art world critics continually assaulted his work. Detailing the stunning drawings and powerful portraits he created in Chadds Ford, Pa., and on the coast of Cushing, Maine, Wyeth explores his inspirations, including neighbor Christina Olsen and his hidden muse, the German model Helga Testorf, who he painted secretly for 15 years. Through unprecedented access to Wyeth’s family members, including sons Jamie and Nicholas Wyeth, and never-before-seen archival materials from the family’s personal collection and hundreds of Wyeth’s studies, drawings and paintings, American Masters presents the most complete portrait of the artist yet — bearing witness to a legacy just at the moment it is evolving.

  • S33E02 Artists Flight: Everybody Knows…Elizabeth Murray

    • September 7, 2018
    • PBS

    This intimate portrait of maverick painter and printmaker Elizabeth Murray explores the relationship between her family life and career, and reconsiders her place in contemporary art history. Excerpts from her journals voiced by Meryl Streep, verité footage and home videos show Murray’s internal struggles and incredible ambition. Exclusive interviews with art world luminaries describe the thriving New York art scene within which Murray challenged and captivated her viewers. In 2005, Murray was the fifth woman to be celebrated with a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art. Breaking convention, Murray’s paintings still defy efforts at categorization. Through them she made an indelible imprint on the contemporary art world. This film chronicles her remarkable journey from an impoverished childhood in Chicago to the extraordinary art world of lower Manhattan, before she lost her life to cancer in 2007. American Masters: Everybody Knows…Elizabeth Murray cements Murray’s legacy as one of the great painters of our time. Directed and produced by Kristi Zea.

  • S33E03 Basquiat: Rage to Riches

    • September 14, 2018
    • PBS

    One of the most influential American artists of the 20th century, Jean-Michel Basquiat was a rock star of the early ’80s New York art scene. He lived fast, died young and created thousands of drawings and paintings. It took less than a decade for Basquiat, an accountant’s son from Brooklyn, to go from anonymous graffiti writer known as SAMO© to an epoch-defining art star. Today, Basquiat is in the top tier of the international art market along with Picasso, de Kooning, and Francis Bacon. 2018 marks the 30th anniversary of Basquiat’s untimely death from a heroin overdose. In death, he has emerged as one of the most important artists of his generation and now exhibits in museums all over the world.

  • S33E04 Itzhak Perlman

    • October 14, 2018
    • PBS

    A cinéma vérité look at the remarkable life and career of world-renowned violinist Itzhak Perlman, a polio survivor whose parents emigrated from Poland to Israel in the mid-1930s. His life story unfolds through conversations with fellow musicians and friends, including Billy Joel, Alan Alda, pianist Martha Argerich, cellist Mischa Maisky, and his wife of 50 years, Toby.

  • S33E05 Decoding Watson

    • January 2, 2019
    • PBS

    Meet James Watson, the Nobel Prize-winning scientist behind the double helix as he confronts his complex legacy. With unprecedented access to Watson and his family, "American Masters: Decoding Watson" explores his life, achievements, controversies and contradictions.

  • S33E06 Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me

    • February 19, 2019
    • PBS

    Sammy Davis, Jr. had the kind of career that was indisputably legendary, so vast and multi-faceted that it was dizzying in its scope and scale. And yet, his life was complex, complicated and contradictory. Davis strove to achieve the American Dream in a time of racial prejudice and shifting political territory.

  • S33E07 Charley Pride

    • February 22, 2019
    • PBS

    Raised in segregated Mississippi, country performer Charley Pride proves artistic expression can triumph over prejudice and injustice.

  • S33E08 Holly Near: Singing for Our Lives

    • March 1, 2019
    • PBS

    For 40 years, singer and activist Holly Near works on global social justice coalition-building in the women's and lesbian movements.

  • S33E09 Joseph Pulitzer: Voice Of The People

    • April 12, 2019
    • PBS

    Hungarian immigrant Joseph Pulitzer becomes one of America's most feared and admired newspaper moguls and a crusader for freedom of the press.

  • S33E10 Garry Winogrand: All Things are Photographable

    • April 19, 2019
    • PBS

    A documentary about an important American still photographer who captured New York City in the 1960s (his work there is said to have influenced the TV show Mad Men) and later the West in Texas and Los Angeles.

  • S33E11 Robert Shaw -- Man of Many Voices

    • June 21, 2019
    • PBS

    A profile of the conductor, his work with the civil rights movement, and his musical legacy.

  • S33E12 Terrence McNally: Every Act of Life

    • June 14, 2019
    • PBS

    Playwright, librettist, scriptwriter and outspoken LGBTQ activist Terrence McNally has long believed in the power of the arts to transform society and make a difference. The film lifts the curtain on the life, career and inspirations of the complicated and brilliant Emmy- and four-time Tony Award-winning writer.

  • S33E13 Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin

    • August 2, 2019
    • PBS

    Explore the remarkable life and legacy of late feminist author Ursula K. Le Guin whose groundbreaking work, including “The Left Hand of Darkness,” transformed American literature by bringing science fiction into the literary mainstream.

Season 34

  • S34E01 Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage

    • September 13, 2019
    • PBS

    From award-winning director Ben DeJesus (Great Performances: John Leguizamo’s Road to Broadway, John Leguizamo: Tales from a Ghetto Klown), Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage is a warm and revealing portrait of the charismatic, groundbreaking actor’s journey from his native Puerto Rico to the creative hotbed of 1960s New York City, to prominence on Broadway and in Hollywood. Filled with passion, determination and joy, Juliá’s brilliant and daring career was tragically cut short by his untimely death 25 years ago, at age 54.

  • SPECIAL 0x66 Unladylike: Aviator Bessie Coleman

    • March 4, 2020
    • PBS

    The daughter of sharecropper in rural Texas, Bessie Coleman grew up picking cotton and eventually became the first African American woman aviator. Coleman became a media sensation with her daredevil performances, and was hailed as “Queen Bess” and “the world’s greatest woman flier.” Throughout her brief career, Coleman refused to perform in American airshows where audiences were segregated.

  • SPECIAL 0x67 Unladylike: Grace Abbott - Social Work Pioneer

    • March 11, 2020
    • PBS

    Grace Abbott (1878-1939), an architect of social work and an activist in the immigrant rights movement, was the highest ranking woman in government from 1921 to 1934 as chief of the Department of Labor’s Children’s Bureau. She led the fight to end child labor and maternal and infant childbirth death, and also helped draft America's Social Security Act.

  • SPECIAL 0x68 Unladylike: Maggie Lena Walker - Civil Rights Activist and Entrepreneur

    • March 18, 2020
    • PBS

    A full 50 years before the Montgomery bus boycott, civil rights activist and entrepreneur Maggie Lena Walker led a city-wide boycott against segregated streetcars in Richmond, VA, and founded a newspaper, department store, and the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank, making her the first African American female bank president in the United States.

  • SPECIAL 0x69 Unladylike: Lillian Gilbreth - Pioneering Inventor

    • March 25, 2020
    • PBS

    Lillian Moller Gilbreth is the first woman elected to the National Academy of Engineering and the first female engineering professor at Purdue University. She worked to invent time and motion studies with her husband Frank, and elevated women’s labor in the domestic sphere with her design of the L-shaped kitchen and numerous appliances.

  • SPECIAL 0x70 Unladylike: Ynés Mexía - Mexican-American Botanist and Adventurer

    • April 1, 2020
    • PBS

    An early participant in the environmental movement, U.S.-born Mexican American Ynés Mexía began her scientific career at age 51, leading botanical expeditions across Mexico, Central America, and South America. She became one of the most accomplished plant collectors of her time, discovering over 500 new plant species of which 50 are named in her honor.

  • SPECIAL 0x71 Unladylike: Anna May Wong - The first Asian American Movie Star

    • April 8, 2020
    • PBS

    Anna May Wong, the first Asian American woman movie star, had a long and varied career spanning silent and sound film, stage, radio, and television, while resisting racism and typecasting in Hollywood, and the practice of having white actors in yellow face play the roles of Asian characters.

  • SPECIAL 0x72 Unladylike: Meta Warrick Fuller - Trailblazing African American Sculptor

    • April 15, 2020
    • PBS

    Artist Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller moved to Paris from Philadelphia in 1899 to study sculpture, where she began creating her expressive and groundbreaking artwork, which celebrated African American heritage and cultural identity, and resisted stereotypical representations in her depictions of the black body. She was the first African American to be awarded a federal art commission.

  • SPECIAL 0x73 Unladylike: The First Woman to Lead Arctic Expeditions

    • April 22, 2020
    • PBS

    Louise Arner Boyd was a self-taught polar scientist and photographer, and the first American woman to lead Arctic expeditions, where she mapped uncharted regions of Greenland, creating photographs that provide critical information to climate change researchers today.

  • SPECIAL 0x74 Unladylike: She was an American Cinema Pioneer

    • April 29, 2020
    • PBS

    Lois Weber was an early film pioneer as the first American woman to direct a full-length feature film in 1913, and one of the first directors to own her own film studio. Infused with the conviction that film could change culture, she directed over 135 films about controversial subject matters such as capital punishment, police violence, birth control, and poverty.

  • SPECIAL 0x75 Unladylike: This Astronomer Discovered Over 300 Stars During Her Career

    • May 6, 2020
    • PBS

    Williamina Fleming went from doing domestic work to being appointed the Curator of Astronomical Photographs at the Harvard College Observatory, making her the first woman to hold a title at Harvard University. She is credited with discovering 10 novae, over 300 variable stars, and 59 gaseous nebulae.

  • SPECIAL 0x76 Unladylike: She was the first Chinese American woman to vote in the U.S.

    • May 13, 2020
    • PBS

    Tye Leung Shulze resisted domestic servitude and an arranged child marriage to provide translation services and solace to Asian immigrant victims of human trafficking in San Francisco. In 1912, one year after California granted women the right to vote, she became the first Chinese American woman to vote in a U.S. election.

  • SPECIAL 0x77 Unladylike: She was a leader of the American labor movement

    • May 20, 2020
    • PBS

    Rose Schneiderman began working in a factory at age 16, and after experiencing unsafe work conditions and unequal pay first-hand, helped organize an all-women's chapter of a hat makers’ union. She became president of the National Women's Trade Union League, and an advisor to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, informing many of his New Deal labor policies.

  • SPECIAL 0x78 Unladylike: The First American-Born Chinese Woman Doctor

    • May 27, 2020
    • PBS

    Margaret Chung (1889-1959) overcame great racism and sexism to become the first American-born Chinese female doctor in 1916. She also helped establish WAVES, the women’s naval reserves, paving the way for women’s integration into the U.S armed forces.

  • SPECIAL 0x79 Unladylike: Gladys Bentley - Gender-Bending Performer and Musician

    • June 3, 2020
    • PBS

    Gladys Bentley joined New York’s Harlem Renaissance jazz scene at age 16 and became an instant sensation and gender identity pioneer, performing piano and vocals at the most popular gay bars, wearing men’s clothing, and openly flirting with women in the audience.

  • SPECIAL 0x80 Unladylike: Annie Smith Peck - Record-Breaking Mountaineer

    • June 10, 2020
    • PBS

    Annie Smith Peck, one of the first women in America to become a college professor in the fields of Latin, elocution, and archaeology, took up mountain climbing in her forties. She gained international fame in 1895 when she first summited the Matterhorn in the Swiss Alps -- not for her daring ascent, but because she undertook the climb wearing pants rather than a cumbersome skirt.

  • S34E02 Rothko: Pictures Must Be Miraculous

    • October 25, 2019
    • PBS

    One of the most influential artists of the 20thcentury, Mark Rothko’s signature style helped define Abstract Expressionism, the movement that shifted the center of the art world from Paris to New York. Interviews with Rothko’s children, Kate and Christopher, as well as leading curators, art historians and conservators present a comprehensive look at the artist’s life and career, complemented by original scenes with Alfred Molina in the role of Rothko. Over a career spanning five decades, Rothko developed his signature style: large, abstract color fields with luminous rectangular forms that balance depth, shape and hue through the delicate layering of many thin washes of paint. While Rothko’s paintings show close attention to formal elements, he was concerned with the way the paintings could represent philosophical questions. In his words, he was “interested only in expressing basic human emotions — tragedy, ecstasy, doom.”

  • SPECIAL 0x81 Unladylike: The First American Indian Doctor

    • June 17, 2020
    • PBS

    Susan La Flesche Picotte became the first American Indian woman to graduate from medical school, and is notable for founding an independently funded hospital on the Omaha reservation in Nebraska.

  • S34E03 N. Scott Momaday: Words from a Bear

    • November 18, 2019
    • PBS

    Delve into the enigmatic life and mind of the Pulitzer Prize-winning author and poet N. Scott Momaday, best known for “House Made of Dawn” and a formative voice of the Native American Renaissance in art and literature.

  • SPECIAL 0x82 Unladylike: Sissieretta Jones was a Trailblazing Black Opera Singer

    • June 24, 2020
    • PBS

    Sissieretta Jones became the first Black woman to headline a concert on the main stage at Carnegie Hall in 1892. Jones was heralded as the greatest singer of her generation and a pioneer in the operatic tradition at a time when access to most classical concert halls in the U.S. were closed to black performers and patrons. She also performed at the White House and abroad.

  • SPECIAL 0x83 Unladylike: Queen Lili‘uokalani - The First and Last Queen of Hawai‘i

    • July 1, 2020
    • PBS

    Queen Lili‘uokalani (1838-1917) was the first sovereign queen, and the last monarch of Hawai‘i, who assumed the throne in the midst of a government takeover by American business owners supported by the U.S. military. After being deposed and placed under house arrest, she fought to preserve native Hawaiian rights and traditions.

  • SPECIAL 0x84 Unladylike: She was the First Woman to Swim Across the English Channel

    • July 8, 2020
    • PBS

    Gertrude Ederle (1905-2003) made history and rocketed to international stardom in 1926 when, at age 20, she became the first woman to swim the English Channel, then considered one of the toughest endurance tests in the world, beating the fastest man's existing record by nearly two hours, and challenging notions about women being “the weaker sex.”

  • S34E04 Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool

    • February 25, 2020
    • PBS

    Discover the man behind the legend. With full access to the Miles Davis Estate, the film features never-before-seen footage, including studio outtakes from his recording sessions, rare photos and new interviews. American Masters Presents Stanley Nelson’s Grammy-nominated Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool

  • SPECIAL 0x85 Unladylike: She was a Daredevil Performer & Advocate for the Blind

    • July 15, 2020
    • PBS

    After answering an ad seeking a "young woman who can swim and dive; likes horses; desires to travel," Sonora Webster Carver became one of the most famous horse divers in the world. She continued diving for 11 years after being blinded in 1931 as a result of one of her performances, and later in life engaged in activism for the visually impaired.

  • SPECIAL 0x86 Unladylike: She was a Civil Rights Activist and Co-Founder of the NAACP

    • July 22, 2020
    • PBS

    Mary Church Terrell (1863-1954) became a national leader as founder of the National Association of Colored Women, coining its motto “Lifting As We Climb,” while also serving as a founding member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and actively wrote and spoke out about lynching and segregation throughout her life.

  • SPECIAL 0x87 Unladylike: Martha Hughes Cannon - The First Woman State Senator

    • July 29, 2020
    • PBS

    Martha Hughes Cannon (1857-1932) completed medical school, became the fourth of six wives in a polygamous Mormon marriage, and joined the women’s suffrage movement. In 1896, she was elected the country’s first female state senator, defeating her own husband who was also on the ballot.

  • SPECIAL 0x88 Unladlylike: Jovita Idar - Mexican American Activist and Journalist

    • August 5, 2020
    • PBS

    Jovita Idar (1885-1946) helped organize the first Mexican American civil rights conference in 1911 to address racism, lynching, and dismal educational opportunities for Mexican American children.

  • SPECIAL 0x89 Unladylike: Jeannette Rankin - The First Woman Member of U.S. Congress

    • August 12, 2020
    • PBS

    Jeannette Rankin (1880-1973) made history as the first woman elected to the U.S. Congress and the only member of Congress to vote against U.S. participation in World War I and World War II. A determined suffragist, she helped women in her home state of Montana win the vote and introduced what later became the 19th Amendment to secure suffrage for women nationwide.

  • SPECIAL 0x90 Unladylike: Zitkála-Šá - Trailblazing American Indian Composer and Writer

    • August 19, 2020
    • PBS

    Zitkála-Šá co-composed and wrote the libretto for the first American Indian opera and co-founded the National Council of American Indians to lobby for increased political power for American Indians.

  • SPECIAL 0x91 Unladylike: The First Black Woman to Run for Vice President of The U.S.

    • August 26, 2020
    • PBS

    Charlotta Spears Bass (1874-1969) one of the first African American women to own and operate a newspaper, and the first African American woman to run for Vice President of the United States, crusaded for over 40 years against racial violence, and discrimination in schools, housing, and the job market, in the pages of the California Eagle.

  • S34E05 Mae West: Dirty Blonde

    • June 16, 2020
    • PBS

    Dive into the life and career of groundbreaking writer, performer and subversive star Mae West. Over a career spanning eight decades, she broke boundaries and possessed creative and economic powers unheard of for a female entertainer in the 1930s.

  • SPECIAL 0x48 Anik Khan: Street Level

    • October 5, 2020
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Sofian Khan explores the music of Anik Khan, the Bangladesh-born, Queens, NY-raised hip-hop artist whose music sketches the immigrant experience with rare poetic flare and incisive depth, with a whole masala of influences at his fingertips.

  • SPECIAL 0x49 Bunky Echo-Hawk: The Resistance

    • October 5, 2020
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Ben-Alex Dupris explores how the reality and resistance of Native Americans inspire the work of Pawnee artist Bunky Echo-Hawk, igniting discussions about environmentalism, Native rights, and numerous other current topics.

  • SPECIAL 0x50 Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah: The New Chief

    • October 5, 2020
    • PBS

    Filmmakers Amitabh Joshi and Erik Spink spotlight Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, the Grammy-nominated, modern jazz musician from New Orleans who defies the expectations of jazz music while challenging how music is taught in universities nationwide.

  • SPECIAL 0x51 Damon Davis: Apologue for the Darkest Gods

    • October 5, 2020
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Elissa Blount Moorhead provides a look into the art of award-winning, post-disciplinary artist Damon Davis, the St. Louis native whose work spans across illustration, painting, printmaking, music, film, and public art that explores the African American experience.

  • SPECIAL 0x52 Maia Cruz Palileo: Becoming the Moon

    • October 5, 2020
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Ligaiya Romero amplifies the life and work of Maia Cruz Palileo, the multi-disciplinary, Brooklyn-based artist who explores themes of migration and the permeable concept of home in their works, inspired by the oral history of their family’s arrival in the United States from the Philippines.

  • SPECIAL 0x53 Vincent Valdez: The Beginning is Near

    • October 5, 2020
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Ray Santisteban highlights the art of Vincent Valdez, the San Antonio, TX-born artist who emphasizes themes of social justice, memory, and ignored or under-examined historical narratives in his work.

  • SPECIAL 0x54 Amyra León: Strange Grace

    • October 14, 2020
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Malika Zouhali-Worrall provides a portrait of Amyra León, the musician, poet, author and activist who channels deeply personal experiences of pain and healing into raw, majestic, and often cathartic performances that celebrate love, Blackness and womanhood.

  • SPECIAL 0x55 Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio: This Is the Way We Rise

    • October 14, 2020
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Ciara Lacy documents Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio, a Kanaka Maoli wahine poet, activist and academic, and her continued work towards justice for Hawaii’s native population.

  • S34E06 Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am

    • June 23, 2020
    • PBS

    Toni Morrison leads an assembly of her peers and critics on an exploration of the powerful themes she confronted throughout her literary career in this artful and intimate meditation that examines the life and work of the legendary storyteller.

  • S34E07 Unladylike2020: Unsung Women Who Changed America

    • July 10, 2020
    • PBS

    Illuminating the stories of extraordinary American heroines from the early years of feminism, American Masters — Unladylike2020 is a multimedia series consisting of a one-hour special for broadcast and 26 digital short films featuring courageous, little-known and diverse female trailblazers from the turn of the 20th century.

Season 35

  • S35E01 Walter Winchell: The Power of Gossip

    • October 20, 2020
    • PBS

    American Masters – Walter Winchell: The Power of Gossip traces the life and career of the syndicated columnist, radio news commentator and television host who pioneered the fast-paced, gossip driven, politically charged media culture that dominates today. At the height of his career, Winchell had a combined print and radio audience of 50 million and the power to make or break careers. He became the most feared and admired man in America, a man who transformed entertainment journalism and championed “Mr. and Mrs. America” in his daily columns and Sunday night radio program. Decades later, an alliance with Senator Joseph McCarthy and feuds with Josephine Baker and Ed Sullivan turned his audience against him and forced him into obscurity. Featuring Stanley Tucci as Winchell and narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, this American Masters documentary breathes new life into Winchell’s original newspaper columns and broadcast scripts, drawing on rare recordings and a recently digitized collection of his work in the Billy Rose Theatre Division at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Winchell’s own words comprise nearly a quarter of the script as the film tracks the rise and fall of his career, and his continued influence on today’s media. “He was not only present at the creation of modern journalism,” concludes biographer and film interviewee Neal Gabler, “in many respects he was the creation.”

  • SPECIAL 0x56 Masters of Drag: Julian Eltinge - Female Impersonator of the Vaudeville Era

    • March 1, 2021
    • PBS

    In this new digital series, New York's sweetest drag diva Peppermint tells the story of pioneering American drag artists. In the process, she demonstrates how drag is a performance art form that has thrived in this country for generations, entertaining LGBTQ+ and general audiences alike, and providing the former with an important outlet of self-expression.

  • S35E02 Michael Tilson Thomas: Where Now Is

    • October 23, 2020
    • PBS

    Discover the Grammy-winning conductor, pianist and composer. A National Medal of Arts recipient and longtime music director of the San Francisco Symphony, he helped set the standard that an American orchestra should champion modern American music.

  • S35E03 Keith Haring: Street Art Boy

    • December 11, 2020
    • PBS

    Artist Keith Haring blazes a trail through the art scene of 1980s New York.

  • S35E04 Laura Ingalls Wilder: Prairie to Page

    • December 29, 2020
    • PBS

    An unvarnished look at the unlikely “Little House” series author whose autobiographical fiction helped shape American ideas of the frontier and self-reliance.

  • S35E05 How It Feels To Be Free

    • January 18, 2021
    • PBS

    A documentary that tells the inspiring story of how six iconic African American women entertainers – Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, Diahann Carroll, Cicely Tyson and Pam Grier – challenged an entertainment industry deeply complicit in perpetuating racist stereotypes, and transformed themselves and their audiences in the process.

  • S35E06 Flannery

    • March 23, 2021
    • PBS

    Explore the life of Flannery O’Connor whose provocative fiction was unlike anything published before. Featuring never-before-seen archival footage, newly discovered journals and interviews with Mary Karr, Tommy Lee Jones, Hilton Als and more.

  • S35E07 Twyla Moves

    • March 26, 2021
    • PBS

    Explore legendary choreographer Twyla Tharp’s career and famously rigorous creative process, with original interviews, first-hand glimpses of her at work and rare archival footage of select performances from her more than 160 choreographed works.

  • SPECIAL 0x57 Masters of Drag: Gladys Bentley - Drag King of the Harlem Renaissance

    • June 21, 2021
    • PBS

    A gender-bending, famed blues musician and drag king who was a part of the Harlem Renaissance. She performed with drag queens and openly loved women, until later in life when she was pressured to conform to 1950s social standards.

  • SPECIAL 0x58 Renegades Pilot: Kitty O'Neil

    • July 26, 2021
    • PBS

    In this new digital series, musician and disability inclusion advocate Lachi explores the cultural contributions of people with disabilities and how they transformed America. This pilot episode investigates the amazing life and accomplishments of deaf stunt legend and speed racer Kitty O'Neil.

  • SPECIAL 0x59 Masters of Drag: Jose Sarria - Legendary Drag Queen and Queer Activist

    • July 27, 2021
    • PBS

    A legend of the San Francisco drag scene. Out and Latino, Sarria dedicated his life to fight for queer rights and even ran as the country's first known openly gay candidate for public office. An international drag charity that he helped found continues his legacy with legendary drag galas to this day.

  • S35E08 Never Too Late: The Doc Severinsen Story

    • April 2, 2021
    • PBS

    The life and career of jazz trumpeter Doc Severinsen, leader of the band for "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," who continued a schedule of touring and performing into his 90s.

  • SPECIAL 0x60 Masters of Drags: Joan Jett Blakk - The drag queen who ran for president

    • August 6, 2021
    • PBS

    On her 35th birthday, Joan Jett Blakk, the drag persona of actor Terence Smith, ran for president in lipstick, heels and eyeshadow, continuing a long tradition of drag as political activism. Blakk had also run for mayors of Chicago and San Francisco. During these “campaigns,” Blakk advocated for policies that many politicians are still talking about today, including universal healthcare.

  • SPECIAL 0x61 Masters of Drag: Flawless Sabrina - Queer Icon and Star of 'The Queen'

    • August 20, 2021
    • PBS

    She was an artist, activist, gay mother and mentor to hundreds of queer and gender non-conforming youth over the years and starred in the fabulous 1968 drag documentary "The Queen," about a drag competition that she organized. She was full of life advice for her many mentees, including her reminder that “normal is just a setting on a dryer.”

  • SPECIAL 0x62 Masters of Drag: Jean Malin - Queen of the Pansies

    • September 3, 2021
    • PBS

    Jean Malin was one of the first openly gay performers in the Prohibition era during the "pansy craze" of the early 1930s. Malin stood six feet tall, weighed 200 pounds, and had a wavy crop of blonde hair to die for. Although he was effeminate and a female impersonator, he was known to put hecklers and homophobes in their place with his wit — and his fists!

  • SPECIAL 0x63 Masters of Drag: Crystal Labeija - The Queen Who Reinvented Ball Culture

    • September 24, 2021
    • PBS

    A proud Black trans woman, a drag mother and, a pageant girl, Crystal LaBeija was the cause of an iconic moment in drag history that paved the way for house culture, voguing, Paris is Burning, and the TV series Pose.

  • SPECIAL 0x64 Masters of Drag: William Dorsey Swann - The first "Queen of Drag"

    • October 5, 2021
    • PBS

    Born into slavery, Swann was the first known person to identify as a “Queen of Drag” and the first known American activist to lead a queer resistance group.

  • S35E09 Oliver Sacks: His Own Life

    • April 9, 2021
    • PBS

    The life and work of neurologist and storyteller Oliver Sacks, including personal details about his battles with drug addiction and homophobia.

  • SPECIAL 0x65 Lights, Camera, Acción

    • October 6, 2021
    • PBS

    Discover the candid perspectives of Latine actors, writers, producers, directors, and showrunners across generations as they dissect the ever-evolving issue of Latine representation in Hollywood. Featuring Edward James Olmos, John Leguizamo, Xolo Maridueña ("Cobra Kai"), and Julissa Calderon ("Gentefied"), Peter Murrieta ("Mr. Iglesias"), Marvin Lemus ("Gentefied") and more.

  • S35E10 Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir

    • May 3, 2021
    • PBS

    The life and career of author Amy Tan, with archival imagery, home movies, photographs, animation and original interviews.

  • S35E11 Ballerina Boys

    • June 4, 2021
    • PBS

    The story of Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, a company of men who dance on pointe as ballerinas.

  • S35E12 Buddy Guy: The Blues Chase the Blues Away

    • July 27, 2021
    • PBS

    The career of blues guitarist Buddy Guy, a pioneer of Chicago's West Side sound, and his influence on rock musicians including Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton.

Season 36

  • S36E01 Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It

    • October 5, 2021
    • PBS

    For over 70 years, Rita Moreno has inspired audiences with her performances, the film follows her journey from her childhood to stardom.

  • S36E02 Becoming Helen Keller

    • October 19, 2021
    • PBS

    Revisit the complex life and legacy of the author, advocate and human rights pioneer. Helen Keller, who was deaf and blind, used her celebrity and wit to champion rights for women, people with disabilities and people living in poverty.

  • S36E03 Ailey

    • January 11, 2022
    • PBS

    The life and career of choreographer Alvin Ailey, whose dances focus on the Black experience, interviews with those close to him and a glimpse into his dance studios.

  • S36E04 Marian Anderson: The Whole World in Her Hands

    • February 8, 2022
    • PBS

    Discover an international singer who captivated royalty in Europe and defied the conscience of 1939 America. Watch rare archival footage and hear audio recordings exploring her life and career from the Metropolitan Opera to the State Department.

  • S36E05 Waterman — Duke: Ambassador of Aloha

    • May 10, 2022
    • PBS

    The journey and legacy of five-time Olympic medalist Duke Kahanamoku, who broke swimming records and popularized modern-day surfing while overcoming racism.

  • S36E06 Joe Papp in Five Acts

    • June 3, 2022
    • PBS

    Joe Papp, founder of The Public Theater, Free Shakespeare in the Park and producer of groundbreaking plays like "Hair," "A Chorus Line" and "for colored girls," created a 'theater of inclusion' based on the belief that great art is for everyone.

  • S36E07 Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road

    • June 14, 2022
    • PBS

    Explore the life and career of the singer, songwriter and co-founder of The Beach Boys. The film traces the legendary performer’s journey of reflection on a drive through Los Angeles with his longtime friend and Rolling Stone editor Jason Fine.

Season 37

  • S37E01 Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On

    • November 22, 2022
    • PBS

    Experience the story of the Oscar-winning Indigenous artist from her rise to prominence in New York’s Greenwich Village folk music scene through her six-decade groundbreaking career as a singer-songwriter, social activist, educator and artist.

  • S37E02 The Adventures of Saul Bellow

    • December 12, 2022
    • PBS

    Explore Nobel Prize winner Saul Bellow's impact on American literature and how he navigated through issues of his time, including race, gender and the Jewish immigrant experience. Featuring interviews with Philip Roth, Salman Rushdie and others.

  • S37E03 Groucho & Cavett

    • December 27, 2022
    • PBS

    Discover the enduring friendship between television personality Dick Cavett and his mentor iconic comedian Groucho Marx. Their relationship is chronicled through interviews with Cavett, archival footage and interviews with George Burns and others.

  • S37E04 Roberta Flack

    • January 24, 2023
    • PBS

    American Masters: Roberta Flack follows the music icon from a piano lounge through her rise to stardom. From “First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” to “Killing Me Softly,” Flack’s virtuosity was inseparable from her commitment to civil rights. Detailing her story in her own words, the film features exclusive access to Flack’s archives and interviews with Rev. Jesse Jackson, Peabo Bryson and more.

  • S37E05 Dr. Tony Fauci

    • March 21, 2023
    • PBS

    Follow Dr. Anthony Fauci as he grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic and his 50-year career as the nation’s leading public health advocate. American Masters: Dr. Tony Fauci reveals a rarely seen side of the physician, husband and father as he confronts political backlash, a new administration and questions of the future.

  • S37E06 In the Making

    • March 24, 2023
    • PBS

    Follow two performers as they break down barriers in music. Opera singer J’Nai Bridges takes the stage in “A Knee on the Neck,” a choral tribute to George Floyd. Country artist Rissi Palmer redefines success as she works on her latest album, while uplifting other artists of color in the Americana genres.

  • S37E07 Nam June Paik: Moon is the Oldest TV

    • May 16, 2023
    • PBS

    See the world through the eyes of Nam June Paik, the father of video art and coiner of the term “electronic superhighway.” Born in Japan-occupied Korea, Paik went on to become a pillar of the American avant-garde and transformed modern image-making with his sculptures, films and performances. Experience his creative evolution, as Academy Award nominee Steven Yeun reads from Paik's own writings.

  • S37E08 Little Richard: King and Queen of Rock 'n' Roll

    • June 2, 2023
    • PBS

    Experience the meteoric rise and enduring legacy of Little Richard. This portrait of the "King and Queen of Rock 'n' Roll" explores his far-reaching influence, including his advocacy for the rights of Black artists in the music industry.

  • SPECIAL 0x42 Alejandro Jimenez: The Ground I Stand On

    • April 4, 2023

    The Ground I Stand On is a lyrical and meditative documentary short that explores the work and creative process of Alejandro Jimenez, Mexico’s 2021 Slam Poetry champion. See how his life experience as a U.S. immigrant farm worker shape his unique vision of the power of poetry and its connection to a collective past.

Season 38

  • SPECIAL 0x41 Lily Gladstone: Far Out There

    • March 14, 2023

    Filmmaker Brooke Pepion Swaney profiles independent film actress Lily Gladstone as she prepares for the release of a high-profile Hollywood film. Drawing from her childhood on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana and her peripatetic life as a professional actor, Gladstone learns to stand on her own two feet in order to make her voice heard.

  • SPECIAL 0x43 Walshy Fire: Pull Up

    • April 11, 2023
    • PBS

  • SPECIAL 0x44 Senghor Reid: Make Way For Tomorrow

    • April 17, 2023
    • PBS

  • SPECIAL 0x45 Ethan Lim: Cambodian Futures

    • April 24, 2023
    • PBS

  • SPECIAL 0x46 Sydney G. James: How We See Us

    • March 21, 2023
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Juanita Anderson follows visual artist Sydney G. James, whose bold brush strokes in murals and large-scale paintings amplify the presence of Black women, Black families and Black culture in her hometown of Detroit. Through her work as a mentor and as co-founder of the BLKOUT Walls Mural Festival, James inspires her fellow Detroiters to come together to celebrate their community.

  • SPECIAL 0x47 Jonathan Thunder: Good Mythology

    • March 28, 2023
    • PBS

    Filmmaker Sergio Rapu follows Anishinaabe artist Jonathan Thunder as he dives deep into the inspirations behind his surrealist paintings and animations. From the killing of an iconic American hero to critical perspectives of how indigenous people were portrayed in early children’s cartoons, Thunder’s art prompts viewers to take a critical look at our shared mythologies.

  • S38E01 Jerry Brown: The Disrupter

    • September 15, 2023
    • PBS

    Jerry Brown is a man ahead of his time. A natural disrupter, Jerry kickstarted the national debate about climate change and spiraling inequality back in the 1970s. A three-time presidential candidate—who created the blueprint for today's grassroots campaigns—Jerry Brown also achieved the remarkable feat of being elected Governor of California at the very different ages of 36 and 72. For over five decades, Brown has proven his willingness to sacrifice everything—even getting elected—for the causes to which he's devoted. In this candid and emotionally compelling portrait, Brown opens up about his remarkable fifty-year political career, his singular private life, and the lessons learned from a life in the public eye.

  • S38E02 Floyd Abrams: Speaking Freely

    • September 22, 2023
    • PBS

    The 50-year career of First Amendment attorney Floyd Abrams, whose landmark cases include the Pentagon Papers and Citizens United.

  • S38E03 A Song for Cesar

    • September 29, 2023
    • PBS

    A tribute to Cesar Chavez, the farmworker movement, and the United Farm Workers Union. Through the lens of music, artists explore how Chavez's legacy of peaceful protest, perseverance and artistic inspiration can change the world.

  • S38E04 Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes

    • October 6, 2023
    • PBS

    Experience the groundbreaking sounds of bebop pioneer and virtuoso composer Max Roach, whose far-reaching ambitions were inspired and challenged by the inequities of the society around him.

  • S38E05 Hopper: An American Love Story

    • January 2, 2024
    • PBS

    A deep look into Edward Hopper's art, life, and relationships explores the enigmatic personality behind the brush of an artist whose work has influenced countless painters, photographers, filmmakers, and musicians. See how his marriage to artist Josephine Hopper shaped his art.

  • SPECIAL 0x92 Searching for Augusta Savage

    • February 15, 2024
    • PBS

    Augusta Savage was the first person in the U.S. to open a gallery dedicated to African American art. A Harlem Renaissance sculptor and art educator, she was also one of the first Black women art activists of her time and fought for the inclusion of Black artists in the mainstream canon. Art historian Jeffreen M. Hayes, Ph.D. explores Savage's legacy, and why her artwork has been largely erased.

  • S38E06 Daniel Patrick Moynihan

    • March 29, 2024
    • PBS

Additional Specials