Direct current required thousands of little power plants at every mile, while alternating current allowed one source to power a much larger area. Alternating current transformed daily life in the 20th century, and made Tesla famous.

At the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago, 160,000 light bulbs lit up the evening sky over Chicago. Westinghouse had outfoxed Edison, winning the contract to wire the Exposition with alternating current.

Nikola Tesla needed ambient electricity to make his wireless inventions work. So he created the Tesla coil.

American Experience premieres two new documentaries coming to PBS this fall: Tesla on October 18 and The Battle of Chosin on November 1. Looking ahead to April 2017, we take a sneak peek at The Great War.

The life and career of our 41st president, from his service in World War II and his early career in Texas to his days in the Oval Office, first as vice president to Ronald Reagan, then as the leader who presided over the first Gulf War.

In 1988, after two terms in office, Ronald Reagan left the White House one of the most popular presidents of the 20th century -- and one of the most controversial.

Jimmy Carter's story is one of the greatest dramas in American politics. In 1980, he was overwhelmingly voted out of office in a humiliating defeat. Over the subsequent two decades, he became one of the most admired statesmen and humanitarians in America and the world.

Even today, decades after his death, Richard Nixon inspires divided passions in America. Nixon was a self-made man who rose from modest Quaker beginnings in California to the most powerful office in the world. Admired and reviled, loved and hated, the man and his life continue to fascinate us.

President Lyndon B. Johnson's visions of a Great Society were swallowed up in the quagmire of Vietnam: the unpopular and costly war eroded his political base and left him an exile within his own White House.

Forever enshrined in myth by an assassin's bullet, John F. Kennedy's presidency long defied objective appraisal. While maturation, as evidenced in the handling of the Cuban missile crisis, was apparent, the potential legacy of the New Frontier will forever be left to speculation.

Revisit the lives of six recent presidents -- John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush -- in films from our award-winning collection. Beginning August 8 on PBS American Experience.

In August 1936, just outside Berlin, Germany, crowds gathered for the marquee event of the Olympic rowing contests: the men's eight. The host nation had won more medals than any other and looked to dominate the final race. As Adolf Hitler looked on, nine boys from Washington prepared to row the biggest race of their lives. "The Boys of '36" premieres 8/2 at 9/8c on PBS.

The national rowing championship was June 22nd, and Washington’s strategy was to exercise patience in the four mile race. "The Boys of '36" premieres August 2 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.

The boys from Washington had to win one more time to become the first Washington crew to represent the United States in the Olympics. "The Boys of '36" premieres August 2 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.

Don Hume wasn't a physically imposing athlete, but he had a gift for rowing that helped lead the University of Washington rowing team to Olympic victory in 1936. "The Boys of '36" premieres August 2 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.

On July 15, 1936 more than 300 members of the U.S. Olympic team boarded the SS Manhattan to travel to the Olympic Games in Berlin. The boat also carried precious cargo: the boys from Washington's racing shell, the Husky Clipper. "The Boys of '36" premieres August 2 at 9/8c on American Experience PBS.

The 1936 Olympic Opening Ceremony was held on August 1 at the Reichssportsfeld in Berlin. Cheers echoed throughout the stadium as Adolf Hitler entered. "The Boys of '36" premieres August 2 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.

In the summer of 1936, nine working class young men from the University of Washington took the rowing world and the nation by a storm when they captured the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Berlin. American Experience Executive Producer, Mark Samels talks about the series' upcoming documentary on the "Boys of '36," inspired by the best-selling book by Daniel James Brown.

In 1936, nine working-class young men from the University of Washington took the rowing world and America by storm when they captured the gold medal at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. Their unexpected victory gave hope to a nation struggling to emerge from the depths of the Great Depression. The Boys of '36 premieres August 2 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.

Radioing he had "a ring-side view of the heavens" Air Force officer David G. Simons made history in 1957 high aboard his Manhigh II balloon. He rose 101,500 feet above Earth, writing later he could barely comprehend the beauty of the sky. He was celebrated by The New York Times as "The First Space Man." "Space Men" premieres March 1 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.