American Experience

History Series / 15 Seasons

American Experience, TV's most-watched history series, brings to life the compelling stories from our past that inform our understanding of the world today.

52m 54s

Filming in the Amazon

1m 16s

To produce Into the Amazon, the filmmaking team quite literally ventured into the Amazon. Filmmakers John Maggio and Hannah Olson offer a behind-the-scenes look at what it took to bring to life Theodore Roosevelt’s death-defying journey down an uncharted river in Brazil.

Filming with Wildlife

1m 26s

Snakes, spiders, and howler monkeys — those are just a few of the animals the crew of Into the Amazon contended with when filming in Brazil. Filmmakers John Maggio and Hannah Olson discuss the many creatures they met during their efforts to bring to life Teddy Roosevelt’s journey down a river in Brazil.

The Secret of Tuxedo Park: Chapter 1

8m 51s

In the fall of 1940, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill ordered a small team of scientists on a clandestine transatlantic mission to deliver his country’s most valuable military secret — a revolutionary radar component — not to the U.S. government, but to a mysterious Wall Street tycoon, Alfred Lee Loomis.

Blizzard of 1888

1m 8s

In 1888, the east coast experienced one of the worst blizzards in American history. It dumped four feet of snow and left hundreds dead. But it also helped inspire one of the greatest infrastructure projects in American history — the nation’s first subway.

Into the Amazon: Chapter 1

8m 25s

The remarkable story of the journey taken by President Theodore Roosevelt and legendary Brazilian explorer Candido Rondon into the heart of the South American rainforest to chart an unexplored tributary of the Amazon in 1914.

Into the Amazon: Candido Rondon

1m 13s

When Theodore Roosevelt accepted an expedition down an unknown river in Brazil, his guide was to be a man named Cândido Rondon. Rondon was a colonel in the Brazilian army, and had spent the previous ten years fording a path through the Amazon and laying thousands of miles of telegraph wire. He was considered the Lewis and Clark of Brazil. Filmmaker John Maggio introduces the intrepid explorer.

Into the Amazon: Kermit Roosevelt

1m 28s

Kermit Roosevelt was Theodore and Edith Roosevelt’s second child. When TR accepted an invitation to the Amazon after he lost the 1912 election, Edith pleaded with her son to accompany his father. The trip very nearly killed TR. But when Theodore pleaded with Kermit to leave him behind to save the expedition, Kermit refused. Into the Amazon filmmaker John Maggio talks about the famous son.

Into the Amazon: Theodore Roosevelt

1m 17s

After Theodore Roosevelt lost the 1912 election, he was devastated and bereft. He accepted an invitation to take a trip down the River of Doubt, an uncharted river in the Amazon. Led by Brazilian explorer Cândido Rondon, the trip was a life-changing experience for TR — one that tested his physical and emotional fortitude. Into the Amazon filmmaker John Maggio talks about TR’s journey.

The Secret of Tuxedo Park: Trailer

30s

The Secret of Tuxedo Park tells the story of Wall Street tycoon Alfred Lee Loomis and his team of scientists who developed radar technology that played a decisive role in winning World War II.

The Gilded Age: Trailer

30s

Meet the titans and barons of the glittering late 19th century, whose materialistic extravagance contrasted harshly with the poverty of the struggling workers who challenged them. The vast disparities between them sparked debates still raging today.

Coming in 2018

3m

2018 kicks off American Experience's 30th season. Series Executive Producer Mark Samels introduces four new documentaries: Into the Amazon (January 9), The Secret of Tuxedo Park (January 16), The Gilded Age (February 6), and The Bombing of Wall Street (February 13).

Le Chemin des Dames

5m 42s

“Word of this place and this graffiti had been passed down from generation to generation. A hundred years on, it has sort of taken on the air of legend,” says writer Richard Rubin. “You hear that it’s out there and you set off in search of it.” Richard Rubin is the author of The Last of the Doughboys: The Forgotten Generation and Their Forgotten World War and Back Over There.

The Bombing of Wall Street: Trailer

30s

Explore the story behind the first terrorist attack in the U.S., a mostly-forgotten 1920 bombing in the nation’s financial center that left 38 dead – a crime that remains unsolved today.

The Women of Avenger Fields

1m 17s

At the height of WWII, American male pilots were sent into combat duty, creating a severe shortage of pilots at home. Between 1942 and 1944, more than a thousand women left homes and jobs to become the first females in history to fly for the United States Military.

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