The NAACP and Its Architects

American Experience

History Series / 14 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.

Watch Latest: S37 E2

53m

JFK Extended Preview

2m 30s

This biography provides a fresh look at an enigmatic man who has become one of the nation's most beloved and most mourned leaders. Scheduled for broadcast on the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination, the film re-evaluates JFK's strengths and weaknesses and provides new insights into his private life. Premieres November 11 & 12, 2013 at 9/8c. Check your local listings.

JFK, Part 1, Chapter 1

9m 5s

By the time he came of age, John Fitzgerald Kennedy inhabited a world of special exemption: the family estate in suburban New York, the summer compound in Hyannis Port, the winter retreat in Palm Beach. The story of his family's heroic multi-generational rise from the want of Irish famine might well have been a misty old folktale. The past was not the point in the Kennedy household.

JFK Series Preview

30s

Before that moment, beyond the glamour, behind the charm lies the true story of JFK. Now, see his life as never before in a stunning new portrait from American Experience. Premiering on PBS November 11 & 12 at 9/8c.

JFK on Policing the World: The Soviet Menace

1m 58s

As soon as he took office, Kennedy became increasingly worried about turning the Cold War into a hot one, resulting in nuclear catastrophe. Nikita Khrushchev continued to aid in the spread of communism around the world and Kennedy wanted to show the American public he would not be bullied by the Soviet premier.

JFK on the Enemy: The Red Threat

2m 44s

Kennedy believed his first diplomatic meeting with Nikita Khrushchev would be a lesson in compromise. But when it was clear the Soviet premier was unwilling to negotiate over Berlin and more than willing to talk casually about nuclear weapons, Kennedy told him "it's going to be a very cold winter." Kennedy left uneasy.

JFK's First Lady: Jackie and the White House

2m 59s

Raising more than a million dollars for the project, Jackie Kennedy set out to restore the White House and make it a center of art and culture. She debuted her project in a television special called "A Tour of the White House with Mrs. John F. Kennedy." When the show producer showed John Kennedy clips of the film, he looked on in adoration.

War of the Worlds: Outtakes

1m 18s

To bring freshness to the story behind Orson Welles' famous broadcast, producers used letters written by listeners right after hearing War of the Worlds. Actors delivered monologues of parts of these letters as if they were archival interviews - you can see it in the film. Here, actors have some fun at the end of the day describing what it's like to play a character from the 1930s.

Radios by the Millions

29s

During the height of the Great Depression, radios were being purchased by the millions. By 1938, nearly 80% of American homes had a radio. People were willing to forego many modern technological conveniences, but the radio remained a lifeline for the American public.

The Mic Went Dead

1m 5s

The War of the Worlds has become the one most legendary radio broadcasts in history. Twenty-three year old Orson Welles directed the famous radio drama on October 30, 1938, the night before Halloween referred to as "Mischief Night." Throughout the program, which would come to be known as "The Panic Broadcast," ten actors and a 27 piece orchestra eagerly awaited his direction.

Making War of the Worlds

2m 59s

Actors, antique radios, and the greatest prank of all times. Go behind the scenes with the producers of War of the Worlds on filming the letters sent to Orson Welles and CBS Radio after the 1938 broadcast.

The Power of Propaganda

18s

Many Americans could not fathom that some people heard War of the Worlds and actually believed that Martians had landed in New Jersey. Time and again, newspapers blamed the listener. To journalist Dorothy Thompson, who applauded Welles in her widely-read column, the episode cleverly proved the power of propaganda. Watch this video to hear what she wrote in her column.

War of the Worlds Chapter 1

7m 16s

On October 30, 1938, Orson Welles gave the nation a Halloween scare with his radio broadcast of an adaptation of H.G. Wells' 1898 novel, "The War of the Worlds." Watch chapter 1 of War of the Worlds, premiering on PBS October 29, 2013 at 9/8c.

Orson Welles' Press Conference

23s

Orson Welles could not imagine how anyone could believe that Martians had really landed in New Jersey. At the CBS press conference the day following his "War of the Worlds" broadcast, Welles was asked whether he believed he had taken advantage of the public. "I can't imagine an invasion from Mars would find ready acceptance," responded Welles.

A Grave Announcement

22s

Shortly after 8 p.m. on the Halloween Eve, 1938, the voice of a panicked radio announcer broke in with a news bulletin reporting strange explosions taking place on the planet Mars, followed minutes later by a report that Martians had landed in the tiny town of Grovers Mill, New Jersey. "War of the Worlds" premieres October 29, 2013 at 9pm ET on PBS.

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