War of the Worlds Preview
A broadcast that struck fear into an already anxious nation, Orson Welles' War of the Worlds radio broadcast was the most famous alien invasion that never happened.
The Mic Went Dead
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.
From Martian to German
"Alien army invader in the late '30s was quickly translatable from Martian to German." --David Ropeik, Journalist "War of the Worlds" premieres October 29, 2013 at 9pm ET on PBS.
War of the Worlds: Outtakes
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.
There Was No Stopping Orson Welles
At one point during Orson Welles' "War of the Worlds" broadcast, CBS network executives ordered an identifying station break to tell listeners that it was only a play. By that time, however, there was no stopping Orson Welles.
Fear and the Great Depression
By the time of the "War of the Worlds" broadcast in 1938, U.S. citizens had been suffering through the Great Depression for nearly ten years. In his 1933 inaugural address, FDR recognized that the dominant mood of the country in the 1930s was not anger or resentment at the capitalist system but in fact was shame and fear.
AMERICAN EXPERIENCE's 25th Anniversary
On October 4, 1988, PBS broadcast The American Experience’s first documentary, "The Great San Francisco Earthquake." Twenty-five years and nearly 300 films later, AMERICAN EXPERIENCE has grown to become the country’s most-watched history series, setting the standard for intelligent, critical, and compelling, and critical view of America's history.
Coming this Fall
Watch a short video about what is coming to American Experience during our 25th anniversary season this October and November, with a message from Executive Producer Mark Samels. The season kicks off with "War of the Worlds" on October 29, followed by "JFK" on November 11 & 12.
John D. Rockefeller
John D. Rockefeller was the world's first billionaire and the most hated man in America. Watch the epic story of the man who monopolized oil.
Silicon Valley Chapter 1
Led by physicist Robert Noyce, Fairchild Semiconductor began as a start-up company whose radical innovations would help make the United States a leader in both space exploration and the personal computer revolution, changing the way the world works, plays, and communicates. Noyce's invention of the microchip ultimately re-shaped the future. Premiering February 5, 2013 at 9pm ET.
Silicon Valley in the 60s
Throughout the early 1960s thousands of young men and women poured into the Santa Clara valley every month, lured by the booming electronics and defense industries. "There was just too much talent stuffed into one place."
Silicon Valley Preview
Led by physicist Robert Noyce, Fairchild Semiconductor began as a start-up company whose radical innovations would help make the United States a leader in both space exploration and the personal computer revolution, changing the way the world works, plays, and communicates. Noyce's invention of the microchip ultimately re-shaped the future, launching the world into the Information Age.
Robert Noyce Goes to Silicon Valley
As an undergraduate student, Robert Noyce sees the technical reports on the brand new transistor and knew he was looking at the future. "The concept hit me like the atom bomb," he later recalled. But he does not like the structure of the large East Coast tech companies.
The Wild West in Silicon Valley
During the early days of Silicon Valley, physicists and engineers from various companies in the valley would meet at "The Wagon Wheel," a hangout for Fairchild employees and for people who worked at Fairchild spin-off companies. As one Fairchild employee put it, the Wagon Wheel was a hub of networking.
Silicon Valley and the Digital Revolution
Introduced in 1971, the microprocessor is basically the fundamental driving force and brain of all of the digital equipment we use today -- from iPhones and computers to notebooks and tablets.
Henry Ford and Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison was Henry Ford's hero. In 1896, shortly after building his quadricycle, Henry Ford had the chance to meet the famous inventor at a convention in New York. Edison, who was convinced the future lay in electric powered cars, encouraged Ford to "keep at it." In 1907, Ford was on the brink of releasing the Model T. The inventors forged a friendship that lasted their whole lives.
Henry Ford Gives Dance Lessons
In the 1920s, many Americans were listening to Jazz and learning the Charleston. Henry Ford preferred the country dances he learned as a boy - quadrilles, gavottes, the schottische, the polka and the chorus jig were his favorites. Later in life he hosted dance lessons in Dearborn twice a week to teach what he believed was the correct, old way of dancing.
A Titan of American Industry Gives a Piggy Back Ride
Despite being hard on his only son Edsel, Henry Ford doted upon his grandchildren. Edsel's first son, Henry II, who would later become president of Ford Motor Company, is seen here at age two, playing with his grandfather in the garden at Fair Lane estate on June 9, 1920.
Henry Ford Chapter 1
The biography of a farm boy who rose from obscurity to become the most influential American innovator of the 20th century, this documentary of Henry Ford offers an incisive look at the birth of the American auto industry with its long history of struggles between labor and management. Premiering January 29, 2012 at 9/8c on PBS.
Henry Ford Preview
The biography of a farm boy who rose from obscurity to become the most influential American innovator of the 20th century, this documentary of Henry Ford offers an incisive look at the birth of the American auto industry with its long history of struggles between labor and management.
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