American Masters

History Series / 11 Seasons

American Masters, committed to producing comprehensive film biographies about the broad cast of characters who comprise our cultural history.

1h 51m / TV-14

Dorothea Lange's Portrait Studio in San Francisco

1m 45s

In 1919 at the age of 24, Dorothea Lange opened her own portrait studio in San Francisco, which was a success and simultaneously became a social gathering spot for artists. American Masters — Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning premieres nationwide Friday, August 29, 9-11 pm on PBS.

Tanaquil Le Clercq in Jerome Robbins' Afternoon of a Faun

1m 35s / TV-PG

"Afternoon of a Faun," a love pas deux choreographed by Jerome Robbins for the New York City Ballet, was made on Tanaquil Le Clercq, who premiered the work in 1953 along with partner Francisco Moncion. In this excerpt, she dances the ballet with Jacques d'Amboise, who describes dancing with her. "American Masters -- Tanaquil Le Clercq: Afternoon of a Faun" airs June 20, 2014 at 10 pm on PBS.

Polio and Iron Lungs in the 1950s. Le Clercq's Illness.

1m 42s / TV-PG

Ballerina Tanaquil Le Clercq contracted polio while on tour in Europe in 1956. She was hospitalized in Copenhagen, where an iron lung kept her breathing and her husband George Balanchine stayed to care for her. "American Masters -- Tanaquil Le Clercq: Afternoon of a Faun," includes archival footage showing patients in iron lung machines. It airs Friday, June 20 on PBS (check local listings).

Tanaquil Le Clercq, the Ideal Balanchine Dancer

1m 7s

Tanaquil Le Clercq was one of George Balanchine's muses and her body and style became an ideal in ballet. This excerpt from "American Masters -- Tanaquil Le Clercq: Afternoon of a Faun" shows her dancing in Balanchine's "Concerto Barocco" and includes commentary from Balanchine's assistant and New York City Ballet dancer Patricia McBride Lousada on how Le Clercq ("Tanny") became the "ideal."

Western Symphony: One of Tanaquil Le Clercq's Last Dances

56s / TV-PG

Watch a clip of Tanaquil Le Clercq and Jacques d’Amboise in Western Symphony, one of the last ballets Le Clercq performed in before falling ill with polio on the New York City Ballet's European tour in 1956. Jacques d'Amboise remembers his last dance with Tanny. Watch American Masters - Tanaquil Le Clercq: Afternoon of a Faun on Friday, June 20 at 10 pm on PBS.

Tanaquil Le Clercq: Afternoon of a Faun - Trailer

2m 21s

Tanaquil Le Clercq (1929–2000) was a mesmerizing 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. The film premieres June 20 at 10 pm on PBS.

George Plimpton: Making a Success out of Failure

3m 11s / TV-PG

Writer and journalist George Plimpton (1927–2003) did not show much early promise when he flunked out of the college preparatory school Exeter (Phillips Exeter Academy), where his family held an esteemed reputation. In a film excerpt, Plimpton's son reads his father's essay: "How Failing at Exeter Made a Success of George Plimpton.” Tune in to PBS on Friday, May 16 at 9 pm for the full film.

Plimpton Gives Writer Jay McInerney His Debut

2m 17s / TV-PG

Author Jay McInerney says that George Plimpton "liked to tell people that he had saved me from becoming a pharmacist." It was Plimpton who published McInerney's first story ever in "The Paris Review" in 1982, which formed the basis for the iconic novel, "Bright Lights, Big City." This is a web exclusive outtake from "Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself," airing May 16 at 9 pm on PBS.

Ric Burns on George Plimpton's Death

2m 10s / TV-PG

"It was like a light on top of the Empire State Building went out when he died," says filmmaker Ric Burns about Plimpton's death in 2003. "You felt like he couldn't die. His indescribably handsome, boyish quality kept on giving the older he got. His eternally adolescent, prep school energy promised to keep on going." A web exclusive outtake from "Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself."

George Plimpton at the Helm of The Paris Review

2m 38s / TV-14

George Plimpton was famous for shaping one of the country's most prestigious literary magazines, all while keeping it fun. He encouraged his young staff and created an informal community with plenty of apartment parties and sports activities. Robert Silvers of The New York Review of Books calls Plimpton "a ringmaster of a little circus."

Robert F. Kennedy: Friend and Admirer of George Plimpton

1m 55s

In this film excerpt, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recalls his father's admiration for Plimpton. "My father admired George for his courage, he had a curiosity about life and I think that’s the thing that probably attracted my father the most to him," says Kennedy, Jr. "Like my father, he saw life as a great adventure." Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself airs May 16, 2014 at 9 pm on PBS.

Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself - Trailer

2m 8s

Co-founder of The Paris Review, George Plimpton (1927–2003) was a fascinated and fascinating journalist who lived fully, strangely and incredibly. With George Plimpton’s own narration, the film includes extensive archival footage of his sport stunts and participatory journalism gigs, and interviews with friends, family and contemporaries. Premieres nationally Friday, May 16, 9-10:30 p.m. on PBS.

Peter Matthiessen Interview About The Paris Review

1m 28s / TV-PG

Writer Peter Matthiessen (May 22, 1927 – April 5, 2014) co-founded the prestigious literary magazine The Paris Review in 1953, along with George Plimpton (whom Matthiessen grew up with and recruited) and Harold L. Humes. In an interview he gave for "Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself," Matthiessen fondly recollects the new writing and established authors featured in The Paris Review.

George Plimpton's Famous April Fool's Day Joke

3m 11s

For the April 1, 1985, issue of Sports Illustrated, George Plimpton profiled Sidd Finch, an incredible rookie baseball pitcher for The New York Mets. The story was too good to be true, and Plimpton asked his then personal assistant at The Paris Review, the now famous author Jonathan Dee, to keep the joke alive while Plimpton was traveling. Dee recalls the hoax in this web exclusive from Plimpton!

The Workers Who Saved the Amazon Rainforest

2m / TV-14

In the 1980s the fate of the Amazon rainforest turned on an unlikely environmental hero: Chico Mendes (1944 - 1988), a poor rubber tapper and union organizer in Brazil. As cattle ranching and logging threatened the rainforest with deforestation, Mendes formed a workers union that aligned itself with environmentalism. This excerpt is from American Masters: A Fierce Green Fire, premiering 4/22/14.

When the Sierra Club Saved the Grand Canyon

3m 17s

In the late 1960s, the Sierra Club's fight to save the Grand Canyon from dams was met by retaliation by the IRS. Between the Sierra Club's advertising campaign and the involvement of the IRS, public opinion was galvanized to protect the Grand Canyon. This video is an excerpt from American Masters: A Fierce Green Fire, premiering on PBS on Earth Day, April 22, 2014.

A Dangerous Whale Rescue Mission by Greenpeace

2m 48s / TV-14

Rex Wyler and Paul Watson, both among the co-founders of Greenpeace, describe the danger and tragedy of the first whale rescue mission they conducted in 1975, when Russian whale hunters were tracking a pod off the coast of California. This video with archival footage of the rescue mission is an excerpt from American Masters: A Fierce Green Fire, premiering on PBS on Earth Day, April 22, 2014.

Love Canal: Children and Toxic Waste

1m 3s / TV-PG

The neighborhood called Love Canal in Niagara Falls, New York, was neither the first nor the worst toxic waste dump, but it became a national story in the late 1970s thanks to the organizing efforts of Lois Gibbs, who fought to protect Love Canal's children, including her own, from the 20,000 tons of toxic waste in the ground. An excerpt from "American Masters: Fierce Green Fire," airing April 22.

Women in the Environmental Movement

2m 13s

In this web exclusive video, learn why the Indian women of the Chipko Movement became known as tree huggers and what their defensive tactics were. The Kenyan environmental and political activist Wangari Maathai (1940 - 2011) founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977 and was the first African women to receive a Nobel Peace Prize. Watch "A Fierce Green Fire" on April 22, 2014, at 9 pm on PBS.

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