American Masters

History Series / 16 Seasons

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

1h 42m / TV-14

Janis Ian: Breaking Silence

2m 30s

Discover the life of singer-songwriter Janis Ian and how she rose as a folk icon and gay rights advocate. She broke ground with “Society’s Child” (1966), a bold take on interracial love, and “At Seventeen” (1975), a searing anthem about bullying.

Janis Ian wrote “Some People’s Lives” as a tribute to her friend

3m 2s

Janis Ian wrote “Some People’s Lives” with songwriter Kye Fleming, inspired by a restaurant owner they were friends with named Mary, who felt that she had not contributed anything to the world. They presented this song to Mary to show her how she had made an impact.

How Janis Ian wrote “Society’s Child”

1m 10s

Janis Ian was inspired to write “Society’s Child” after observing an interracial couple on her school bus. Ian wrote the song at just 15 years old, imagining the societal pressures the couple may have been under.

Why Janis Ian’s song “At Seventeen” was so universally beloved

2m 5s

Janis Ian wrote “At Seventeen” about the “pain of adolescence” and not fitting in, but the themes of the song spoke to audiences of all kinds and had a universal relevance. The song later won the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

In The Making: Season 3

1m 2s

This documentary shorts series from American Masters and Firelight Media follows emerging cultural icons – creators who bring insight and originality to their craft – on their journeys to becoming masters of their artistic disciplines.

Art Spiegelman: Disaster is My Muse

2m

Explore the work of cartoonist Art Spiegelman and the impact of his Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel Maus, about his parents’ survival of the Holocaust. A defender of free speech, Spiegelman has spoken out as book bans spread across the country.

The double meaning behind Art Spiegelman’s “Maus”

1m 57s

Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel “Maus” was about both his father Vladek’s experiences in the Holocaust and the difficult relationship they had with each other.

Art Spiegelman interpreted the Holocaust from a child’s perspective

1m 24s

Art Spiegelman’s “Li’l Pitcher” comic depicts a young boy who learns about the horrors of the Holocaust while listening to his parents’ conversation during a car ride.

One of the most important pages of Art Spiegelman’s “Maus”

2m 6s

In this segment of “Maus,” Art Spiegelman illustrated four Jewish victims hung by Nazis in Poland that Spiegelman’s parents knew. The page provides details about the victims as people, humanizing them and asking readers to slow down and acknowledge the horrors of the Holocaust.

Art Spiegelman wrote this comic about his family’s experiences on 9/11

1m 21s

When the Spiegelman family witnessed the towers falling on 9/11, they noticed that the gray of the buildings fell first, leaving bright red beams hanging in the air that slowly disintegrated. Art Spiegelman later depicted this in his comic, “In the Shadow of No Towers.”

How Art Spiegelman got involved in the world of underground comix

1m 40s

Art Spiegelman’s “Maus” was featured in the comic book “Funny Aminals” in 1972, with a cover by Robert Crumb, one of Spiegelman’s comic heroes. Being part of “Funny Aminals” helped Spiegelman feel like he had established himself in the comics scene.

Watch this never-before-seen footage of Liza Minnelli in the 1970s

9m 38s

While going through her archives, Liza Minnelli uncovered rare footage from her early 1970s concert tour in Europe. The footage contains clips from her performances, rehearsals, and behind-the-scenes moments with her sister, Lorna Luft.

Liza Minnelli on dealing with the press at an early age

1m 40s

As the daughter of Judy Garland and director Vincente Minnelli, Liza Minnelli learned how to handle the press at a young age, which helped with the media attention that came after the successes of “Cabaret” and “Liza with a Z.”

Liza Minnelli created her own family

1m 52s

Liza Minnelli struggled with fertility issues throughout her life and wasn’t able to have children of her own. However, she surrounded herself with close friends and became a godmother to several of her friends’ children, creating her own chosen family.

What Liza Minnelli was like in her relationships

2m 53s

Friends described Liza Minnelli as going into her relationships with fervor and passion, even if they were only for a short period of time. “She throws herself into the relationship with the same passion that she throws herself into a song. But then just like in a song, you then go on to the next song.”

Liza Minnelli showcased her talents in “Liza with a Z”

3m 20s

Liza Minnelli made “Liza with a Z,” a concert film made for television, with producer Fred Ebb and choreographer Bob Fosse in 1972. The show highlighted both Liza’s personality and her performance capabilities. “What Fred Ebb did in collaboration with her is to take anything that was unpolished and awkward about Liza ... and either polish it or embrace the vulnerabilities.”

LIZA: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story

2m 14s

Take an intimate look into the life of Liza Minnelli, best known for her Oscar-winning role in Cabaret. Following in the footsteps of her mother Judy Garland, Minnelli used her boundless raw talent to build her own legacy in showbiz.

When Hazel Scott was accused of communist ties

4m 18s

When Hazel Scott's name appeared in "Red Channels," a book by former FBI agents accusing entertainers of affiliations with communism, she was determined to clear her name. Before the House Un-American Activities Committee, Scott wrote a 50-page statement declaring her innocence, but HUAC had already made up their minds about her.

The Disappearance of Miss Scott

3m 18s

Learn about jazz virtuoso and screen superstar Hazel Scott, the first Black American to have their own television show. An early civil rights pioneer, she faced down the Red Scare at the risk of losing her career and was a champion for equality. The film features interviews with Mickey Guyton, Tracie Thoms, Amanda Seales, and Sheryl Lee Ralph as the voice of Hazel Scott.

Hazel Scott went on strike in her most popular film role

4m 19s

Hazel Scott is most well-known for her role in the film "The Heat's On," where she plays two pianos at once. However, while shooting the movie, Scott refused to have the Black women in the film wear soiled aprons to see their husbands off to war and staged a strike until their costumes were changed. This act of defiance ultimately cost her her film career.

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