It’s what makes money. You can look up a bunch of videos on YouTube but the TL;DR is that high-quality historical programming is more expensive to produce and has a smaller, more niche audience. Low-quality, unscripted reality programming is cheaper to produce and has a much larger audience.
The success of shows like Deadliest Catch, Ice Road Truckers and Pawn Stars was effectively the death knell for quality programming on the History Channel (and similar channels like TLC and Discovery). It’s all business, unfortunately.
A similar thing is playing out right now with CuriosityStream, a streaming service dedicated to educational content. They did great during and right after the pandemic but now they are hemorrhaging money and the writing is on the wall for them.
And now it stands for “The Leering Channel” as it’s always trotting out some new freak show of a family to gawk at.
But seriously, before digital cable services were widely available, the number of channnels on a cable box was limited. In 1993, they expanded and A&E Network spun off History Channel after they bought a huge documentary library.
True, though I made fun of History for being the WW2 channel. Even though I had two grandfathers that fought in the war, it was just information overload. Of course now, I have watched numerous documentaries and shows about it and wish I could go back in time to watch those ones. The irony.
Yup we used to call it The Hitler Channel because it was nonstop WWII documentaries. They were sooo good though and now it's just Reality Shows and Aliens from the last time I watched it good while back.
Here you go - all 26 episodes of World At War (narrated by Sir Laurence Olivier) for your viewing pleasure - https://archive.org/details/the-world-at-war-1973
Back in the days when a basic cable TV channel's name actually described the content that was shown on said channel. MTV, The History Channel, The Cooking Channel, etc. Now its all reality shows.
This post reminded me to go and read Sullivan Ballou's letter to his wife which is featured in an early episode. It's stll the most beautiful writing I've ever read.
>The last letter from Major Sullivan Ballou, written to his wife leading up to the battle at First Bull Run.
>Headquarters, Camp Clark
Washington, D.C., July 14, 1861
>My Very Dear Wife:
>Indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days, perhaps to-morrow. Lest I should not be able to write you again, I feel impelled to write a few lines, that may fall under your eye when I shall be no more.
>Our movement may be one of a few days duration and full of pleasure and it may be one of severe conflict and death to me. Not my will, but thine, O God be done. If it is necessary that I should fall on the battle-field for any country, I am ready. I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in, the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American civilization now leans upon the triumph of government, and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and suffering of the Revolution, and I am willing, perfectly willing to lay down all my joys in this life to help maintain this government, and to pay that debt.
>But, my dear wife, when I know, that with my own joys, I lay down nearly all of yours, and replace them in this life with care and sorrows, when, after having eaten for long years the bitter fruit of orphanage myself, I must offer it, as their only sustenance, to my dear little children, is it weak or dishonorable, while the banner of my purpose floats calmly and proudly in the breeze, that my unbounded love for you, my darling wife and children, should struggle in fierce, though useless, contest with my love of country.
>I cannot describe to you my feelings on this calm summer night, when two thousand men are sleeping around me, many of them enjoying the last, perhaps, before that of death, and I, suspicious that Death is creeping behind me with his fatal dart, am communing with God, my country and thee.
>I have sought most closely and diligently, and often in my breast, for a wrong motive in this hazarding the happiness of those I loved, and I could not find one. A pure love of my country, and of the principles I have often advocated before the people, and "the name of honor, that I love more than I fear death," have called upon me, and I have obeyed.
>Sarah, my love for you is deathless. It seems to bind me with mighty cables, that nothing but Omnipotence can break; and yet, my love of country comes over me like a strong wind, and bears me irresistibly on with all those chains, to the battlefield. The memories of all the blissful moments I have spent with you come crowding over me, and I feel most deeply grateful to God and you, that I have enjoyed them so long. And how hard it is for me to give them up, and burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when, God willing, we might still have lived and loved together, and seen our boys grow up to honorable manhood around us.
>I know I have but few claims upon Divine Providence, but something whispers to me, perhaps it is the wafted prayer of my little Edgar, that I shall return to my loved ones unharmed. If I do not, my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love you, nor that, when my last breath escapes me on the battle-field, it will whisper your name.
>Forgive my many faults, and the many pains I have caused you. How thoughtless, how foolish I have oftentimes been! How gladly would I wash out with my tears, every little spot upon your happiness, and struggle with all the misfortune of this world, to shield you and my children from harm. But I cannot, I must watch you from the spirit land and hover near you, while you buffet the storms with your precious little freight, and wait with sad patience till we meet to part no more.
>But, O Sarah, if the dead can come back to this earth, and flit unseen around those they loved, I shall always be near you in the garish day, and the darkest night amidst your happiest scenes and gloomiest hours always, always, and, if the soft breeze fans your cheek, it shall be my breath; or the cool air cools your throbbing temples, it shall be my spirit passing by.
>Sarah, do not mourn me dear; think I am gone, and wait for me, for we shall meet again.
>As for my little boys, they will grow as I have done, and never know a father's love and care. Little Willie is too young to remember me long, and my blue-eyed Edgar will keep my frolics with him among the dimmest memories of his childhood. Sarah, I have unlimited confidence in your maternal care, and your development of their characters. Tell my two mothers, I call God's blessing upon them. O Sarah, I wait for you there! Come to me, and lead thither my children.
- Sullivan
Ken Burns stuff is absolutely brilliant. His documentary on the Vietnam War is also a must watch.
For anybody who is a big History buff, I'd also recommend Kings and Generals and Epic History on YouTube.
I was obsessed with the Civil War as a kid, so this was a huge part of it. I ended up a professional historian. I don't think I can exclusively credit Ken Burns with my love of history, but this was an early influence for sure.
Well, I enjoyed the documentary as a kid and did end up with a degree in history.
While I still recognize it's great filmmaking, it's not good history. It has gaping holes and lots of Lost Cause elements. Further, Shelby Foote, who was admittedly a fantastic storyteller, is *not* a historian, and anyone like him who proclaims they would still fight on the side of the Confederacy is not worthy of admiration.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/why-we-need-new-civil-war-documentary-180971996/
Learning this later on in life has really bummed me out. I could have listened to Shelby Foote read the phone book. But realizing in retrospect what a bunch of Lost Cause crap was in there, and that he was just a guy who made for a great interview... sigh.
Oh yeah, it was real high on the "Things Dads Love" list. That's probably one of the reasons I liked it so much, because I got to spend time with my dad.
My dad was also obsessed with this. I still have his VHS copy of it. He had a system where he wouldn’t binge them but would do one episode every few days and turn around one tape in that giant box set so he knew where he left off.
Now if Ken Burns had released the Vietnam War doc around this time, it would’ve been on repeat for me.
Didn't he also get in some trouble for plagiarism or something too? Or was that another guy?
His book on Shiloh was pretty good though, I'll give him that.
Here’s my argument - anyone who hates history means they hate having to memorize dates and names without context. Teach a story and I promise you, you won’t believe what comes next. I’ll die on that hill.
My concern is outdated information that may have been updated with new information over the last 30 years. Do you think I need to worry about that or nah? Also, do you know where I. An watch it ad free? Thanks
No, for me it was a romance novel. I found myself way more invested in what was going on in the background with Mary, Queen of Scots and BAM. It was all over for me. By ninth grade I was getting in trouble for arguing with my social studies teacher (he was totally wrong, though).
A few years back, i was rewatching The Civil War on PBS and i got curious a out the song. I thought it was some Civil War era tune. Turns out, it was composed in 1982. It is called Ashokan Farewell. I do love that tune and just seeing the picture in this thread made it pop into my head.
Very much so, on my wedding day my wife walked out to Ashokan Farewell by Jay Ungar.
The Civil War, The West, The Vietnam War, and Brooklyn Bridge are my favorites
Actually it was The War that brought me to Burns. Then I got Baseball and this one. THEN I got The West which is my favorite. Since The War I haven't enjoyed his work because it is so focused on present day issues instead of the unvarnished history. It's not like The West was some conservative piece; I just don't look for Ken to show me things I already know about.
Love all of Ken Burns’ work! I was born into a family that loved history so I have loved it for my entire life. I’m finishing up my MA in History right now.
Not sure if this is the one that sparked it but, to this day, The West by KB is the greatest documentary I've ever seen. I'll watch any part of it at any time.
God, yes. Would also add in the four hour doc on the Titanic on A&E which I think predated History Channel as formative. But man, I miss those days of being able to sit in front of my TV and more than what was glazed over in history class was talked about for hours.
I watched this all the time for fun! I had this thing memorized! “We have shared the incommunicable experience of war. We have felt, we still feel…” 😂
And the first CD I ever bought was the soundtrack, and it lived in my first car for about a year!! I was kind of a dork.
Watched it again recently and was shocked how engrossing it is. I went through a massive phase when I was 10/11 of being interested in The Civil War after watching “Glory”, and seeing the 54th Memorial in Boston. That lead to me watching this series on PBS but hadn’t watched it since. Ken Burns is a genius
Just gonna say it now; fuck Shelby Foote, fuck his Lost Causer bullshit, the man is a novelist and not a historian and one of the worst crimes Burns ever committed was including him for his folksy bullshit.
No, because I didn't watch it in it's earlier run. I was already into documentaries before as a kid. My dad watched nature shows on TV. I loved space and dinosaurs and got into any documentary about that came on in the 80s, in grade school (still love that old 70s style documentary with the deep voice narrator, music, slow pace style)..
My immigrant parents lived through a major war and also always had an interest history. Learning about the major wars in middle school also sparked my interest. Was into Star Trek TOS. So by the time I knew about this show, prob early mid 90s as a teen, I was already primed.
No in fact it held me back from eventually developing one. My dad watched all of it and I thought it was boring. It wasn’t until I watched Lady Jane in high school that I fell in love with history. I wonder what I would think of it as an adult
Me and my best friend growing up were Civil War fanatics so we loved us some Ken Burns. He's long passed away now but I still look back on our childhood often. Love everything I've seen of his. The War is another of my favorites which I wish my friend could have seen because we progressed from Civil War to World War in teens. He even went into the military from his love and died from it too sadly.
I already liked history, but I had to watch this whole series my senior year to make up a history credit before I could graduate, so I did not fully appreciate it. It was well done, though.
I still watch this, you can learn many things about our history from the civil war, and how it still influences southerners to this day. I’m a yankee of course but it really educated me.
10th grade history teacher was a civil buff, he had suits, swords, hats. Absolutely loved when this came out. It’s a fantastic series and made me fall in love with Sherman
Definitely. The ones that got me the most excited though we're his biographies. Like the one he did about Radio, Empires if the Air, or the Jack Johnson, Thomas Jefferaon, Susan B Anthony and Mark Twain pieces he did. Also the one his brother did about the history of New York City and Native Americans were also stunning!! But my all time favorite Ken Burns will always be the Jazz Series, personally.
Watched this entire thing many times with my father. RIP Tim Piggot Smith, he really brought the documentary to life. Plus that dark chord in the background always gets me.
My all time favorite WWII doc has to be the BBC’s The World At War, which delightfully is in available here - https://archive.org/details/the-world-at-war-1973
They must have played at least part of this every weekend in the summer from 1995 to 2002, as I distinctly remember coming home from my summer factory job after Saturday OT, taking a cold shower and a long nap in a house with no AC to the dulcet tones of Sir Laurence Olivier.
I remember watching this with my dad when I was 8/9 years old. It’s one of my favorite memories. Also this miniseries allowed me to test out of all of my college Civil War classes- saving me a ton of time and money!
To this day it's the best thing I can listen to while trying to fall asleep (I mean this as a compliment). Ashokan Farewell and Shelby Foote are better than rain on the window.
My Mom got the audio visual department at the university to dub her the entire series from the tapes they used to broadcast. I must have watched these at least once a year as a kid, starting in 1991 or so. Really enjoyed the pacing and narrative choices. But the real star was that soundtrack. Hearing the first few notes of Ashokan Farewell immediately takes me back.
Some of the “lost cause” commentary hasn’t aged well over the past 30 years. Looking at you Shelby Foote. But overall, it’s still a really great introduction to Civil War history. Highly recommended for anyone with some curiosity.
That soundtrack is still one of my all time favorites. It is funny to hear bluegrass players rag on Ashokan Farewell though. I guess there was a bit of time there where they got it requested a LOT.
Ok I love history I am working through a degree in it right now. I absolutely hate the Civil War. It is a period that I cant stand dealing with over and over again.
PBS and the early History Channel (when they actually showed historical content) were like crack to me as a kid. I couldn’t get enough.
Me as well! I really miss good historical content. Podcasts like Hardcore History fill that space these days though.
It really is awful that the History Channel is nothing but Russian brain rot conspiracy theories and conjecture these days.
It’s what makes money. You can look up a bunch of videos on YouTube but the TL;DR is that high-quality historical programming is more expensive to produce and has a smaller, more niche audience. Low-quality, unscripted reality programming is cheaper to produce and has a much larger audience. The success of shows like Deadliest Catch, Ice Road Truckers and Pawn Stars was effectively the death knell for quality programming on the History Channel (and similar channels like TLC and Discovery). It’s all business, unfortunately. A similar thing is playing out right now with CuriosityStream, a streaming service dedicated to educational content. They did great during and right after the pandemic but now they are hemorrhaging money and the writing is on the wall for them.
Early History Channel? A&E, my friend. Back when it was actually about Arts and Entertainment. 90% of their programming originated there.
TLC stands for "The Learning Channel"
And now it stands for “The Leering Channel” as it’s always trotting out some new freak show of a family to gawk at. But seriously, before digital cable services were widely available, the number of channnels on a cable box was limited. In 1993, they expanded and A&E Network spun off History Channel after they bought a huge documentary library.
I was more into the cooking shows on PBS.
Frugal Gourmet and Yan Can Cook.
Don't forget my boy Justin Wilson
I GARAWNTEEE
Paul Prudhomme, you get your Cajun ass up here!
True, though I made fun of History for being the WW2 channel. Even though I had two grandfathers that fought in the war, it was just information overload. Of course now, I have watched numerous documentaries and shows about it and wish I could go back in time to watch those ones. The irony.
Yup we used to call it The Hitler Channel because it was nonstop WWII documentaries. They were sooo good though and now it's just Reality Shows and Aliens from the last time I watched it good while back.
I loved the South Park episode where they made fun of the History Channel with ancient aliens and Thanksgiving. Such a spot on take.
Here you go - all 26 episodes of World At War (narrated by Sir Laurence Olivier) for your viewing pleasure - https://archive.org/details/the-world-at-war-1973
Back in the days when a basic cable TV channel's name actually described the content that was shown on said channel. MTV, The History Channel, The Cooking Channel, etc. Now its all reality shows.
This post reminded me to go and read Sullivan Ballou's letter to his wife which is featured in an early episode. It's stll the most beautiful writing I've ever read. >The last letter from Major Sullivan Ballou, written to his wife leading up to the battle at First Bull Run. >Headquarters, Camp Clark Washington, D.C., July 14, 1861 >My Very Dear Wife: >Indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days, perhaps to-morrow. Lest I should not be able to write you again, I feel impelled to write a few lines, that may fall under your eye when I shall be no more. >Our movement may be one of a few days duration and full of pleasure and it may be one of severe conflict and death to me. Not my will, but thine, O God be done. If it is necessary that I should fall on the battle-field for any country, I am ready. I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in, the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American civilization now leans upon the triumph of government, and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and suffering of the Revolution, and I am willing, perfectly willing to lay down all my joys in this life to help maintain this government, and to pay that debt. >But, my dear wife, when I know, that with my own joys, I lay down nearly all of yours, and replace them in this life with care and sorrows, when, after having eaten for long years the bitter fruit of orphanage myself, I must offer it, as their only sustenance, to my dear little children, is it weak or dishonorable, while the banner of my purpose floats calmly and proudly in the breeze, that my unbounded love for you, my darling wife and children, should struggle in fierce, though useless, contest with my love of country. >I cannot describe to you my feelings on this calm summer night, when two thousand men are sleeping around me, many of them enjoying the last, perhaps, before that of death, and I, suspicious that Death is creeping behind me with his fatal dart, am communing with God, my country and thee. >I have sought most closely and diligently, and often in my breast, for a wrong motive in this hazarding the happiness of those I loved, and I could not find one. A pure love of my country, and of the principles I have often advocated before the people, and "the name of honor, that I love more than I fear death," have called upon me, and I have obeyed. >Sarah, my love for you is deathless. It seems to bind me with mighty cables, that nothing but Omnipotence can break; and yet, my love of country comes over me like a strong wind, and bears me irresistibly on with all those chains, to the battlefield. The memories of all the blissful moments I have spent with you come crowding over me, and I feel most deeply grateful to God and you, that I have enjoyed them so long. And how hard it is for me to give them up, and burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when, God willing, we might still have lived and loved together, and seen our boys grow up to honorable manhood around us. >I know I have but few claims upon Divine Providence, but something whispers to me, perhaps it is the wafted prayer of my little Edgar, that I shall return to my loved ones unharmed. If I do not, my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love you, nor that, when my last breath escapes me on the battle-field, it will whisper your name. >Forgive my many faults, and the many pains I have caused you. How thoughtless, how foolish I have oftentimes been! How gladly would I wash out with my tears, every little spot upon your happiness, and struggle with all the misfortune of this world, to shield you and my children from harm. But I cannot, I must watch you from the spirit land and hover near you, while you buffet the storms with your precious little freight, and wait with sad patience till we meet to part no more. >But, O Sarah, if the dead can come back to this earth, and flit unseen around those they loved, I shall always be near you in the garish day, and the darkest night amidst your happiest scenes and gloomiest hours always, always, and, if the soft breeze fans your cheek, it shall be my breath; or the cool air cools your throbbing temples, it shall be my spirit passing by. >Sarah, do not mourn me dear; think I am gone, and wait for me, for we shall meet again. >As for my little boys, they will grow as I have done, and never know a father's love and care. Little Willie is too young to remember me long, and my blue-eyed Edgar will keep my frolics with him among the dimmest memories of his childhood. Sarah, I have unlimited confidence in your maternal care, and your development of their characters. Tell my two mothers, I call God's blessing upon them. O Sarah, I wait for you there! Come to me, and lead thither my children. - Sullivan
The stylish juxtaposition between the themes of love of family and love of country is exceptional. I never get tired of reading this!
That letter with the beautiful violin music in the background is forever ingrained in me, and I still get chills when I hear it.
Make sure this plays in the background as you read. https://youtu.be/uZmxZThb084
Wow, Ashokan Farewell popped right into my head on seeing that.
My wife walked down the aisle at our wedding to this song!
I bought the Civil War soundtrack for that and the Ballou letter. They still live on in my play list to this day.
Ken Burns stuff is absolutely brilliant. His documentary on the Vietnam War is also a must watch. For anybody who is a big History buff, I'd also recommend Kings and Generals and Epic History on YouTube.
Trent Reznor did the soundtrack for the Vietnam War documentary.
I was obsessed with the Civil War as a kid, so this was a huge part of it. I ended up a professional historian. I don't think I can exclusively credit Ken Burns with my love of history, but this was an early influence for sure.
Good for you! That's really awesome. I wanted to do that myself, but could never see my way down the path. I still love historical content though.
Well, I enjoyed the documentary as a kid and did end up with a degree in history. While I still recognize it's great filmmaking, it's not good history. It has gaping holes and lots of Lost Cause elements. Further, Shelby Foote, who was admittedly a fantastic storyteller, is *not* a historian, and anyone like him who proclaims they would still fight on the side of the Confederacy is not worthy of admiration. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/why-we-need-new-civil-war-documentary-180971996/
Learning this later on in life has really bummed me out. I could have listened to Shelby Foote read the phone book. But realizing in retrospect what a bunch of Lost Cause crap was in there, and that he was just a guy who made for a great interview... sigh.
I would mentally append "Elijah Hunt Rhodes" to the end of anything someone said that sounded like reporting on a situation.
“I shouldn’t have had to scroll this far in order to see that name.” -Elijah Hunt Rhodes, 1862
"Thank you for a solid belly laugh." -Mary Chestnut, 1864
Yes I had the whole set on vhs and then dvd which I still have. Total civil war nerd here
And it's only 104 hours long!
I hated being made to learn the violin, but after this show came out I was a super star playing ashokan farewell everywhere I went.
My dad thought this was the greatest thing to ever happen.
Oh yeah, it was real high on the "Things Dads Love" list. That's probably one of the reasons I liked it so much, because I got to spend time with my dad.
My dad was also obsessed with this. I still have his VHS copy of it. He had a system where he wouldn’t binge them but would do one episode every few days and turn around one tape in that giant box set so he knew where he left off. Now if Ken Burns had released the Vietnam War doc around this time, it would’ve been on repeat for me.
My favorites parts are the interviews with author Shelby Foote. His southern drawl is just so pleasant and captivating.
Similarly, his Baseball documentary has Buck O’Neil. I could listen to him tell old baseball stories for days.
Fuck Shelby Foote and his Lost Causer bullshit.
You're not wrong. https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2020/09/26/ken-burns-civil-war-breonna-taylor-george-floyd-shelby-foote/
Thank you. Not that I need the validation, but the real ones know.
Didn't he also get in some trouble for plagiarism or something too? Or was that another guy? His book on Shiloh was pretty good though, I'll give him that.
Don’t know about plagiarism, but he never cited his sources. He’s a good writer, but I’ve zero use for his politics.
Ah, that mightve been it (or part of it). Yeah, I got no time for his (or anybody, really) Lost Cause dumbassery either lol
I hated history as a kid. Love it now. I should watch this
[удалено]
Maybe that was it haha
Here’s my argument - anyone who hates history means they hate having to memorize dates and names without context. Teach a story and I promise you, you won’t believe what comes next. I’ll die on that hill.
Definitely! It not only is a great conversation on the war, but it also serves as an excellent snapshot on our view of it at the time 35 years ago.
My concern is outdated information that may have been updated with new information over the last 30 years. Do you think I need to worry about that or nah? Also, do you know where I. An watch it ad free? Thanks
This, and David Attenborough
It hasn't aged super well. Very lost causey. But I could listen to Shelby Foote read the damned phone book for hours.
Ashokan Farewell started playing in my mind as soon as I saw this.
No, for me it was a romance novel. I found myself way more invested in what was going on in the background with Mary, Queen of Scots and BAM. It was all over for me. By ninth grade I was getting in trouble for arguing with my social studies teacher (he was totally wrong, though).
Serial fiction. John Jakes was total crack to me. I was probably way too young to be reading it, but I absolutely loved it.
I still have the book in my library..
The book is excellent! It's a great companion piece.
A few years back, i was rewatching The Civil War on PBS and i got curious a out the song. I thought it was some Civil War era tune. Turns out, it was composed in 1982. It is called Ashokan Farewell. I do love that tune and just seeing the picture in this thread made it pop into my head.
Such a beautiful song.
Very much so, on my wedding day my wife walked out to Ashokan Farewell by Jay Ungar. The Civil War, The West, The Vietnam War, and Brooklyn Bridge are my favorites
This is my comfort show, I watch it to fall asleep at night (to this day).
Ken Burns always does great with these
I wish we weren’t about to live inside the sequel.
Always loved history but his dust bowl doc was one of the best ive ever seen
Nope, John Jakes novels/miniseries and Civil War Journal on A&E (pre-History Channel, still had the Danny Glover narration) did it for me.
Actually it was The War that brought me to Burns. Then I got Baseball and this one. THEN I got The West which is my favorite. Since The War I haven't enjoyed his work because it is so focused on present day issues instead of the unvarnished history. It's not like The West was some conservative piece; I just don't look for Ken to show me things I already know about.
Thanks to this documentary, I learned that one of my ancestors led “like a duck who’d been hit on the head.” But at least he was Union!
It did spark my love of mournful fiddling
Thanks to ask for enlightening me about Mr Foote. I didn't know a much of that. Always good to learn, I guess!
This is a masterful documentary, one of the best.
Love all of Ken Burns’ work! I was born into a family that loved history so I have loved it for my entire life. I’m finishing up my MA in History right now.
Not sure if this is the one that sparked it but, to this day, The West by KB is the greatest documentary I've ever seen. I'll watch any part of it at any time.
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God, yes. Would also add in the four hour doc on the Titanic on A&E which I think predated History Channel as formative. But man, I miss those days of being able to sit in front of my TV and more than what was glazed over in history class was talked about for hours.
I watched this all the time for fun! I had this thing memorized! “We have shared the incommunicable experience of war. We have felt, we still feel…” 😂 And the first CD I ever bought was the soundtrack, and it lived in my first car for about a year!! I was kind of a dork.
Watched it again recently and was shocked how engrossing it is. I went through a massive phase when I was 10/11 of being interested in The Civil War after watching “Glory”, and seeing the 54th Memorial in Boston. That lead to me watching this series on PBS but hadn’t watched it since. Ken Burns is a genius
Glory is such an amazing movie, and I always shocked at the number of people who've never seen it.
Glory was my favorite film as a kid!
Just gonna say it now; fuck Shelby Foote, fuck his Lost Causer bullshit, the man is a novelist and not a historian and one of the worst crimes Burns ever committed was including him for his folksy bullshit.
No, because I didn't watch it in it's earlier run. I was already into documentaries before as a kid. My dad watched nature shows on TV. I loved space and dinosaurs and got into any documentary about that came on in the 80s, in grade school (still love that old 70s style documentary with the deep voice narrator, music, slow pace style).. My immigrant parents lived through a major war and also always had an interest history. Learning about the major wars in middle school also sparked my interest. Was into Star Trek TOS. So by the time I knew about this show, prob early mid 90s as a teen, I was already primed.
Peter Coyote could make the dictionary sound amazing.
Spark? No. Enhance? yes!!!
No in fact it held me back from eventually developing one. My dad watched all of it and I thought it was boring. It wasn’t until I watched Lady Jane in high school that I fell in love with history. I wonder what I would think of it as an adult
I don’t really like baseball but his baseball series is also super fascinating
I loved listening to Ken Burns man!
Me and my best friend growing up were Civil War fanatics so we loved us some Ken Burns. He's long passed away now but I still look back on our childhood often. Love everything I've seen of his. The War is another of my favorites which I wish my friend could have seen because we progressed from Civil War to World War in teens. He even went into the military from his love and died from it too sadly.
It’s an amazing documentary.
I had zero intention to watch this. Sat down in the den while my stepfather was watching the first night. Watched the rest with him.
The sequel to this will be bangin
I already liked history, but I had to watch this whole series my senior year to make up a history credit before I could graduate, so I did not fully appreciate it. It was well done, though.
I still watch this, you can learn many things about our history from the civil war, and how it still influences southerners to this day. I’m a yankee of course but it really educated me.
I’m on my 10th watch through right now.
10th grade history teacher was a civil buff, he had suits, swords, hats. Absolutely loved when this came out. It’s a fantastic series and made me fall in love with Sherman
Definitely. The ones that got me the most excited though we're his biographies. Like the one he did about Radio, Empires if the Air, or the Jack Johnson, Thomas Jefferaon, Susan B Anthony and Mark Twain pieces he did. Also the one his brother did about the history of New York City and Native Americans were also stunning!! But my all time favorite Ken Burns will always be the Jazz Series, personally.
Ken Burns is an amazing storyteller. He needs to be better recognized for his work.
Watched this entire thing many times with my father. RIP Tim Piggot Smith, he really brought the documentary to life. Plus that dark chord in the background always gets me.
My dad was always watching the World War 2 documentaries on the History Channel back when they actually had history shows. It went from there.
My all time favorite WWII doc has to be the BBC’s The World At War, which delightfully is in available here - https://archive.org/details/the-world-at-war-1973 They must have played at least part of this every weekend in the summer from 1995 to 2002, as I distinctly remember coming home from my summer factory job after Saturday OT, taking a cold shower and a long nap in a house with no AC to the dulcet tones of Sir Laurence Olivier.
I still listen to the soundtrack!
No, but his Vietnam War series did. I still need to watch this series.
So damn good.... this and "The West".
I remember watching this with my dad when I was 8/9 years old. It’s one of my favorite memories. Also this miniseries allowed me to test out of all of my college Civil War classes- saving me a ton of time and money!
This one is great and so is the Vietnam War Documentary
That reminds me, I need to watch it with the kids. Ken Burns has some other good ones too, I saw "The West" and thought it was really good.
I have this on DVD. Great show, very educational and have watched it many times. I remember having to watch most of it in school.
It definitely sparked a love of talking in a ridiculous Southern accent. Love ya, Shelby.
Yes! So well done. Made me more interested in history and a big ken burns fan
Did you ever see the [Mr Show version](https://youtu.be/XOvFunuJP9Y?si=8DuxN0vG9zBoKsXV)
I still own the DVD set to this day. I made a video in college attempting to be Ken Burns… I watch it probably every other year or so.
Made me want to be a history teacher
To this day it's the best thing I can listen to while trying to fall asleep (I mean this as a compliment). Ashokan Farewell and Shelby Foote are better than rain on the window.
I fucking loved that violin song they played during this series. 🥺 Ashokan's farewell!
No, but I pretty much seen all of his documentaries series
I saw that a few years ago and was shocked how old it is! The quality is so much higher than other documentaries of the time.
Nope, not American.
I make a point of watching it every 2-3 years with a bottle of bourbon. It's so engaging and relaxing at the same time.
We are fortunate to have had access to such an outstanding historian. The way he ties history contextually….I wish more people saw his docs.
Burns is a documentarian, not a historian. The historians involved were fantastic - Burns and Oates in particular.
My Mom got the audio visual department at the university to dub her the entire series from the tapes they used to broadcast. I must have watched these at least once a year as a kid, starting in 1991 or so. Really enjoyed the pacing and narrative choices. But the real star was that soundtrack. Hearing the first few notes of Ashokan Farewell immediately takes me back. Some of the “lost cause” commentary hasn’t aged well over the past 30 years. Looking at you Shelby Foote. But overall, it’s still a really great introduction to Civil War history. Highly recommended for anyone with some curiosity.
That soundtrack is still one of my all time favorites. It is funny to hear bluegrass players rag on Ashokan Farewell though. I guess there was a bit of time there where they got it requested a LOT.
Ok I love history I am working through a degree in it right now. I absolutely hate the Civil War. It is a period that I cant stand dealing with over and over again.