Ken Burns' 'The War'

[chefmike]

I caught the first episode last night. Another Ken Burns masterpiece! Airing on your local PBS station all week...

http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/

Ken Burns: We are losing 1,000 veterans a day in the United States. We are losing among our fathers and our grandfathers a direct connection to an oral history of that unusually reticent generation. And that if we, the inheritors of the world they struggled so hard to create for us, didn't hear them out, we'd be guilty of a historical amnesia too irresponsible to countenance.

[SarahG]

It looks like its going to be a good one, but nothing ever comes close to touching the one Burns did on the Civil War.

[TomSelis]

It was pretty damned good, I was a little upset that it ended the way it did. But it's such a broad subject he could've done a documentary that lasted a whole season. But I liked the way they focused on the war in the Pacific because that always seems to be the story you don't hear about as much.

Part II tonight. It's going to cut into Heroes, but that's what TiVo is for!

[KiraHarden]

I missed the first 1 hr of the show im bumming a bit, I have always enjoyed his work and the civil war was a classic to watch... I hear they will have never before seen footage that the marines recorded in color and I hear the interviews will be great. I agree you dont here too much about the war in the Pacific during WW2
www.youtube.com/kiraharden
www.myspace.com/kiraharden
http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/kiraharden

[chefmike]

How about the poor guy who volunteered for duty in the PI(before Pearl Harbor) because he thought that it would be relatively safe. Only to end up an unwilling participant in the Bataan death march after the Japanese began their domination in the Pacific. General McArthur really left those poor SOB's in a hell of a spot, didn't he?

[Mac_Hine]

I wanted to check this out, but I can't fucking find PBS on directv. :x

Maybe demonoid will have it. :twisted:

[chefmike]

PBS is channel 15 usually, right after ABC(13) on the local channels where I live, and I have directv also.

[Realgirls4me]

I am going to reserve judgment on this series until I see more of it. I am watching it right now, in fact. ...As a Latino, I want to see if Burns actually did diss the contributions made by Latinos in the war effort as many Latino veterans and groups charge. I know these groups were dead on accurate, and rightfully angry, back in 1960 over the following movie, Hell To Eternity.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053901/

Based on a true story, a Chicano GI from Los Angeles, Guy Galbadon, convinces 800 Japanese to surrender. The movie depicts this hero as an Italian with blond hair and blue eyes via actor the late Jeffrey Hunter.

We'll see.

[Willie Escalade]

I haven't seen any of it, but if Ken Burns did it, I know it'll be good. I purchased his Baseball documentary; next in line is the one he did about New York City.

[TomSelis]

I am going to reserve judgment on this series until I see more of it. I am watching it right now, in fact. ...As a Latino, I want to see if Burns actually did diss the contributions made by Latinos in the war effort as many Latino veterans and groups charge. I know these groups were dead on accurate, and rightfully angry, back in 1960 over the following movie, Hell To Eternity.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053901/

Based on a true story, a Chicano GI from Los Angeles, Guy Galbadon, convinces 800 Japanese to surrender. The movie depicts this hero as an Italian with blond hair and blue eyes via actor the late Jeffrey Hunter.

We'll see.

He's covering every aspect of the war from the homefront to both theaters.
He covered some latinos who were in the something rangers on Guadalcanal in the first episode. I'm sure he'll cover more as it goes on.

I'm expecting him to cover the Redtails and black soldiers' contribution after the Battle of the Bulge too.

[chefmike]

I haven't seen any of it, but if Ken Burns did it, I know it'll be good. I purchased his Baseball documentary; next in line is the one he did about New York City.

I wasn't aware that he did one on Huey Long. I need to track that one down.

[TomSelis]

Aww man, that letter that woman wrote her brother not knowing he died at Anzio had me choked up.

[chefmike]

It was a pretty gut-wrenching episode. The number of lives lost just taking Anzio is astounding. D-day episode tomorrow.

[eggbert]

I've been a WWII buff for years. Can't get enough of it. But I've been dissapointed in what I've seen of "The War" so far. I think Burns bit off a little more than he could chew. The subject matter is enormous and he's only got 15 or 16 hours to present it. We're getting very little detail and fact, and not enough feel of the daily grind of the individual soldier, sailor, airman, factory worker, girlfriend, mom, dad, etc. But, I'll keep watching. Burns does know how to keep it interesting.

[chefmike]

I think that the war footage is outstanding, and that alone would be enough to keep me interested. I also find the authentic newsreels that are shown fascinating.