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American Experience

A Ring-Side View of the Heavens

Radioing he had "a ring-side view of the heavens" Air Force officer David G. Simons made history in 1957 high aboard his Manhigh II balloon. He rose 101,500 feet above Earth, writing later he could barely comprehend the beauty of the sky. He was celebrated by The New York Times as "The First Space Man." "Space Men" premieres March 1 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.

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Part 2 | The Vote | American Experience
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1:52:47
Part Two examines the mounting dispute over strategies and reveals the pervasive racism.
Part 1 | The Vote | American Experience
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1:52:42
The fiery campaign that led to passage of the 19th Amendment, granting women the vote.
The Eugenics Crusade
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The Eugenics Crusade tells the story of the campaign to breed a “better” American race,
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Rachel Carson
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The woman whose groundbreaking books revolutionized our relationship to the natural world.
The Boys of '36
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The story of nine young men from Washington who captured gold at the 1936 Olympic Games.
The Big Burn
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In the summer of 1910, the largest fire in American history raged in the Northern Rockies.
Jesse Owens
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52:02
His stunning triumph at the 1936 Olympics captivated the world and infuriated the Nazis.
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The Stonewall riots marked a major turning point in the modern gay civil rights movement.
The Great Famine
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The story of the American effort to relieve starvation in 1921 Soviet Russia.
The Trials of J. Robert Oppenheimer
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The man behind the atomic bomb is put on trial for suspected communist ties in 1954.
Roberto Clemente
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The exceptional life and career of Puerto Rican baseball star Roberto Clemente.
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