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HomeArts/LeisureKen Burns' "The War" comes to PBS

Ken Burns’ “The War” comes to PBS

“The Second World war brought out the worst as well as the best in a generation, and I think it may also have reflected the last time the United States of America was truly united in one single purpose.” — Ken Burns

vco-ken-burn-the-war.jpgThe War, a Ken Burns film on World War II, will debut as a seven episode series on PBS, including Nashville Public Television (NPT), on September 23-26 and September 30 through October 2 at 7 p.m. In Clarksville, NPT is seen on Channel 8.

A few years ago, Ken Burns riveted us with his production of The Civil War, a series that electrified , entertained, educated, and aroused our emotions. This new series promises to follow Burn’s groundbreaking tradition and style.

According to information posted by PBS on this series, The War explores “the most intimate human dimensions of the greatest cataclysm in history — a worldwide catastrophe that touched the lives of every family on every street in America.”

I personally witnessed and experienced the horror of the Vietnam War during my two years in that country. In such an environment, one sees the best of human beings and the worst depravities human beings can inflict on one another. War gives us a unique insight into the nature of man.

I anticipate that Ken Burns’ The War will touch us and give us an in-depth look at World War II, which explores the war from an American perspective, following the experiences of a handful of men and women — on the home front and the battlefield — whose lives were transformed during the devastating years from ’41 to ’45.

Burns and Lynn Novick wrote and produced the series, which takes us through the fighting, the living and the dying, across history, to places such as Monte Cassino, Omaha Beach, Anzio, Guadacanal, Saipan and Okinawa.

The War celebrates and honors the heroic deeds and the memories of families, friends and neighbors who served in this conflagration. It will remind us of their bravery, sacrifice, determination, and discipline, and the hardships of our citizen soldiers in World War II, and will rekindle our sense of patriotism and challenge us to appreciate the contribution of these soldiers and their families. I believe the time invested in watching this series will be both rewarding and educational.

PBS online has an interactive link for this film and a PDF study guide for The War.

Rev. Charles Moreland
Rev. Charles Moreland
Rev. Charles Moreland, retired, has lived in Clarksville for seven years and holds great pride in his adopted city and its people. His one objection in Tennessee is the Hall law of taxes on dividends and savings. Charles served in the U.S. Army Chaplaincy from 1966-1986, retiring to serve as a United Methodist pastor near Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. He serves on the Boards of Directors for the ARP, Roxy Theater and MCDP. Though retired, he is a regular speaker at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. His five grandchildren, ages two to thirteen years, live in Evansville, Indiana. He is a veteran of the Vietnam War and served in Germany and Korea while on active duty.
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