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Recognized as the innovator of the hard-boiled detective novel, Dashiell Hammett succeeded in elevating the pulp genre to the level of fine literature. "American Masters: Dashiell Hammett. Detective. Writer." effectively tells the story of a man who traveled from the gritty American underworld to the pinnacle of literary society and the glamour of Hollywood only to watch it all escape his grasp.
Series
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English
Description
F. Scott Fitzgerald's story is the classic tale of a boy from the provinces whose talents bring him fame and fortune-temporarily. Scott and Zelda's personalities, backgrounds, and relationships with others formed one myth of the Jazz Age, while the legend of his romantic life made him an American mythic artist hero. Fitzgerald's life has long held a fascination not precisely tied to his literary standing; now, as in his lifetime, he appears as both...
Series
Language
English
Description
Traces John Coltrane's musical growth from his roots in the black church and rhythm and blues through his forty years of life and beyond, culminating in a musical meeting between Roscoe Mitchell and dervish musicians in Morocco's Western Sahara desert. The film also includes extensive performance footage of Coltrane.
Series
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English
Description
"Man Ray is the quintessential modernist figure: photographer, painter, object maker and collagist, filmmaker and printmaker, poet, essayist and philosopher. Born Emanuel Radnitsky in 1890, he went on to become the leader of the "American avant-garde" and the most enigmatic of the Dada-Surrealists who transformed the Paris art world during the ferment of the 1920's and beyond. This profile follows the creative genius from his youth in Brooklyn to...
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English
Description
This film explores Guthrie's creative genius -- his life and music as well as lesser known talents like writing and painting. Every American who has listened to the radio knows Guthrie's 'This Land Is Your Land.' The music of the folk singer/songwriter has been recorded by everyone from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir to U2.
Series
Language
English
Description
Her life was no children's book. Louisa May Alcott's story is as full of incident, surprise, and heroism as any plot she invented; her childhood was one of high ideals, low finances, and some thirty household moves. The daughter of philosopher-educator Bronson Alcott, she was home schooled by Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, served as a nurse in the Civil War, fought for women's suffrage, and lived a secret literary life as a writer of...
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English
Description
Most presentations feature Lady Day as the sad victim of hard times and drugs. Mining a treasure trove of new information, the producers set the record straight - and beautifully. In a voice that is Billie-like in its rasping wiseness and its ring, stage and screen star Ruby Dee reads from Holiday's autobiography, Lady sings the blues.
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English
Description
The first fully rounded portrait of this terribly misunderstood man and musician, the ringleader of the bebop revolution, and, after Duke Ellington, Jazz' first major composer. He remained a highly productive musician after more than thirty years of musical activity. Includes clips of international performances and interviews with artists and producers.
Author
Series
Masters of American Literature volume 2
Language
English
Description
The Melville Legacy explores the life and works of Herman Melville (1819-1891), one of America's most renowned 19th century authors. In his novels, Typee, Omoo, and Moby Dick, Melville demonstrates his mastery of the epic sea story.
Series
Language
English
Description
Interviews with jazz musicians commenting upon the impact which John Coltrane, an innovative jazz saxophonist, had upon American jazz music. Film traces Coltrane's musical growth from his roots in the black church and in rhythm & blues, through his forty years of life. Film culminates in a musical meeting between the saxophonist Roscoe Mitchell and dervish musicians in Morocco.
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