LIBERTY! THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION: EPISODE 3: THE TIMES THAT TRY MEN'S SOULS (TV)

Summary

Continued from T:53430. One in this six-part series documenting the twenty-five-year period of the American Revolution. Episode three chronicles the early part of the Revolutionary War from the arrival of 30,000 British troops in New York, to Gen. George Washington's surprise attack on Christmas of 1776. This program, narrated by Edward Herrmann, includes remarks by historians, re-enactments of historical events, and dramatizations of colonists' documents, letters, and diaries. Episode three concerns the British forces' confidence of victory, and their attempts to persuade Washington to surrender peacefully. Historians Pauline Maier and N.A.M. Rodgers explain that although the Americans were in a poor position, Washington was determined to pull his ragtag troops together. Historians John Keegan, John Shy, and author George C. Neumann describe the first battles, which occurred in Brooklyn and resulted in the patriot troops' flight across the East River and their unorganized retreat through Manhattan. Included are battle re-enactments, and a discussion about Washington's change in tactics and the differences between the British and American military. Richard Norton Smith explains that the Continental Congress would not help Washington recruit a standing army for fear of a military takeover of the colonies. Other topics covered include: Americans' fears of defeat as the British took New York and New Jersey; and British generals' declaration of a hiatus in the war during the winter, when Americans were near defeat. Thomas Paine's pamphlet about reviving the revolutionary spirit, entitled "The American Crisis," is then described and dramatically quoted. Episode three concludes with a re-enactment of Washington's Christmastime surprise attack on the Hessian camp in New Jersey, and a discussion of the implications of the victory for Americans. Continues with T:53434.

Cataloging of this program was made possible by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, 1998.

Details

• NETWORK: PBS
• DATE: November 24, 1997 Monday 9:00 PM
• RUNNING TIME: 0:56:01
• COLOR/B&W: Color
• CATALOG ID: T:53435
• GENRE: Public affairs/Documentaries
• SUBJECT HEADING: Public affairs/Documentaries; History - American; U.S. - History - Revolution
• SERIES RUN: PBS - TV series, 1997
• COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

• Catherine Allan … Executive Producer
• Erika Herrmann … Coordinating Producer
• Ellen Hovde … Producer, Director
• Muffie Meyer … Producer, Director
• Sharon Sachs … Co-Producer
• Ronald Blumer … Co-Producer, Writer
• Jennifer Raikes … Associate Producer
• Smokey Forester … Series Producer
• Tim Brady … Writer
• Richard Einhorn … Music by
• Mark O'Connor … Music by
• Forrest Sawyer … Host
• Herrmann, Edward (See also: Herrmann, Ed) … Narrator
• Jane Adams … Cast, Sara Scott
• Philip Bosco … Cast, Benjamin Franklin
• Kevin Chamberlin … Cast, Daniel McCurtin
• John Ellison Conlee … Cast, Henry Knox
• J.D. Cullum … Cast, Nicholas Cresswell
• Michael Cumpsty … Cast, Everett Larkin
• Marcus D'Amico … Cast, Sgt. Roger Lamb
• Jeffrey DeMunn … Cast, Samuel Parsons and Dr. James Thatcher
• Peter Donaldson … Cast, John Adams
• George Enders … Cast, Julius Frederick Wasmus
• Patrick Fiztgerald … Cast, John Fitzgerald
• Anthony Heald … Cast, Philip Vickers Fithian and Jonathan Austin
• Philip Seymour Hoffman … Cast, Joseph Plumb Martin
• Daniel Jenkins … Cast, Michael Graham
• Alex Jennings … Cast, King George III
• Byron Jennings … Cast, John Hancock
• Simon Jones … Cast, Ambrose Serie
• David Patrick Kelly … Cast, Col. James Wilkinson
• Donna Murphy … Cast, Abigail Adams
• James Murtaugh … Cast, Isaac Bangs
• Richard Pelzman … Cast, Winter Soldier #1
• Keith Reddin … Cast, Winter Soldier #2
• Roger Rees … Cast, Thomas Paine
• Stephen Temperley … Cast, Hector de Crevecoeur
• Douglas Weston … Cast, Sir George Collier and Lord Stormont
• Steve Zahn … Cast, the American Sergeant
• Stephen Lang … Cast, George Washington
• David Hildebrand
• Ginger Hildebrand
• John Keegan
• Yo-Yo Ma
• Pauline Maier
• Wynton Marsalis
• Nashville Symphony, The
• George C. Neumann
• N.A.M. Rodgers
• John Shy
• Richard Norton Smith
• James Taylor