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VIETNAM: A TELEVISION HISTORY, NO. 1: ROOTS OF A WAR (TV)

Summary

The first in this thirteen-part documentary series about the Vietnam War. Linked from its conception to the book by Stanley Karnow, this series presents an historical overview of Vietnam and provides an understanding of the country and its people at war, from the period of French colonial rule through U.S. involvement in the conflict. Interspersed throughout with news footage and archival film, and drawing on exclusive interviews with French, American, and Vietnamese diplomats, military and government officials, soldiers, and civilians who provide critical analysis of the Vietnam War, this documentary chronologically portrays the war equally as a political, social, and tragic national experience for the United States. The first installment begins with a brief overview of Vietnam's 2000-year history of war, including the centuries of struggle under Chinese rule that ended with the victory of the Trung sisters. Using French propaganda clips and interviews, this part traces the period beginning with the colonial years under France when Vietnam became part of French Indochina in 1860, and continuing through the Franco-Japanese collaboration during World War II. It also examines the political development and rise in popularity of Ho Chi Minh, who would later become the first president of an independent Vietnam and the legendary communist leader of North Vietnam. Vietnamese civilians and officials, along with American, British, and French army generals and statesmen review the key events in Vietnam's fight for independence through 1945, laying down the roots for the war with France and later U.S. intervention: the 1930 rebel uprising and birth of the Vietnamese communist party; the founding of the nationalist group the Vietminh by Ho Chi Minh; the arrival of the Japanese in 1940 and the ensuing famine and exploitation under their rule; the overthrow of the French by the Japanese in 1945; the resignation of Emperor Bao Dai; the U.S.'s initial support for Ho Chi Minh; the declaration of independence by Vietnam in 1945 and the creation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam; and the disarmament of the Japanese, a mismanaged plan carried out by British, Chinese, and French forces, which resulted in chaos, disorder, and the death of U.S. Col. Peter Dewey, the first American believed to be killed in Vietnam. Among those interviewed are Premier Pham Van Dong of Vietnam; Duong Van Khanh; Rene DuMont; Nguyen Si Que; Nguyen Thi Dinh; Charles Henri Bonfils, former chief of staff at Tonkin; Abbot Low Moffat, former chief of the Southeast Asian Affairs division of the U.S. state department; Emperor Bao Dai of Vietnam; Hoang Quoc Viet; Philippe Granjean; Dr. Tran Duy Hung; U.S. OSS Officer Archimedes Patti; British Maj. Philip Malins and Brigadier D.E. Taunton; Huynh Van Tieng; and American soldier Herbert Bluechel. Shown in clips are Emperor Khai Dinh of Vietnam; U.S. Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Richard M. Nixon; Winston S. Churchill; and Pres. Charles de Gaulle of France.

Acquisition and cataloging of this program was made possible by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Details

  • NETWORK: PBS WGBH Boston, MA
  • DATE: November 20, 1984
  • RUNNING TIME: 0:58:55
  • COLOR/B&W: Color
  • CATALOG ID: T91:0129
  • GENRE: Public affairs/Documentaries
  • SUBJECT HEADING: Vietnam War; U S - Foreign relations - Vietnam; Vietnam - Foreign relations - U S; Indochina, French; World War II; Communism - 1930; Propaganda; U S - Officials - Talk/Interviews; Vietnam - Officials - Talk/Interviews; Great Britain - Officials - Talk/Interviews; France - Officials - Talk/Interviews; France - Foreign relations - Vietnam; Vietnam - Foreign relations - France; Japan - Foreign relations - Vietnam; Vietnam - Foreign relations - Japan; Great Britain - Foreign relations - Vietnam; Vietnam - Foreign relations - Great Britain; Vietnam - Foreign relations - China; China - Foreign relations - Vietnam; Japan - Foreign relations - France; France - Foreign relations - Japan
  • SERIES RUN: N/A
  • COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

  • Richard Ellison … Executive Producer
  • Henri de Turenne … Producer
  • Martin Smith … Producer
  • Judith Vecchione … Producer, Writer
  • Karan Sheldon … Associate Producer
  • Serge Gordey … Associate Producer
  • Will Lyman … Narrator
  • John Laurence … Reporter
  • Ngo Vinh Long … Translator
  • Mickey Hart … Music by, Composed and performed by
  • Billy Kreutzman … Music by, Composed and performed by
  • Vic Firth … Music (Misc. Credits), Performed by
  • Zakir Hussain … Music (Misc. Credits), Performed by
  • Airto Moreira … Music (Misc. Credits), Performed by
  • Merl Saunders … Music (Misc. Credits), Performed by
  • Bobby Vega … Music (Misc. Credits), Performed by
  • Phil Kaffel … Music (Misc. Credits), Recorded by
  • Lawrence Lichty … Direction (Misc.), Director of Media Research
  • Stanley Karnow … Reporter, Chief Correspondent
  • Bao Dai
  • Herbert Bluechel
  • Charles Henri Bonfils
  • Winston S. Churchill
  • De Gaulle, Charles
  • Peter Dewey
  • Rene DuMont
  • Duong Van Khanh
  • Dwight D. Eisenhower
  • Philippe Granjean
  • Ho Chi Minh (see also: Nguyen Ai Quoc)
  • Hoang Quoc Viet
  • Huynh Van Tieng
  • Lyndon B. Johnson
  • Khai Dinh
  • John F. Kennedy
  • Philip Malins
  • Abbot Low Moffat
  • Nguyen Ai Quoc (See also: Ho Chi Minh)
  • Nguyen Si Que
  • Nguyen Thi Dinh
  • Richard M. Nixon
  • Archimedes Patti
  • Pham Van Dong
  • Franklin D. Roosevelt
  • D.E. Taunton
  • Tran Duy Hung
  • Trung Sisters