Caesar's Writers

On January 24, 1996, at the Writers Guild Theater in Los Angeles, CA, legendary comic Sid Caesar was reunited with nine of his writers from Your Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour. The event was taped for release on PBS and BBC in a 1-hour cut, and later on VHS and DVD in its full 2-hour length. Be prepared to laugh non-stop as the panel, made up of head writer Mel Tolkin, Caesar, Carl Reiner, Aaron Ruben, Larry Gelbart, Mel Brooks, Neil Simon, Danny Simon, Sheldon Keller, and Gary Belkin share stories about their time working on Caesar's shows and offer their insights about writing comedy.

What We Left Behind: Looking Back at Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

A documentary exploring the legacy of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the reasons it went from the black sheep of Star Trek to a beloved mainstay of the franchise, and a brainstorm with the original writers on what a theoretical eighth season of the show could look like.

Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You

Arguably the most influential creator, writer, and producer in the history of television, Norman Lear brought primetime into step with the times. Using comedy and indelible characters, his legendary 1970s shows such as All In the Family, Maude, Good Times, and The Jeffersons, boldly cracked open dialogue and shifted the national consciousness, injecting enlightened humanism into sociopolitical debates on race, class, creed, and feminism.

Ruth Lyons: First Lady of Television

Even though her program was only seen in four Midwestern cities, Ruth Lyons presided over America's highest-rated daytime TV talk show for nearly two decades! This documentary draws upon rare and previously undiscovered footage, along with comments from associates and admirers to create a portrait of an outspoken, multi-talented woman who became one of the most beloved and influential figures in TV history. Featuring the Recollections Of: Carol Channing, John Davidson, Phyllis Diller, Phil Donahue, David Letterman, Johnny Mathis, Peter Nero, Bonnie Lou, Nick Clooney, Oscar Robertson and many others, along with archival audio and video of Ruth Lyons' 50-50 Club.

La saga des feuilletons et des séries

The Bannfoot Ferry

A forgotten history of Northern Ireland is unveiled through a journey into Ulster Television’s archives, and the rediscovery of the first locally-produced network drama, Boatman Do Not Tarry.

Behind Your Radio Dial

Familiar radio voice Ben Grauer leads the viewer on a behind the scenes tour of the National Broadcasting Company studios -- both radio and television -- in Rockefeller Center and Hollywood. The original 25-minute film previewed by network execs and affiliates in the fall of 1948 was cut down to 20 minutes before its first broadcast, reportedly to excise high-profile stars and programs such as Amos 'n' Andy, Jack Benny, and Edgar Bergen that had since left NBC for other networks.

Saturday Night Live in the 2000s: Time and Again

Documentary looking back at the history of Saturday Night Live, focusing on the years 2000-2009.

The Native Hue of Resolution

A documentary celebrating 20 years of the work of Kaleidoscope, an organisation devoted to the preservation of archive television.

The Story of Soaps

This ABC/PEOPLE television special highlights the impact of the soap opera. In today's shifting television landscape, "The Story of Soaps" traces how female creators migrated from radio to television to become the dominant force in daytime for more than three decades. Today, the legacy of the soap opera continues all over prime time and reality t.v. An extensive look is taken at this iconic, impactful genre.

50 Years of Television: A Golden Celebration

A special highlighting fifty years in the history of television. Includes tributes to Lucille Ball, Carol Burnett, Walter Cronkite, Jackie Gleason, Bob Hope and Ed Sullivan. Clips of classic television moments are presented.

Odnes’ to všechno čas?

Television's Opening Night: How the Box Was Born

TV presenter Dallas Campbell, engineer Professor Danielle George and engineer Dr Hugh Hunt re-create the opening of the BBC's television service on 2 November 1936. This involves building the mechanical flying-spot cameras that were used by Baird's system.

Missing Presumed Wiped

Documentary about the lost episodes of Dad's Army (1968) and their recovery and restoration.

Televise, která měla nebýt

Parta Analog

Televise bude!

Flexible, powerful, and naive. The fates of three men intersect at the launch of Czechoslovak television broadcasting. Ambitious actor František Filipovský has no idea that his casual improvisation on the theme of "the miser" will go down in history. For Minister of Information Václav Kopecký, it is a moment of great nervousness: will he convince his comrades that television broadcasting is the golden goose of communist propaganda? A young television technician is fascinated by the "remote transmission of images and sound" – he has a job he never dreamed of. But can a person fulfill their dreams in communist Czechoslovakia in the 1950s without getting involved with the regime?

Amicalement vôtre : Hollywood au service de sa Majesté

Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession

A documentary on the Z Channel, one of the first pay cable stations in the US, and its programming chief, Jerry Harvey. Debuting in 1974, the LA-based channel's eclectic slate of movies became a prime example of the untapped power of cable television.

Derrière l'image

This feature-length documentary analyzes television newscasts and, as a result, takes a look at the news industry as a whole. By tackling five major themes – the script, the stars, the show, the actors and telecracy – it elucidates and demystifies certain aspects of television news, the bearer of daily news and guarantor of a certain image of reality.