American Masters

American Masters - PBS

PBS

Franchise

1986

TVPG

Anthology

Documentary

Biography

Profiles the lives and creative journeys of America’s most enduring artistic and cultural giants.

Where to Stream

1985– Franchise 39 Seasons

Upcoming TV Airings

The airings below are based on a generic national schedule. Times and dates can vary by TV provider.

Friday, December 12

Starring Dick Van Dyke New

Season 39 • Episode 7

Celebrating the life and career of actor Dick Van Dyke on his 100th birthday.

Saturday, December 13

Blake Edwards: A Love Story in 24 Frames

Season 38 • Episode 4

Blake Edwards redefined slapstick comedy through a lens that resonates with directors and actors.

Saturday, December 13

Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes

Season 37 • Episode 9

Composer Max Roach's far-reaching ambitions were inspired by inequities of the society around him.

Sunday, December 14

Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes

Season 37 • Episode 9

Composer Max Roach's far-reaching ambitions were inspired by inequities of the society around him.

Monday, December 15

Hannah Arendt: Facing Tyranny

Season 39 • Episode 4

The life and work of Hannah Arendt, an influential political thinker of the 20th century.

Monday, December 15

Marian Anderson: The Whole World in Her Hands

Season 36 • Episode 2

Exploring the life and legacy of singer Marian Anderson and the civil rights movement.

Tuesday, December 16

Marian Anderson: The Whole World in Her Hands

Season 36 • Episode 2

Exploring the life and legacy of singer Marian Anderson and the civil rights movement.

Tuesday, December 16

Ten Times Better New

Season 39 • Episode 8

The astonishing and heartwarming story of George Lee, a pioneering Asian dancer.

Thursday, December 18

Ten Times Better

Season 39 • Episode 8

The astonishing and heartwarming story of George Lee, a pioneering Asian dancer.

Saturday, December 20

The Disappearance of Miss Scott

Season 38 • Episode 7

Jazz virtuoso Hazel Scott gets caught up in the Red Scare of the 1950s.

Sunday, December 21

The Disappearance of Miss Scott

Season 38 • Episode 7

Jazz virtuoso Hazel Scott gets caught up in the Red Scare of the 1950s.

Tuesday, December 23

Brenda Lee: Rockin' Around

Season 38 • Episode 6

How Brenda Lee's early fame and life of poverty shaped her music.

Wednesday, December 24

Ten Times Better New

Season 39 • Episode 8

The astonishing and heartwarming story of George Lee, a pioneering Asian dancer.

Thursday, December 25

Brenda Lee: Rockin' Around

Season 38 • Episode 6

How Brenda Lee's early fame and life of poverty shaped her music.

Thursday, December 25

Ten Times Better

Season 39 • Episode 8

The astonishing and heartwarming story of George Lee, a pioneering Asian dancer.

Saturday, December 27

Brenda Lee: Rockin' Around

Season 38 • Episode 6

How Brenda Lee's early fame and life of poverty shaped her music.

Monday, December 29

Brenda Lee: Rockin' Around

Season 38 • Episode 6

How Brenda Lee's early fame and life of poverty shaped her music.

Matt Roush

Matt Roush says...

“He can sing. He can dance. He’s a comedian. He can do pratfalls and be funny. And he’s also very sexy.” So says fellow comedy legend Carol Burnett in an admiring biographical profile celebrating Dick Van Dyke’s 100th birthday on Saturday. The first hour focuses on his TV career, with several false starts (shown in fascinating vintage clips) until his Broadway triumph in Bye Bye Birdie landed him the gig of a lifetime in the classic The Dick Van Dyke Show, inspired by creator Carl Reiner‘s career as a comedy writer and entertainer. Among those admiring the star’s physicality and versatility: Jim Carrey, Conan O’Brien, Ted Danson, the tag team of Steve Martin and Martin Short, and Van Dyke’s Mary Poppins co-star Julie Andrews. The special chronicles his foray into movies in the 1960s, his sporadic return to TV in the 1970s, and his comeback as a silver fox in the long-running 1990s procedural Diagnosis: Murder. His “Keep Moving” philosophy has sustained Dick into his centennial year, with Danson marveling, “He has the childlike joy of being alive and creative.” An American master without question.

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Gary Cole as NCIS Special Agent Alden Parker, Wilmer Valderrama as NCIS Special Agent Nicholas “Nick” Torres, and Sean Murray as Special Agent Timothy McGee — 'NCIS' Season 23 Premiere

‘NCIS’ Takes Over Tuesdays, Surviving Horror in ‘Guts & Glory,’ Marlee Matlin on ‘American Masters,’ Real Housewives’ ‘Wife Swap’

Liza Minnelli in 'LIZA: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story' on 'American Masters'

Liza A to Z, ‘FBI’ Springs a Leak, Fools Rule on TCM, Return to the Test Kitchen

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‘Couple Next Door’ Finale, Bare-Knuckled ‘Thousand Blows,’ TV Pioneer Hazel Scott, Inside Major League Soccer, Streaming ‘Nosferatu’

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Harvey Guillen and Kayvan Novak in 'What We Do in the Shadows' Season 6

‘Shadows’ Signs off, Little Big Town’s Opry Christmas, More About Gibbs’ Origins, Rockin’ With Brenda Lee

Steve Martin, Selena Gomez, and Martin Short in 'Only Murders in the Building' Season 4 Episode 1

Double or Nothing on ‘Only Murders,’ Remembering Blake Edwards, Adam Sandler on Netflix, the Best in Horror

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Fall Preview

How Blake Edwards & Julie Andrews’ Love Story Comes to Life in ‘American Masters’

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Remembering Little Richard, ‘Manifest’ Finale, Road Trip with Guy and ‘Searching for Soul Food’

Jason Ritter Is ‘Accused,’ Dr. Fauci on ‘American Masters,’ ‘Restaurants at the End of the World,’ ‘Will Trent’ Hostage Crisis

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‘Lone Star’ Chaotic Carnival, ‘Auto’ Revs Up, Marlee Matlin Directs ‘Accused,’ ‘Masters’ Profiles Roberta Flack

Groucho Marx on The Dick Cavett Show

TV Talk with Groucho Marx and Dick Cavett, José Andrés in Spain, Chelsea Handler on Netflix, Prince Albert on Oceans

Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys poses with a group of blonde women
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‘Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road’ Shows New Side of Beach Boys Legend

Brian Wilson’s Road Trip, J.Lo’s ‘Halftime,’ ‘Mayans’ Finale, ‘Dateline’ Heads to Peacock

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‘Waterman — Duke: Ambassador of Aloha’: What We Learned About Duke Kahanamoku

Black History Month 2022 TV Round-Up, Cicely Tyson as Vivian in 'Bustin' Loose,' Jay Pharoah in 'Phat Tuesdays,' Sonequa Martin-Green as Burnham in 'Star Trek: Discovery'

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West Side Story - Rita Moreno, 1961
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Roush Review: ‘American Masters’ Salutes Rita Moreno, an EGOT for All Time

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Netflix’s ‘Sweet Tooth,’ Stephen King’s ‘Lisey’s Story,’ A ‘Mythic’ Backstory and ‘Mosquito Coast’ Finale on Apple, Celebrating ‘Ballerina Boys’

Laura Ingalls Wilder Prairie to Page
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PBS’s ‘American Masters’ Shares Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Story From ‘Prairie to Page’

WALTER WINCHELL THE POWER OF GOSSIP PICTURED

American Masters Examines How Walter Winchell Wielded ‘The Power of Gossip’

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‘Unladylike2020’ Highlights 5 Women Who Changed American Politics

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Worth Watching: Last Call for ‘Greenleaf,’ ‘Isolation Stories’ Filmed in Quarantine, Toni Morrison an ‘American Master’

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Toni Morrison Examines her Life and Works in ‘The Pieces I Am’ (VIDEO)

Mae West
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Roush Review: A Saucy Portrait of the Original ‘Dirty Blonde’

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Worth Watching: Remembering Miles Davis, Facing the Truth on ‘This Is Us,’ Pete Davidson on Netflix

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‘Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool’ Reveals the Man Behind the Jazz Legend

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‘Words From a Bear’ Looks at the Life of Pulitzer Prize Winner N. Scott Momaday

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Exclusive

PBS Kicks Off Hispanic Heritage Month With ‘Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage’ (VIDEO)

Ursula K. Le Guin

Beloved Sci-Fi Author Profiled in American Masters’ ‘Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin’

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‘All Things Are Photographable’: A Revealing Portrait of Photographer Garry Winogrand

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Worth Watching: Separation Anxiety on ‘Speechless,’ ‘Widow’ on Amazon, Holly Near an ‘American Master’

Ted Williams

Ted Williams on ‘American Masters,’ Shark Week Goes Into the Abyss, ‘Bachelorette’ All Thai’d Up

Norman Lear

Norman Lear on His ‘American Masters’ Documentary and Making Politically Engaged TV

Mike Nichols directing The Graduate, 1967

What’s Worth Watching: Mike Nichols, the SAG Awards, Zombie Houses and More TV for Friday and Saturday, Jan. 29-30

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Norman Lear Still Hopeful on ‘One Day at a Time’ Remake

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What’s Worth Watching: PBS Gets Dance (Ballet) Fever

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What’s Worth Watching: American Masters’ Magic Act