Ben Loeterman

Eighty years after the devastating atomic bombings that ushered in the nuclear age, Bombshell explores how the U.S. government manipulated the narrative about the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Through propaganda, censorship and the co-opting of the press, the government presented a benevolent picture of atomic power, minimizing the horrific human toll. Bombshell sheds light on the efforts of a group of intrepid reporters to let the world know the truth.

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The life and times of radio commentator and syndicated newspaper gossip columnist Walter Winchell, who reached an audience of 50 million at his peak.

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Explore an overlooked moment in pre-WWI Palestine when people's identities overlapped, and Jewish, Muslim, and Christian communities intermingled freely. Few could contemplate the conflict that would engulf their region for the next century.

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Once a maverick who was nearly run out of the American Institute of Architects, John Portman is now recognized as one of the most innovative and imitated architects ever. Over 45 years, Portman's iconic urban statements and eye-popping interiors have risen in 60 cities on four continents to redefine cityscapes in America, and skylines in China and the rest of Asia. The film captures Portman's approach in an intimate portrait that, by turn, assesses and appreciates Portman's work. Dramatic time-lapse footage shows off Portman's buildings at their best- often in moving sunlight that washes over his facades and spaces.

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In 1913, little Mary Phagan is found dead at the National Pencil Factory in Atlanta. Police quickly decide that the Jewish Superintendent, Leo Frank, should be held responsible. The trial commences with both prosecution and defense lawyers using ad hominen as the base for their arguments. From 1913 to 1915, this murder, trial, and aftermath gained notoriety worldwide. And one hundred years later it has produced books, college and university discussions, a Hollywood-ized movie "They Won't Forget", a TV movie "The Murder of Mary Phagan", a Broadway musical "Parade", a bittersweet folk song "The Ballad of Mary Phagan", and racial controversy.

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The War that Made America is a PBS miniseries about the French and Indian War, which was first aired in two parts on January 18 & 25, 2006. The series features extensive reenactments of historical events, with on-screen narration provided by Canadian actor Graham Greene. Much of the story focuses on George Washington, connecting his role in the war with the later American Revolution. Pontiac's Rebellion, which followed the French and Indian War, is also covered in the series. The series was filmed in June, July, and August 2004 in and around the Western Pennsylvania region where many events actually took place during the war.

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This program tells the story of a hustler and self-promoter, a man who had never designed or overseen the building of a suspension bridge. Joseph Strauss spent thirteen years wrangling with politicians, arguing over designs and fighting lawsuits from opponents before he was able to break ground. By completion, Strauss, his designers and his construction crews had built what has since been called one of the "Seven Wonders of the Modern World."

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Peeling back the myths surrounding the most infamous outlaw since Jesse James, Public Enemy #1 unravels the story of a charismatic stickup man, whose wild antics and flamboyant disdain for the law captured the imagination of Hollywood, the mainstream press and millions of ordinary Americans. The film chronicles John Dillinger's life from his youthful first brush with the law to his death a decade later in a hail of bullets. It explores how, at a time of great hardship, Americans felt more admiration for a daring criminal than their seemingly ineffectual institutions of government. And it shows how FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover was determined to turn Dillinger's story into a morality tale in which law enforcers are the victors and crime doesn't pay.

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On January 23, 1909, two ships--one carrying Italian immigrants to New York, the other American tourists to Europe--collided in a dense fog off Nantucket Island. In an instant, more than 1,500 lives suddenly became dependent on a new technology, wireless telegraphy, and the efforts of a twenty-six-year-old wireless operator who bravely tapped out distress signals form his sinking ship. "Rescue at Sea", a story of courage, luck and heroism. Produced by Ben Loeterman, the film features interviews with descendants of passengers and crew, recollections of the young hero, Jack Binns and surprising revelations of the connections between this event and a later disaster at sea: the "Titanic". David McCullough narrates, and Matthew Broderick provides the voice of Jack Binns.

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An investigative biography originally broadcast in 1993 for BBC Timewatch about the man at the center of the political crime of the 20th century. At the heart of the assassination lies the puzzle of Lee Harvey Oswald: Was he an emotionally disturbed lone gunman? Was he part of a broader conspiracy? Or was he an unwitting fall guy, the patsy, as Oswald himself claimed? This was subsequently broadcast on PBS in America as Who Was Lee Harvey Oswald?

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At heart of mystery of who killed John F. Kennedy lies puzzle of Lee Harvey Oswald.

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Eighty years after the devastating atomic bombings that ushered in the nuclear age, Bombshell explores how the U.S. government manipulated the narrative about the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Through propaganda, censorship and the co-opting of the press, the government presented a benevolent picture of atomic power, minimizing the horrific human toll. Bombshell sheds light on the efforts of a group of intrepid reporters to let the world know the truth.

Open details →

Explore an overlooked moment in pre-WWI Palestine when people's identities overlapped, and Jewish, Muslim, and Christian communities intermingled freely. Few could contemplate the conflict that would engulf their region for the next century.

Open details →

In 1913, little Mary Phagan is found dead at the National Pencil Factory in Atlanta. Police quickly decide that the Jewish Superintendent, Leo Frank, should be held responsible. The trial commences with both prosecution and defense lawyers using ad hominen as the base for their arguments. From 1913 to 1915, this murder, trial, and aftermath gained notoriety worldwide. And one hundred years later it has produced books, college and university discussions, a Hollywood-ized movie "They Won't Forget", a TV movie "The Murder of Mary Phagan", a Broadway musical "Parade", a bittersweet folk song "The Ballad of Mary Phagan", and racial controversy.

Open details →

The War that Made America is a PBS miniseries about the French and Indian War, which was first aired in two parts on January 18 & 25, 2006. The series features extensive reenactments of historical events, with on-screen narration provided by Canadian actor Graham Greene. Much of the story focuses on George Washington, connecting his role in the war with the later American Revolution. Pontiac's Rebellion, which followed the French and Indian War, is also covered in the series. The series was filmed in June, July, and August 2004 in and around the Western Pennsylvania region where many events actually took place during the war.

Open details →