Programming to Watch for Presidents' Day
Celebrate President's Day by learning about the lives and legacies of some of our former Commanders in Chief. From deep-dive docuseries to single episode overviews, to even a dramatized retelling of the friendship between the Princess of Norway and Franklin Roosevelt, there's a lot of history to explore! Watch these programs on demand via pbs.org or the PBS app.
From the Ken Burns Collection
The Roosevelts: The Roosevelts: An Intimate History chronicles the lives of Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, three members of the most prominent and influential family in American politics.
Thomas Jefferson: Thomas Jefferson is a two-part portrait of our enigmatic and brilliant third president. Thomas Jefferson embodies within his own life the most profound contradictions of American history: as the author of the Declaration of Independence, he gave voice to our fervent desire for freedom, but he also owned more than 150 slaves and never saw fit to free them.
The Address: This powerful film tells the story of a tiny school in Putney Vermont, where students are encouraged to practice, memorize, and recite the Gettysburg Address.
American Experience
The Movement and the "Madman": Discover the story of the 1969 showdown between President Nixon and the antiwar movement.
The Presidents: Jimmy Carter: Jimmy Carter's story is one of the greatest dramas in American politics. In 1980, he was overwhelmingly voted out of office in a humiliating defeat. Over the subsequent two decades, he became one of the most admired statesmen and humanitarians in America and the world.
The Presidents: Reagan: In 1988, after two terms in office, Ronald Reagan left the White House one of the most popular presidents of the twentieth century -- and one of the most controversial.
The Presidents: LBJ: Sworn in after the assassination of JFK, Lyndon Johnson pushed progressive programs like the Civil Rights Act through Congress and won a term as president before the Vietnam War eroded his support.
The American Vice President: A look at the US vice presidency, from constitutional afterthought to position of political import.
Individual Episodes and Documentaries
Secrets of the Dead - JFK & LBJ: A Time for Greatness: In many ways, President Lyndon B. Johnson was the most unlikely champion of Civil Rights. But his actions in the White House told a different story when he dared to champion two laws that changed America and the world — the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
A President at the Crossroads: He was a man living in two worlds. He was a witness to both the extremes of wealth and poverty in the Gilded Age and the unbridled promise of the Modern Era. He dreamed of a world where men shared the same civil rights regardless of color, but was challenged at every pass. Above all else, Benjamin Harrison was America’s Hoosier President.
The White House: Inside Story: The White House is one of America’s most iconic buildings; it is a symbol of shared national history and is home to the most powerful person on Earth. Here the president charts the course for the country, and the First Family lives in the spotlight. It's home, office and a museum.
Statecraft: The Bush 41 Team: George H.W. Bush’s presidency occurred at a crucial turning point in modern history — the transition from the Cold War to the post-Cold War world, when heightened US-Soviet tensions gave way to delicate negotiations between the former adversaries. While the Cold War ended without a shot being fired, this peaceful outcome was far from certain at the time.
Historical Drama
Atlantic Crossing: A European princess steals the heart of the U.S. president in an epic drama inspired by the real World War II relationship between Franklin Roosevelt and Norwegian Crown Princess Martha. Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks, Sex and the City) stars as Roosevelt, opposite Swedish star Sofia Helin (The Bridge) as Martha.