WASTE LAND
TUESDAY, APRIL 19 @ 8:00PM & 11:00PM
Filmed over nearly three years, Waste Land follows renowned artist Vik Muniz as he journeys from his home base in Brooklyn to his native Brazil and the world’s largest garbage dump, Jardim Gramacho, located on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. There he photographs an eclectic band of catadores — or garbage pickers
GAMES OF THE NORTH
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 27 @ 11:30PM
For thousands of years, traditional Inuit sports have been vital for survival within the unforgiving Arctic. Acrobatic and explosive, these ancestral games evolved to strengthen mind, body and spirit within the community. As unprecedented change sweeps across their traditional lands, our modern Inuit athletes’ stories illuminate the importance of the games today.
BATTLE FOR THE BIBLE
SATURDAY, APRIL 16 @ 6:00PM
The film BATTLE FOR THE BIBLE explores the lives and lasting influence of three major figures in the translation and propagation of the English Bible: the 14th-century theologian, politician, and reformer John Wycliffe; Tyndale; and Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury under Henry VIII and advisor to the king through the period that saw the split with Rome and the creation of the Anglican Church.
THE BIBLE’S BURIED SECRETS
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13 @ 7:00PM & 10:00PM
In this landmark two-hour special, NOVA takes viewers on a scientific journey that began 3,000 years ago and continues today. The film presents the latest archeological scholarship from the Holy Land to explore the beginnings of modern religion and the origins of the Hebrew Bible, also known as the Old Testament. This archeological detective story tackles some of the biggest questions in biblical studies: Where did the ancient Israelites come from? Who wrote the Bible, when, and why? How did the worship of one God—the foundation of modern Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—emerge?
FOOTBALL HIGH
TUESDAY, APRIL 12 @ 7:00PM & 10:00PM
High school football has never had a higher profile, with nationally-televised games, corporate sponsorships and minute-by-minute coverage on sports websites. In northwest Arkansas, FRONTLINE examines one ambitious high school team working its way towards national renown.
GREAT FAMINE
SATURDAY, APRIL 2 @ 6:00PM
The little-known story of the American effort to relieve starvation in the new Soviet Russia in 1921, The Great Famine is a documentary about the worst natural disaster in Europe since the Black Plague in the Middle Ages. Five million Soviet citizens died. Half a world away, Americans responded with a massive two-year relief campaign, championed by Herbert Hoover, director of the American Relief Administration.
UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS
EPISODE 3
FRIDAY, APRIL 29 @ 7:30PM & 12:30AM
A chance encounter with greatness goes to Mrs. Thackeray’s head, and in turn annoys Rose, who, fed up with her pretensions, unleashes an insult so great that it sparks a feud. Yet despite the embattled cook and housekeeper, the downstairs staff is united in their love and nurturing of the child Lotte, who appears to need more help than they can provide. With even more than her customary authority, Maud steps up to take charge, whisking the child away for treatment even as she guards a secret of her own.
SPOON
SATURDAY, APRIL 9 @ 11:30PM
Hailed as “one of the most engaging American bands of the past decade” (The Phoenix) by critics and fans, Spoon returns to Austin City Limits for their third turn on the stage with a new album that “strikes a balance between its early angsty indie-rock and the soulful deconstructed pop of its 2007 release, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga” (Billboard).
Released earlier this year, Transference is an “experimental yet entirely accessible” (Q Magazine) CD that is “a compelling listen from a band that’s still at the mercy of its muse” (Boston Globe). “I think we were just feeling our way as we went along,” Britt Daniel told NPR. “And we definitely didn’t know how we wanted to make [Transference] when we started.”
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FRIDAY, APRIL 8 @ 6:30PM & 11:30PM
This week on Need to Know, we visit the island of Hispaniola, where the Dominican Republican is beginning to deport Haitians that had fled across the border following last year’s devastating earthquake. Haitian-American author Edwidge Danticat follows up with a conversation about the American perception of Haiti and Haitian immigrants.
Also, a look at the Republican proposals for changes to Medicare and Medicaid, and essay from Jon Meacham and the return of Peter Sagal.
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WAR IS ALL HELL – 1865
THE BETTER ANGELS OF OUR NATURE – 1865
THURSDAY, APRIL 7 @ 6:00PM & 11:00PM
The episode begins with William Tecumseh Sherman’s brilliant march to the sea, which brings the war to the heart of Georgia and the Carolinas and spells the end of the Confederacy. In March, following Lincoln’s second inauguration, first Petersburg and then Richmond finally fall to Grant’s army. Lee’s tattered Army of Northern Virginia flees westward towards a tiny crossroads town called Appomattox Court House. There the dramatic and deeply moving surrender of Lee to Grant takes place. The episode ends in Washington where John Wilkes Booth begins to dream of vengeance for the South.