7.1/10593 votes#1 - Command and Control
Season 29 Episode 1 - Aired 1/10/2017
An account of an incident at a Titan II missile complex in Damascus, Ark., in 1980 that almost caused the explosion of a ballistic missile carrying a nuclear warhead 600 times more powerful than the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima. The near-calamity was kicked off when a socket fell from the wrench of an airman performing maintenance in a Titan II silo and punctured the missile, releasing a stream of highly explosive rocket fuel.
Director: Robert Kenner
Writer: N/A
7.8/10514 votes#2 - Rachel Carson
Season 29 Episode 2 - Aired 1/24/2017
She set out to save a species...us. An intimate portrait of the woman whose groundbreaking books revolutionized our relationship to the natural world.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.9/10109 votes#3 - The Race Underground
Season 29 Episode 3 - Aired 1/31/2017
The dramatic story of the country's first subway.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.8/10140 votes#4 - Oklahoma City
Season 29 Episode 4 - Aired 2/7/2017
On April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh, a former soldier deeply influenced by literature and ideas of the radical right, killed 168, and injured 675 others.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.2/10204 votes#5 - Ruby Ridge
Season 29 Episode 5 - Aired 2/14/2017
A riveting account of the event that helped give rise to the modern American militia movement.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.1/10156 votes#6 - The Great War: Part 1
Season 29 Episode 6 - Aired 4/10/2017
Part 1 of 3. President Woodrow Wilson vowed to keep the U.S. out of World War I after hostilities erupted in Europe in August 1914. It was a promise he kept until 1917, when the Germans resumed "unrestricted submarine warfare"— a policy it had started and then stopped in 1915 — and began sinking U.S. ships. An intercepted telegram also showed Germany trying to convince Japan and Mexico to declare war on America.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.5/10421 votes#7 - The Great War: Part 2
Season 29 Episode 7 - Aired 4/11/2017
Part 2 of 3. America's entry into World War I is recalled, including the breathtaking speed of mobilization and the profound transformations required for America to play a central role in the conflict.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/10148 votes#8 - The Great War: Part 3
Season 29 Episode 8 - Aired 4/12/2017
Part 3 of 3. In the fall of 1918: a major American offensive that could bring a swift end to the war, a lost U.S. battalion surrounded by German forces, a deadly flu epidemic on the homefront.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
The Best Episodes of American Experience Season 29
Every episode of American Experience Season 29 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of American Experience Season 29!
TV's most-watched history series brings to life the compelling stories from our past that inform our understanding of the world today.
Genre:Documentary
Network:PBS
Season 29 Ratings Summary
"Command and Control" is the best rated episode of "American Experience" season 29. It scored 7.1/10 based on 593 votes. Directed by Robert Kenner and written by N/A, it aired on 1/10/2017. This episode is rated 0.7 points higher than the second-best, "Rachel Carson".