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The Best Episodes of American Masters

Every episode of American Masters ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of American Masters!

The Best Episodes of American Masters

American Masters is a PBS television series which produces biographies on enduring writers, musicians, visual and performing artists, dramatists, filmmakers, and others who have left...
  1. Background image for The Lives of Lillian Hellman
    9.0/10(108 votes)

    #1 - The Lives of Lillian Hellman

    S13:E5

    The politics and writings of the noted 20th century woman.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  2. Background image for Unanswered Prayers: The Life and Times of Truman Capote
    8.7/10(67 votes)

    #2 - Unanswered Prayers: The Life and Times of Truman Capote

    S2:E8

    The evolution of the novelist and his impact on other artists and American culture.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  3. Background image for Lucille Ball: Finding Lucy
    8.7/10(190 votes)

    #3 - Lucille Ball: Finding Lucy

    S15:E4

    The incredible career of Lucille Ball, from youth through the movies, from television star to media mogul. Some of the personalities that comment in this film include Fran Drescher, Van Johnson, Dick Martin, Edie Adams, and Carol Burnett. This episode won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Non-Fiction Program.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  4. Background image for Dashiell Hammett: Detective, Writer
    8.5/10(127 votes)

    #4 - Dashiell Hammett: Detective, Writer

    S13:E6

    A profile of an author as mysterious as some of his well-known detective stories.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  5. Background image for Balanchine
    8.5/10(309 votes)

    #5 - Balanchine

    S18:E4

    A retrospective on the life and work of George Balanchine, a founder of American ballet.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  6. Background image for Waterman – Duke: Ambassador of Aloha
    8.5/10(49 votes)

    #6 - Waterman – Duke: Ambassador of Aloha

    S36:E3

    The journey and legacy of five-time Olympic medalist Duke Kahanamoku, who broke swimming records and popularized modern-day surfing while overcoming racism.

    Writer:Unknown
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    The 20 WORST Episodes of American Masters

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  8. Background image for The Negro Ensemble Company
    8.4/10(56 votes)

    #7 - The Negro Ensemble Company

    S2:E7

    An ode to the work of the African American theater group founded in the late 60s and its impact on the performing arts.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  9. Background image for John Hammond: From Bessie Smith to Bruce Springsteen
    8.4/10(125 votes)

    #8 - John Hammond: From Bessie Smith to Bruce Springsteen

    S5:E6

    A documentary on the 50 year career of a legendary producer of recording artists and musicians.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  10. Background image for Bob Dylan: No Direction Home (1)
    8.4/10(12.5k votes)

    #9 - Bob Dylan: No Direction Home (1)

    S19:E7

    A journey through the poetry and music of Bob Dylan.

    Writer:Unknown
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  11. Background image for Walter Cronkite: Witness to History
    8.4/10(113 votes)

    #10 - Walter Cronkite: Witness to History

    S20:E5

    Walter Cronkite was the man who gave us the news for two tumultuous decades in the late 20th century. As historian, journalist and author David Halberstam says in praise of the great CBS newsman: "Most Americans really learned of the evening news and learned of Vietnam and learned of the civil rights movement and learned of Watergate with Walter Cronkite as the man who ushered it into their homes. And did it with great professionalism over a very long time and was I think absolutely true to himself." In AMERICAN MASTERS Walter Cronkite: Witness to History, a documentary narrated by Katie Couric, historians, fellow journalists and CBS colleagues appraise the career of the man who was called "the most trusted man in America." CBS writer and commentator Andy Rooney, legendary producer/director Don Hewitt, correspondents Mike Wallace, Morley Safer, Lesley Stahl and Barbara Walters, columnists Molly Ivins and Helen Thomas, Senator John McCain and President Jimmy Carter guide the viewer from Cronkite's early days as a foreign correspondent in World War II through his thirty-year career at CBS News.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  12. Background image for Carol Burnett: A Woman of Character
    8.4/10(157 votes)

    #11 - Carol Burnett: A Woman of Character

    S21:E9

    The career of funny woman Carol Burnett, from Broadway to television stardom.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  13. Background image for Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin
    8.4/10(35 votes)

    #12 - Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin

    S33:E9

    Explore the remarkable life and legacy of late feminist author Ursula K. Le Guin whose groundbreaking work, including “The Left Hand of Darkness,” transformed American literature by bringing science fiction into the literary mainstream.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  14. Background image for Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir
    8.4/10(41 votes)

    #13 - Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir

    S35:E6

    The life and career of author Amy Tan, with archival imagery, home movies, photographs, animation and original interviews.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  15. Background image for Hannah Arendt: Facing Tyranny
    8.4/10(58 votes)

    #14 - Hannah Arendt: Facing Tyranny

    S39:E5

    Discover Hannah Arendt, one of the most fearless political thinkers of the 20th century, who transformed her time as a political prisoner and refugee during World War II into daring insights about totalitarianism which continue to resonate today.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  16. Background image for Arthur Miller, Elia Kazan and the Blacklist
    8.3/10(164 votes)

    #15 - Arthur Miller, Elia Kazan and the Blacklist

    S18:E1

    The dispute between one of America's most influential playwrights and a respected movie director over actions taken during the "red scare" of the 1950s.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  17. Background image for Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage
    8.3/10(114 votes)

    #16 - Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage

    S33:E10

    American Masters and Latino Public Broadcasting’s VOCES join forces to present the first documentary about Raúl Juliá, the versatile Puerto Rican actor whose work on stage and screen took the world by storm. Raúl Juliá: The World’s a Stage premieres Friday, September 13, 2019 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS, pbs.org/americanmasters and the PBS Video App in honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  18. Background image for Janis Ian: Breaking Silence
    8.3/10(27 votes)

    #17 - Janis Ian: Breaking Silence

    S39:E4

    Discover the life of singer-songwriter Janis Ian and how she rose as a folk icon and gay rights advocate. She broke ground with “Society’s Child” (1966), a bold take on interracial love, and “At Seventeen” (1975), a searing anthem about bullying.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  19. Background image for Eugene O'Neill: A Glory of Ghosts
    8.2/10(110 votes)

    #18 - Eugene O'Neill: A Glory of Ghosts

    S1:E12

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  20. Background image for D.W. Griffith: Father of Film
    8.2/10(235 votes)

    #19 - D.W. Griffith: Father of Film

    S7:E3

    A look at the innovator of primary motion picture techniques that are still important today and the controversy surrounding his beliefs.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  21. Background image for Lena Horne: In Her Own Voice
    8.2/10(110 votes)

    #20 - Lena Horne: In Her Own Voice

    S11:E1

    A biography of the famed singer including her first big breaks in show business.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  22. Background image for The Source: The Story of the Beats and the Beat Generation
    8.2/10(16 votes)

    #21 - The Source: The Story of the Beats and the Beat Generation

    S14:E7

    A chronicle of the artistic expression of the counter-culture movement.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  23. Background image for Woody Allen: A Documentary (2)
    8.2/10(6 votes)

    #22 - Woody Allen: A Documentary (2)

    S25:E8

    Iconic writer, director, actor, comedian, and musician Woody Allen allowed his life and creative process to be documented on-camera for the first time. With this unprecedented access, Emmy®-winning, Oscar®-nominated filmmaker Robert Weide followed the notoriously private film legend over a year and a half to create the ultimate film biography.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  24. Background image for Margaret Mitchell: American Rebel
    8.2/10(107 votes)

    #23 - Margaret Mitchell: American Rebel

    S26:E3

    Margaret Mitchell: American Rebel engages leading historians, biographers and personal friends to reveal a complex woman who experienced profound identity shifts during her life and struggled with the two great issues of her day: the changing role of women and the liberation of African Americans.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  25. Background image for Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth
    8.2/10(12 votes)

    #24 - Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth

    S28:E3

    A profile of writer Alice Walker, the first African-American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (for her 1982 novel "The Color Purple"). Included: remarks from Walker; Danny Glover; Quincy Jones; Sapphire; Steven Spielberg; and Howard Zinn. Filmmaker Pratibha Parmar’s new documentary tells Walker’s dramatic life story with poetry and lyricism, and features new interviews with Walker, Steven Spielberg, Danny Glover, Quincy Jones, Gloria Steinem, Sapphire and the late Howard Zinn in one of his final interviews.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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  26. Background image for Bing Crosby Rediscovered
    8.2/10(130 votes)

    #25 - Bing Crosby Rediscovered

    S28:E10

    Bing Crosby (1903-77) is remembered via home movies, Dictabelt recordings, photos and insights from wife Kathryn, daughter Mary and sons Harry and Nathaniel. He scored nearly 400 hit singles, including the classic "White Christmas"; and appeared in such popular films as "White Christmas" and "Going My Way." The profile details the allegations of abuse leveled against him by son Gary (1933-95); and explains how his beloved duet with David Bowie on "Little Drummer Boy-Peace on Earth" came about.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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Best Episodes Summary

"The Lives of Lillian Hellman" is the best rated episode of "American Masters". It scored 9/10 based on 108 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 6/30/1999. This episode scored 0.3 points higher than the second highest rated, "Unanswered Prayers: The Life and Times of Truman Capote".