9.0/10108 votesLoading...#1 - The Lives of Lillian Hellman
Season 13 Episode 5 - Aired 6/30/1999
The politics and writings of the noted 20th century woman.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.8/1065 votesLoading...#2 - Unanswered Prayers: The Life and Times of Truman Capote
Season 2 Episode 8 - Aired 9/21/1987
The evolution of the novelist and his impact on other artists and American culture.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.7/10189 votesLoading...#3 - Lucille Ball: Finding Lucy
Season 15 Episode 4 - Aired 12/3/2000
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: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.5/10126 votesLoading...#4 - Dashiell Hammett: Detective, Writer
Season 13 Episode 6 - Aired 6/30/1999
A profile of an author as mysterious as some of his well-known detective stories.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.5/10309 votesLoading...#5 - Balanchine
Season 18 Episode 4 - Aired 1/14/2004
A retrospective on the life and work of George Balanchine, a founder of American ballet.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.5/1049 votesLoading...#6 - Waterman – Duke: Ambassador of Aloha
Season 36 Episode 3 - Aired 5/10/2022
The journey and legacy of five-time Olympic medalist Duke Kahanamoku, who broke swimming records and popularized modern-day surfing while overcoming racism.
Director: Isaac Halasima
Writer: N/A
8.4/1055 votesLoading...#7 - The Negro Ensemble Company
Season 2 Episode 7 - Aired 9/14/1987
An ode to the work of the African American theater group founded in the late 60s and its impact on the performing arts.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.4/10125 votesLoading...#8 - John Hammond: From Bessie Smith to Bruce Springsteen
Season 5 Episode 6 - Aired 8/20/1990
A documentary on the 50 year career of a legendary producer of recording artists and musicians.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.4/1012,191 votesLoading...#9 - Bob Dylan: No Direction Home (1)
Season 19 Episode 7 - Aired 9/26/2005
A journey through the poetry and music of Bob Dylan.
Director: Martin Scorsese
Writer: N/A
8.4/10113 votesLoading...#10 - Walter Cronkite: Witness to History
Season 20 Episode 5 - Aired 7/26/2006
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: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.4/10157 votesLoading...#11 - Carol Burnett: A Woman of Character
Season 21 Episode 9 - Aired 11/5/2007
The career of funny woman Carol Burnett, from Broadway to television stardom.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.4/1034 votesLoading...#12 - Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin
Season 33 Episode 9 - Aired 8/2/2019
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: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.4/1038 votesLoading...#13 - Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir
Season 35 Episode 6 - Aired 5/3/2021
The life and career of author Amy Tan, with archival imagery, home movies, photographs, animation and original interviews.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.3/10109 votesLoading...#14 - Eugene O'Neill: A Glory of Ghosts
Season 1 Episode 12 - Aired 9/8/1986
No description available
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.3/1014 votesLoading...#15 - The Source: The Story of the Beats and the Beat Generation
Season 14 Episode 7 - Aired 5/31/2000
A chronicle of the artistic expression of the counter-culture movement.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.3/10162 votesLoading...#16 - Arthur Miller, Elia Kazan and the Blacklist
Season 18 Episode 1 - Aired 9/3/2003
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: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/10110 votesLoading...#17 - Lena Horne: In Her Own Voice
Season 11 Episode 1 - Aired 11/25/1996
A biography of the famed singer including her first big breaks in show business.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/106 votesLoading...#18 - Woody Allen: A Documentary (2)
Season 25 Episode 8 - Aired 11/21/2011
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: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/10107 votesLoading...#19 - Margaret Mitchell: American Rebel
Season 26 Episode 3 - Aired 4/2/2012
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: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/1012 votesLoading...#20 - Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth
Season 28 Episode 3 - Aired 2/7/2014
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: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/10129 votesLoading...#21 - Bing Crosby Rediscovered
Season 28 Episode 10 - Aired 12/2/2014
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: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/1068 votesLoading...#22 - American Ballet Theatre: A History
Season 29 Episode 4 - Aired 5/15/2015
Delving into the rich history of one of the world’s preeminent ballet companies, Ric Burns combines intimate rehearsal footage, virtuoso performances and interviews with American Ballet Theatre’s key figures.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/1027 votesLoading...#23 - Harper Lee
Season 29 Episode 5 - Aired 7/10/2015
One of the biggest American bestsellers of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) was thought to be the first and only novel by Harper Lee. However, on July 14, 2015, Go Set a Watchman was released, featuring characters from Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Newly updated version of Mary McDonagh Murphy’s 2012 documentary, Harper Lee: Hey, Boo.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/10105 votesLoading...#24 - Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You
Season 30 Episode 8 - Aired 10/25/2016
Writer/producer Norman Lear's turbulent childhood, early success with sitcoms “All in the Family,” “The Jeffersons,” “Good Times” and “Maude,” and social activism.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.2/1050 votesLoading...#25 - Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes/Feeling Heart
Season 32 Episode 1 - Aired 1/19/2018
Explore the inner life and works of the activist, playwright and author of “A Raisin in the Sun,” Lorraine Hansberry. Narrated by actress LaTanya Richardson Jackson and featuring the voice of Tony Award-winning actress Anika Noni Rose as Hansberry.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
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!
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...
Genre:Documentary
Network:PBS
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 N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 6/30/1999. This episode scored 0.2 points higher than the second highest rated, "Unanswered Prayers: The Life and Times of Truman Capote".