American Masters backdrop
American Masters poster
Documentary

The Best Episodes of American Masters Season 34

Every episode of American Masters Season 34 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of American Masters Season 34!

The Best Episodes of American Masters Season 34

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...

Filter By Season39

  1. 8.0/10(44 votes)

    #1 - Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am

    Loading...
    S34:E3

    Toni Morrison leads an assembly of her peers and critics on an exploration of the powerful themes she confronted throughout her literary career in this artful and intimate meditation that examines the life and work of the legendary storyteller.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  2. 7.6/10(247 votes)

    #2 - Mae West: Dirty Blonde

    Loading...
    S34:E2

    American Masters — Mae West: Dirty Blonde is the first major documentary film to explore Mae West’s life and career as she "climbed the ladder of success wrong by wrong" to become a writer, performer and subversive agitator for social change. West achieved great acclaim in every entertainment medium that existed during her lifetime, spanning eight decades of the 20th century. She possessed creative and economic powers unheard of for a female entertainer in the 1930s and still rare today.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Writer:N/A
  3. 7.5/10(58 votes)

    #3 - Walter Winchell: The Power of Gossip

    Loading...
    S34:E5

    Meet Walter Winchell, the newspaper columnist, radio commentator and television personality who pioneered the fast-paced, gossip-driven, politically charged journalism that dominates today. At his peak, his audience was 50 million. Stanley Tucci portrays Winchell in a new American Masters documentary.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  4. 7.4/10(3.3k votes)

    #4 - Miles Davis Birth of the Cool

    Loading...
    S34:E1

    Discover the man behind the legend. With full access to the Miles Davis Estate, the film features never-before-seen footage, including studio outtakes from his recording sessions, rare photos and new interviews.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  5. 7.3/10(30 votes)

    #5 - Michael Tilson Thomas: Where Now Is

    Loading...
    S34:E6

    Explore the life and career of the Grammy-winning conductor, pianist and composer. A National Medal of Arts recipient and longtime Grammy-winning music director of the San Francisco Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas helped set the standard that an American orchestra should champion modern music.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  6. 6.8/10(94 votes)

    #6 - Keith Haring: Street Art Boy

    Loading...
    S34:E7

    Explore the definitive story of international art sensation Keith Haring who blazed a trail through the art scene of ‘80s New York and revolutionized the worlds of pop culture and fine art. The film features previously unheard interviews with Haring.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  7. Trending NowTRENDING NOW

    The 20 BEST Episodes of American Masters

    READ
  8. 6.8/10(37 votes)

    #7 - Laura Ingalls Wilder: Prairie to Page

    Loading...
    S34:E8

    An unvarnished look at the unlikely author whose autobiographical fiction helped shape American ideas of the frontier and self-reliance. A Midwestern farm woman who published her first novel at age 65, Laura Ingalls Wilder transformed her frontier childhood into the best-selling “Little House” series.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  9. 6.4/10(31 votes)

    #8 - Unladylike2020: The Changemakers

    Loading...
    S34:E4

    Mark the women’s suffrage centennial with stories of pioneering women who shaped American politics.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A

Season 34 Ratings Summary

"Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am" is the best rated episode of "American Masters" season 34. It scored 8/10 based on 44 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 6/1/2020. This episode is rated 0.4 points higher than the second-best, "Mae West: Dirty Blonde".