About this season
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 an indelible impression on the cultural landscape of the United States.
Episodes (12)
1. Private Conversations: On the Set of 'Death of a Salesman'
7.0Aired 23 June 1986 • 90 min
A behind-the-scenes look at the filming of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman for television.
2. Philip Johnson, Self Portrait
Aired 30 June 1986 • 90 min
One of America's best-known architects is profiled, with emphasis on his early career and his later movement away from minimalism.
3. Katherine Anne Porter: The Eye of Memory
8.0Aired 7 July 1986 • 90 min
A biography of the well-known social critic and author Katherine Anne Porter.
4. The Unknown Chaplin (1)
Aired 14 July 1986 • 90 min
An in-depth treatment of the life and sensibilities of the innovative silent film superstar Charlie Chaplin.
5. The Unknown Chaplin (2)
Aired 21 July 1986 • 90 min
An in-depth treatment of the life and sensibilities of the innovative silent film superstar Charlie Chaplin.
6. The Unknown Chaplin (3)
Aired 28 July 1986 • 90 min
An in-depth treatment of the life and sensibilities of the innovative silent film superstar Charlie Chaplin.
7. Billie Holiday: The Long Night of Lady Day
Aired 4 August 1986 • 90 min
A biography of Billie Holiday, one of America's most unique and emotional jazz singers and the tragic end of her life at an early age.
8. James Levine: A Life in Music
Aired 11 August 1986 • 90 min
The musical career of the long-time conductor of New York City's Metropolitan Opera as reflected by following his normal working day on camera.
9. Aaron Copland: A Self Portrait
Aired 18 August 1986 • 90 min
One of America's signature classical composers and the unique elements he incorporated into his pieces.
10. Thomas Eakins: A Motion Portrait
9.0Aired 25 August 1986 • 90 min
The strikingly realistic and unsentimental paintings of the noted artist from Philadelphia.
11. Georgia O'Keeffe
Aired 1 September 1986 • 90 min
A profile of the noted American artist originally produced to celebrate her 90th birthday.
12. Eugene O'Neill: A Glory of Ghosts
Aired 8 September 1986 • 90 min