About this season
A retrospective on 20th century events.
Episodes (27)
1. The FBI: Life Without Hoover
Aired 21 May 1997 • 45 min
Recent events such as Ruby Ridge and the Centennial Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta have tarnished the FBI's once-sterling image.
2. Detectives of Death
Aired 4 June 1997 • 45 min
Modern forensics helps solve crimes; O.J. Simpson's attorney Peter Neufeld.
3. Crisis in Space: The Real Story of Apollo 13
Aired 14 June 1997 • 45 min
In 1970, an oxygen tank ruptured on the Apollo 13 command module, leaving three astronauts struggling to return to Earth.
4. Riot!
Aired 21 June 1997 • 45 min
Police brutality in the Rodney King case and the riot following the verdict.
5. Terror in the Sky: KAL 007; The Lockerbie Bombing
Aired 28 June 1997 • 45 min
A Soviet military plane shoots down one civilian jet, and a bomb planted by terrorists explodes another.
6. The Televangelists
Aired 2 July 1997 • 45 min
Popularity and political power of televangelists; Jerry Falwell; Pat Robertson; Jimmy Swaggart and Oral Roberts.
7. The Raging Inferno of Volcanoes
Aired 9 July 1997 • 45 min
Interviews and underwater footage of volcanic eruptions help explain the role volcanoes play in building continents.
8. A Few Good Women
Aired 9 July 1997 • 45 min
The role of women in the military, including their history and their recent struggles within the male-oriented institution.
9. Underwater: The Flood of '93
Aired 23 July 1997 • 45 min
News anchors and correspondents look back at the devastating 1993 flood of the Mississippi River and its tributaries.
10. Massacre!
Aired 6 August 1997 • 45 min
Footage helps chronicle mass murders committed since 1966 and profiles those who were responsible.
11. Crooked Cops
Aired 13 August 1997 • 45 min
A history of corruption in police work that includes profiles of several rogue officers who have committed heinous crimes.
12. Hurricanes: Natural Born Killers
Aired 20 August 1997 • 45 min
Edward R. Murrow flies into the eye of a 1954 storm; hurricanes Hugo, Andrew; tracking hurricanes.
13. Falsely Accused
Aired 3 September 1997 • 45 min
People who have been found guilty and imprisoned for crimes they didn't commit.
14. Life or Death: The Battle Over Capital Punishment
Aired 10 September 1997 • 45 min
The debate surrounding capital punishment has become a metaphor for crime and violence in the United States.
15. Uprising at Attica
Aired 13 September 1997 • 45 min
The bloody inmate uprising at Attica State Prison that ended in the deaths of 47 prisoners and guards.
16. The CIA: 50 Years of Spying
Aired 17 September 1997 • 45 min
Host Mike Wallace chronicles the history of the Central Intelligence Agency, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1996.
17. Gambling Mania: The Winners and the Losers
Aired 8 October 1997 • 45 min
The history of legal gaming, including the 18th-century scandals that brought it to an abrupt end and its resurgence in today's society.
18. Outbreak! The New Plagues
Aired 15 October 1997 • 45 min
Despite advances in modern medicine, viral infections continue to be a potent threat to society.
19. Washington Scandals: Sex, Money, Power
Aired 22 October 1997 • 45 min
Political scandals include Wilbur Mills, Gary Hart, Bernard Goldfine and Bobby Baker.
20. Korea: The Forgotten War
Aired 29 October 1997 • 45 min
An account of the 1950 U.N. peacekeeping mission in Korea, which escalated into a bloody war that claimed 54,000 American lives.
21. Crashes Without Cause: The Case of the 737
Aired 8 November 1997 • 45 min
Top investigators explain the search for answers that followed the crashes of two 737s.
22. Cry of the Wild: Wolves, Fires and the Fight for Yellowstone
Aired 19 November 1997 • 45 min
How the controversy between man and nature could affect America's national parks.
23. Capers: The Men, The Gambles, The Heists
Aired 26 November 1997 • 45 min
The Brink's heist, the D.B. Cooper case and other famous cases highlight an exploration of modern capers and how they are evolving.
24. Violence in the Media
Aired 3 December 1997 • 45 min
The influence of TV violence; developing a TV ratings system.
25. Born to Kill: Jeffrey Dahmer and Ted Bundy
Aired 10 December 1997 • 45 min
Original news footage recounts the stories of Jeffrey Dahmer and Ted Bundy, two of the most notorious serial killers of the 20th century.
26. Kid Crime: Violent Crime and Children
Aired 17 December 1997 • 45 min
Criminologist James Fox analyzes the rise in youth crime.
27. Vietnam: A Soldier's Diary
Aired 24 December 1997 • 45 min
How one American soldier's attitudes evolved with the changing U.S. policy in Vietnam.