Television Programs Pay Tribute To Memorial Day
goes into World War I filled with excitement. His excitement soon fades, however, as he quickly discovers the horrors of war. The film honestly depicts the horrific casualties suffered in World War I and makes a compelling anti-war statement as well.
HOLOCAUST, originally aired in 1978 - This standout mini-series premiered on NBC. It won eight Emmy Awards and is probably the definitive television mini-series depicting the horrors of World War II. It examines the lives of the Jewish Weiss family and the German Dorf family in Germany before, during and just after World War II.
Featured in the stellar cast are Michael Moriarty, Fritz Weaver, James Woods, Joseph Bottoms and a young Meryl Streep in her first major role. Parental Note: This mini-series accurately depicts much of the carnage in battle and in the death camps. Contains graphic violence and brief frontal nudity. The series is on multi videocassetees and is almost eight hours in length but well worth watching.
WINDS OF WAR, WAR AND REMEMBRANCE and WAR AND REMEMBRANCE: THE FINAL CHAPTER, originally aired in 1983, 1988, 1989
Cynics will say that these two mini-series were almost as long as World War II itself. Both programs aired on ABC and were based on the best-selling novels by Herman Wouk.
Though they contained many of the soap opera elements necessary to fictionalize an account of war, all three series offered realistic depictions of combat and the brutal way many soldiers died. The mini-series won Emmy Awards for special effects and their depiction of many battle sequences.The attack on Pearl Harbor featured in THE WINDS OF WAR is particularly effective and haunting. So are the depictions of FDR and Hitler.
Robert Mitchum starred in both mini-series. His character was in the military and was the focal point of the series. Ali McGraw starred as his daughter in the first mini-series. She was deemed too old for parts two and three, however, and was replaced by Jane Seymour.
One episode of particular note for WAR AND REMEMBRANCE is part 4 (The Battle of Guadalcanal). Episodes of note from WAR AND REMEMBRANCE: THE FINAL CHAPTER include part 9 (D-Day) and part 11 (The Battle of the Bulge).
M*A*S*H, originally aired ??? Probably the most famous and best known regular series set during wartime was M*A*S*H. Set during the Korean War, M*A*S*H stood for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital.
Based on the hit film of the same name, M*A*S*H ran on
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