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Television Honors War Veterans With A Variety of Programs

© F. Colin Kingston

Editors Note: One of the most popular columns I've ever run was a look at some of the television programs which have paid tribute to soliders. This being the week of Veterans Day in the United States, I thought it was appropriate to re-run an adaption of it again. Enjoy.

Over the years American television has presented many programs that have examined the horrors of war and the sacrifices made by these brave men and women. Some of these programs have been regular television series. The more somber programs have usually been documentaries and mini-series.

This article spotlights some of the best of these programs. All of the programs featured in this article are available on home video for purchase or rent. Many of them are often repeated on broadcast and cable television.

We begin with programs spotlighting the Civil War and the "war between the states."

THE CIVIL WAR, originally aired in 1990 - The ultimate television documentary is the multi-award-winning PBS program entitled THE CIVIL WAR. Produced by noted documentarian Ken Burns, the series contains some of the most moving scenes ever shown on television. The program contains nine episodes of various length. Here we spotlight two that are particularly appropriate for this holiday.

Episode five - THE UNIVERSE OF BATTLE - 1863 is the most compelling of the entire series. It tells the bloody story of the turning point in the Civil War, the Battle of Gettysburg.

Over 150,000 men lost their lives during this three-day battle - considered the greatest battle ever fought in the Western Hemisphere. Casualties on both sides were overwhelming and the course of the battle changed more than once. Ultimately fate smiled upon the north but both sides paid a terrible price. Many of these men died in hand-to-hand combat.

The episode closes with the dedication of the Union cometary at Gettysburg and Lincoln's infamous Gettysburg address. If you watch no other program recommended in this article, I strongly urge you to watch this one.

The second standout episode from THE CIVIL WAR is episode 7 - MOST HALLOWED GROUND - 1864. The episode begins with the election of 1864 and the race between President Lincoln and his former Union Commander, General George McClellan.

It then details how General Robert E. Lee's Arlington, Virginia mansion was turned into a Union hospital during the war. In time the former home of the leader of the Southern Confederacy becomes the most sacred cometary in the entire country - Arlington National Cometary. The fitting poignancy is something that could only have happened in the Civil War.