February 2012 – TV Programming Highlights
Feb. 2 – Eagle Ford: Opportunity & Challenge in South Texas
Produced in association with the San Antonio Clean Technology Forum, "Eagle Ford: Challenge and Opportunity in South Texas" looks at the potential benefits of energy production in the Eagle Ford Shale region of South Texas as well as the concerns about environmental consequences and infrastructure challenges that this massive development brings to the area. Robert Rivard is moderator of a knowledgeable panel of experts who explore these issues.
Feb. 3- Michael Feinstein’s American Songbook (3 Part Series)
This series illuminates Feinstein‘s passion for American song, as he meets fanatical collectors of sheet music, records, manuscripts and memorabilia, and solves an astonishing musical mystery. Feinstein and his fellow collectors represent a tiny world devoted to saving a gigantic body of work. Their eccentricities make for a colorful cast of supporting characters.
Feb. 7 – American Experience: Freedom Riders (Encore)
In 1961, segregation seemed to have an overwhelming grip on American society. Many states violently enforced the policy, while the federal government, under the Kennedy administration, remained indifferent, preoccupied with matters abroad. That is, until an integrated band of college students — many of whom were the first in their families to attend a university — decided, en masse, to risk everything and buy a ticket on a Greyhound bus bound for the Deep South. They called themselves the Freedom Riders, and they managed to bring the president and the entire American public face-to-face with the challenge of correcting civil-rights inequities that plagued the nation.
Feb. 8 - NOVA: Separating Twins
This is the incredible story of Trishna and Krishna, twin girls born joined at the head. Abandoned shortly after birth at an orphanage in Bangladesh, they had little chance of survival, until they were saved and taken to Australia by an aid worker. After two years battling for life, the twins are ready for a series of delicate operations, which will prepare them for the ultimate challenge: a marathon separation surgery that will allow them to live truly separate lives. Since the beginning, surgeons knew there was no guarantee of survival for either of the girls — but without surgery there was no hope at all. With exclusive access to this extraordinary human and medical drama, NOVA‘s cameras have been with Trishna and Krishna and their caregivers at each moment of their journey.
Feb. 13 - Slavery By Another Name
A Sundance Film Festival selection for 2012, this new documentary based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book by Wall Street Journal senior writer Douglas A. Blackmon, explores the little-known story of the post-Emancipation era and the labor practices and laws that effectively created a new form of slavery in the South that persisted well into the 20th century. Blackmon examines the concept of ―neoslavery,‖ which sentenced African-Americans to forced labor for violating an array of laws that criminalized their everyday behavior. Actor Laurence Fishburne narrates.
Feb. 14 – Frontline: The Interrupters
During one weekend in Chicago in 2008, 37 people were shot, seven of them fatally. FRONTLINE follows a group of older former gang leaders trying to ―interrupt‖ shootings and protect their communities from the violence they once committed. The film follows the inner workings of CeaseFire, an innovative program in Chicago designed to prevent shootings, including weekly meetings where the interrupters report on the simmering disputes and the senseless shootings in their neighborhoods. From director Steve James (Hoop Dreams, Stevie), "The Interrupters" is a compelling observational journey into the stubborn, persistent violence that plagues our American cities.
Feb. 16 -Cirque Du Soleil: Flowers in the Desert
(Membership opportunity with tickets to local performance of Cirque Du Soleil)
Since 1993, Cirque du Soleil has produced seven original, permanent shows in Las Vegas, creating a garden of delights that has transformed entertainment in this desert oasis. CIRQUE DU SOLEIL – FLOWERS IN THE DESERT presents mesmerizing performances recorded at six of the seven Cirque shows in Las Vegas. These shows — Mystère, O, Kà, Love, Criss Angel Believe and Viva Elvis — have never been broadcast on television or presented on DVD in the United States.
Feb. 20 & 21 – American Experience: Clinton
From draft dodging to the Dayton Accords, from Monica Lewinsky to a balanced budget, the presidency of William Jefferson Clinton veered between sordid scandal and grand achievement. In CLINTON, the latest installment in the critically acclaimed and successful series of presidential biographies, AMERICAN EXPERIENCE explores the fascinating story of an American president who rose from a broken childhood in Arkansas to become one of the most successful politicians in modern American history and one of the most complex and conflicted characters to ever stride across the public stage. It recounts a career full of accomplishment and rife with scandal, a marriage that would make history and create controversy and a presidency that would define the crucial and transformative period between the fall of the Berlin Wall and 9/11. It follows Clinton across his two terms as he confronted some of the key forces that would shape the future.
Feb. 23 - Feeding Minds: Texas Takes on Hunger & Obesity
A project of Texas PBS, the program examines how hunger and obesity coexist, the challenges Texas communities face regarding these issues, and solutions that can be employed to combat them. Efforts by government, food banks, schools, restaurants/grocery stores, community gardens, nutrition education programs and individuals are all highlighted.
Stations contributing to this effort are: Austin/KLRU, Corpus Christi/KEDT, Dallas/KERA, El Paso/KCOS, Houston/KUHT, Lubbock/KTXT and San Antonio/KLRN. KACV/Amarillo at Amarillo College is serving as coordinator and producer of this program. Texas PBS represents the 12 public television stations across the state, inspiring community engagement and life-long learning for all Texans.
Feb. 24 – Great Performances: Memphis
Winner of the 2010 Tony Award for Best New Musical, ―Memphis‖ turns the radio dial back to the 1950s to tell the story of a white DJ, named Huey Calhoun (Chad Kimball), whose love of music transcends race lines and airwaves. His romantic interest is Felicia Farrell (Montego Glover), a young black singer whose career is on the rise but who can‘t make the break out of segregated clubs on her own. When the two collaborate, her soulful music reaches radio audiences everywhere, and the golden era of early rock ‗n‘ roll takes flight.
Feb. 28 – American Experience: The Amish
THE AMISH answers many questions Americans have about this insistently insular religious community, whose intense faith and adherence to 500-year-old traditions have by turns captivated and repelled, awed and irritated, inspired and confused for more than a century. With unprecedented access, built on patience and hard-won trust, the film is the first to penetrate deeply and explore this attention-averse group.
