Wednesday, Sept. 19
9-10 p.m. E/P

PBS

Subjects: US History and Arts

Middle and High School

"American Masters: Orozco ? Man On Fire"

Often thought of as the other Mexican muralist, beside his more flamboyant compatriot Diego Rivera, Orozco was a leader of the Mexican Renaissance. This documentary shows how his bold, frescoes had a profound impact on American painters and inspired U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt to put artists to work during the Great Depression. His most famous U.S. murals, The Table of Universal Brotherhood, The Epic of American Civilization and Prometheus, still convey their power in New York, New Hampshire and California. An iconoclastic personality, Orozco survived the loss of his left hand and destruction of more than half his early work by border agents. His travels back and forth across the U.S.-Mexico border evoke the larger Mexican migrant-immigrant experience and have provocative parallels to present times. TV-PG

Wednesday, Sept. 19
10-11 p.m. E/P

PBS

Subjects: US and World History and Arts

Middle and High School

"American Masters: Rivera In America"

Considered the greatest Mexican painter of the 20th century, Diego Rivera continues to have a profound effect on the international art world. As a young man, he encountered the works of Cezanne, Gauguin, Renoir and Matisse in Paris. But it was the Renaissance frescoes in Italy that fueled his vision of a new form of painting that could reach and celebrate the working man. He returned to Mexico and, ultimately, propelled the fusion of fresco with modern art and architecture. "An artist is above all a human being," he wrote. "If the artist can't feel everything that humanity feels . . . if he won't put down his magic brush and head the fight against the oppressor, then he isn't a great artist." This documentary covers Rivera's personal story also, from his stormy love affair with fellow painter Frida Kahlo to his controversial commissions for Henry Ford and the Rockefellers in the United States. TV-G

Thursday, Sept. 20
9-10 p.m. E/P

History Channel

Subjects: Science

Middle and High School

"Boneyard: Bio-Waste"

This documentary is about managing millions of gallons of municipal sewage a day - is a giant undertaking. The largest systems in the U.S. have peak daily capacities in the billions. Today, this sewage is processed in sophisticated mechanical boneyards -- partly powered by energy tapped from the waste itself. Sewage isn't the only kind of biowaste that can be transformed from a hazardous nuisance into an asset. Agricultural wastes are reharvested for biofuels, building materials, and other products. Animal and vegetable fats are refined into biodiesel for cars, trucks and an around-the-world powerboat called EarthRace.

Thursday, Sept. 20
10-11 p.m. E/P

History Channel

Subjects: World History

Middle and High School

"Lawrence Of Arabia: The Battle For The Arab World"

This is the second and final part of a documentary miniseries about one of the 20th century's most influential figures. This part begins with Lawrence and the Arabs continuing their attacks on the Turks during WWI, inflicting serious damage. Undertaking increasingly dangerous missions, Lawrence is captured alone and brutalized by the Turks, but escapes. Though the experience is disputed by many, Lawrence stands by his story. After the Turks surrender Jerusalem, the Balfour Declaration paves the way for a Jewish homeland in Palestine. In the hope that control of Damascus will legitimize Arab claims for independence, Lawrence leads the Arabs in an allied race for the city. Soon after, however, the truth of the British deception is exposed. Now a celebrated figure to the British public, Lawrence returns to England and continues to fight for an Arab homeland. At the Paris Peace Conference, Britain, France and America draw new maps, ensuring their control over the Middle East. Reeling with guilt for his part in deceiving the Arabs, Lawrence retreats, enlisting as an ordinary recruit in the Royal Air Force. In 1935, he leaves the military again, planning to spend his life in seclusion. Weeks later, he is killed in a motorcycle accident. Although gone, the impact of Lawrence?s role on the Middle East will be felt for generations to come. TV-PG

Friday, Sept. 21
10-11 p.m. E/P

National Geographic Channel

Subjects: Science

High School

"National Geographic Explorer: Science Of Babies"

Human babies come into this world entirely helpless - unable to walk, talk or feed themselves. And, as any parent can testify, a remarkable transformation occurs over their first year. But what's happening behind what you can simply observe? From first breath to first step, this documentary shows the amazing developments in the first 12 months of life and how new research indicates that these growing abilities are much more flexible than previously realized. It follows leading scientists as they study the remarkable plasticity of a very young brain, measure how early experiences influence the course of human development and deconstruct how babies can learn languages and even grasp math.

Saturday, Sept. 22
8-9 p.m. E/P

History Channel

Subjects: US History

Middle and High School

"Save Our History: Revolution In Boston"

On the streets of Boston, colonial patriots first stirred the fires of independence, and abolitionists in the 19th century agitated for an end to slavery. This documentary explores two buildings at the center of those transforming movements as they undergo major preservation efforts. The Old State House, built in 1713, has been called the most important public building in colonial America. In the words of John Adams, "There the child of independence was born." The African Meeting House, dating back to 1804, is the oldest black church in the U.S. It was a focal point of the abolition movement in the years leading up to the Civil War. Host Steve Thomas immerses himself in the restoration process to give viewers a hands-on view, and brings into focus the dramatic role these two historic buildings played in our nation's history.

Sunday, Sept. 23
8-10:30 p.m. E/P

PBS

Subjects: US and World History

Middle and High School

"The War"

This is the initial episode of a new seven-part documentary series directed and produced by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick. It explores the history and horror of the Second World War from an American perspective by following the fortunes of so-called ordinary men and women who become caught up in one of the greatest cataclysms in human history. The series focuses on the stories of citizens from four geographically distributed American towns - Waterbury, Connecticut; Mobile, Alabama; Sacramento, California; and the tiny farming town of Luverne, Minnesota. These four communities stand in for - and could represent - any town in the United States that went through the war's four devastating years. Individuals from each community take the viewer through their own personal and quite often harrowing journeys into war, painting vivid portraits of how the war dramatically altered their lives and those of their neighbors, as well as the country they helped to save for generations to come. Episode 1 is entitled "A Necessary War". After an overview of the Second World War, which engulfed the world from 1939 to 1945 and cost at least 50 million lives, inhabitants of four American towns recall their communities on the eve of the conflict. For them, the events overseas seem far away. Their tranquil lives are shattered by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and America is thrust into the great cataclysm. Along with millions of other young men, Sid Phillips and Willie Rushton of Mobile, Ray Leopold of Waterbury and Walter Thompson and Burnett Miller of Sacramento enter the armed forces.

Log on http://www.pbs.org/thewar

Monday, Sept. 24
8-10 p.m. E/P

PBS

Subjects: US and World History

Middle and High School

"The War"

This second episode of the new WWII documentary series is entitled "When Things Get Tough". By January 1943, Americans have been at war for more than a year. The Germans still occupy most of Western Europe; the Allies can't agree on a plan or timetable to dislodge them. American troops, including Charles Mann of Luverne, are now ashore in North Africa. At Kasserine Pass, Erwin Rommel's seasoned veterans quickly overwhelm the poorly led and ill-equipped Americans, but after George Patton assumes command, the Americans begin to beat back the Germans. In the process, thousands of soldiers learn to adopt the outlook that "killing is a craft," as reporter Ernie Pyle explains to readers back home.

Log on http://www.pbs.org/thewar

Monday, Sept. 24
9-10 p.m. E/P (check local listings)

History Channel

Subjects: Science and World History

Middle and High School

"Digging For The Truth: Last Stand Of The Neanderthal"

On Gibraltar, at the very edge of Europe, scientists have discovered evidence that the Neanderthals hung on for thousands of years longer than previously believed. Documentary hosts Zay Harding and Charles Ingram test their weapons, join scientists as they decode their DNA, and dive into underwater caves that may reveal the final story of their last years on earth.

Tuesday, Sept. 25
8-9 p.m. E/P

History Channel

Subjects: Science

Middle and High School

"Modern Marvels: Deep Freeze"

You don't know cold until you've been in the deep freeze. This documentary takes the technology of cold to the extreme. Try spending some time in a 12-story unit filled with 135 million pounds of ice cream. Enter Arctic vaults that store millions of different seeds and learn how scientists have mastered temperatures of -200˚ F and below. Learn how the gases we breathe can be turned into liquids. Explore how the cold not only preserves and chills, but also shatters rubber tires, strengthens steel, and fuels the rockets that have taken us into the deep freeze of outer space. Just when you thought it couldn't get any colder, the program takes you inside Alcor, where researchers keep cadavers on ice in hopes of future revival.

Tuesday, Sept. 24
8-10 p.m. E/P

PBS

Subjects: US and World History

Middle and High School

"The War"

This third episode of the new WWII documentary series is entitled "A Deadly Calling". Despite American victories in the Solomons and New Guinea, the Japanese empire still stretches 4,000 miles. In November 1943, on the Pacific atoll of Tarawa, the Marines set out to prove that any island can be taken by all-out frontal assault. Back home, the public is devastated by color newsreel footage of the furious battle and grows more determined to do what's necessary to hasten the end of the war.

Log on http://www.pbs.org/thewar