Sunday, Apr. 27
9-11 p.m. E/P

PBS

Subjects: US and World History

Middle and High School

"CARRIER : All Hands/Controlled Chaos"

This is a broadcast of the initial two episodes in a documentary about the American aircraft carrier USS Nimitz. "All Hands" starts on a bright May morning, when more than 5,000 sailors and Marines bid farewell to their loved ones before the mammoth USS Nimitz pulls out of Coronado, California, and sets a course for Hawaii and beyond. Among the men and women who live and work on board are an airman who describes the ship as a small town; a pilot who considers the ship a powerful instrument of diplomacy; a sailor who questions "why we're fighting to defend someone else's freedom when we barely have our own"; a cook who dishes out 15,000 meals a day; and an airman who has just learned that his girlfriend is pregnant. "Controlled Chaos" The men and women of the USS Nimitz live beneath the runway of a major airport. They sleep on the roof of a nuclear power plant. It's a perilous environment. Their only bulwark against danger and chaos is to bond with their units on board the ship. The "Shooters," who launch the jets, have a "Circle of Trust"; the Ordies (ordnance personnel) pride themselves on being a "mafia"; the F-18 squadrons - the Black Aces, the Hoboes and the Marine Red Devils - are tight fraternities. The series follows a core group of film participants aboard the USS Nimitz, from the admiral of the strike group to the fighter pilots to the youngest sailors, as they navigate personal conflicts around their jobs, families, faith, patriotism, love, the rites of passage and the war on terror. Filmed from May to November 2005, nearly 2,000 hours of high-definition video were captured aboard the ship during a full six-month deployment to the Persian Gulf, of which three months were spent in combat in support of the ground troops. For the first time, a television series takes a personal look at the Navy's role in this controversial war. Rated TV-14

Further details and airdates of future episodes log on http://www.pbs.org/weta/carrier

Monday, Apr. 28
10-11 p.m. E/P

National Geographic Channel

Subjects: US History and Technology

Middle and High School

"America's Port"

This documentary miniseries delivers an insider's view of a massive port complex and the individuals charged with keeping it running smoothly and securely 365 days a year. If you close the Port of Los Angeles and the neighboring Port of Long Beach, within days, the whole U.S. economy would take a punishing hit, because hundreds of tons of consumer goods pass through the ports each day. The program shows the high-tech control rooms that coordinate thousands of calculated ship movements each year. Viewers board a container ship with chief port pilot Michael Rubino, who stays calm while chaos erupts around him, and comb through cargo with U.S. Customs Port Director Todd Hoffman. Shown are the LA Port Police, one of the few police forces in the nation dedicated exclusively to 24/7 port activities, as they conduct bomb sweeps under wharfs or dive into the harbor in search of missing persons. At the epicenter of the port's whirlwind of activity is director, Dr. Geraldine Knatz. The first female in the port's 100-year history, Dr. Knatz is little known, but is arguably one of the nation's most important women in terms of protecting our economy and national security. In addition to these hot-button responsibilities, Dr. Knatz is also credited with making environmentalism a top priority ? pledging to curb the port's air pollution from trucks, ships, locomotives and other equipment by at least 45 percent in five years.

Tuesday, Apr. 29
8-10:15 p.m. ET, 5- 7:15 p.m. PT

TCM

Subjects: World History

Middle and High School

"Khartoum"

This Academy Award nominated movie takes place in Sudan and provides viewers some historical context for understanding the conflict taking place at the present time in that nation?s province of Darfur. The movie tells the story of the British general who fell to the Arabs in 1885.Cast: Charlton Heston gives the most restrained and appealing performance of his spectacle-movie career. Cast also includes Sir Laurence Olivier and Sir Ralph Richardson. Heston plays the enigmatic General Sir Charles "Chinese" Gordon, assigned by British Prime Minister Gladstone (Ralph Richardson) to protect their interests in the Sudan. Rated TV-G

Full details and at http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article/?cid=31482

Wednesday, Apr. 30
8-9 p.m. E/P

History Channel

Subjects: Science

Middle and High School

"Modern Marvels: Rats!"

They're some of the most dangerous, destructive but also useful animals on Earth. This documentary examines our love-hate relationship with rats. At the Taconic rat breeding facility, see how hundreds of thousands of rats are bred and raised in high-tech and controlled environments. Follow a Terminex exterminator and take a tour of the Hacco Inc. rodenticide plant to see the great lengths taken to get rid of the pesky pest. Get up close and personal with the remarkable rodent as it competes in the Xtreme Rat Challenge and at the annual American Fancy Rat show. Trace the role of rats as a cause of deadly diseases, but also explore how they have saved countless lives as a lab rat. And scientists at the State University of New York demonstrate how a remote-controlled rat could be your savior in the near future.

Thursday, May 1
8-11 p.m. ET, 5-8 p.m. PT

TCM

Subjects: World History

Middle and High School

"Quo Vadis"

This is a respectably accurate, Oscar ?nominated movie about an exciting period of Roman history. It revolves around a fictional Roman commander who loves a Christian slave girl at a time when the real Emperor, Nero, intensifies persecution of the new religion. He threw many Christians to the lions. And burned Rome in an attempt to eliminate the rest. Based on the Henryk Sienckiewicz novel. Rated TV-PG

Full details and at http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article/?cid=59900

Friday, May 2
9-10 p.m. E/P

History Channel

Subjects: US and World History

Middle and High School

"Battle 360: The Empire's Last Stand"

In the winter of 1945, the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise attackss Luzon, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, and Iwo Jima. In this documentary The Big E also unleashes a brand new night air-group from her flight deck. But as the U.S. Navy closes in on Okinawa and the Japanese homeland, the Empire unleashes a hellish weapon, the Kamikaze. Sailors and Marines on Enterprise now face the horror of deadly suicide attackers as the allies tighten the grip on Japan and secure victory in the Pacific.

Saturday, May 3
2:45-5:15 p.m. E/P

AMC

Subjects: US History

High School

"Geronimo: American Legend"

This is a movie based on the life of Native American leader Geronimo. TV14 Rated. Parents Strongly Cautioned This program contains some material that parents would find unsuitable for children under 14 years of age. Parents are strongly urged to exercise greater care in monitoring this program and are cautioned against letting children under the age of 14 watch unattended. This program contains one or more of the following: intense violence (V), intense sexual situations (S), strong coarse language (L), or intensely suggestive dialogue (D). Walter Hill directs John Milius's script (co-written by Larry Gross) depicting a revisionist perspective on the "Geronimo Campaign" and how Geronimo, with 34 men, managed to elude 5000 U.S. cavalry men between 1885 and 1886 before his surrender at the Canyon of the Skeletons in September 1886. The film centers upon Charles Gatewood (Jason Patric), the U.S. Cavalry lieutenant who is charged with capturing the elusive Apache leader. Gatewood is torn by a grudging respect for Geronimo and his people and his duty to his country. But then all the white men in the film have a respect for Geronimo, even as they are trying to hunt him down and kill him. General Charles Crook (Gene Hackman), charged with overseeing the forced settlement of the Apaches on reservations, has nothing but admiration for Geronimo. Jason Patric, Gene Hackman, Robert Duvall