Explore the history and horror of World War II from an American perspective by following the fortunes of so-called ordinary men and women who became caught up in one of the greatest cataclysms in human history.
EPISODE 1
A Necessary War
The tranquil lives of the citizens of Mobile, Ala., Sacramento, Calif., Waterbury, Conn., and Luverne, Minn., are shattered on December 7, 1941, as they, along with the rest of America, are thrust into a cataclysm.
EPISODE 2
When Things Get Tough
In January 1943, the Germans continue to occupy most of Western Europe; America converts nearly all manufacturing to the war effort.
EPISODE 3
A Deadly Calling
The American public sees pictures and newsreel footage of troops killed in action; Japanese-American men join the U.S. 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
EPISODE 4
Pride of Our Nation
On D-Day, 150,000 Allied troops embark on the invasion of France; the Marines fight a costly battle on the island of Saipan in the Western Pacific.
EPISODE 5
FUBAR
Victory in Europe seems imminent, but in Holland, the Vosges Mountains, and the Hurtgen Forest, GIs learn painful lessons as old as war itself, that generals make plans, plans go wrong and soldiers die.
EPISODE 6
The Ghost Front
After three years of fighting, bad news from the War Department seems endless; Hitler launches a counterattack in the Ardennes forest of Belgium and Luxembourg.
Keith David
Ken Burns
