'10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America' Stuff!
The most ambitious original programming event in THC history, '10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America' encompasses 10 days in American history as envisioned through 10 powerful documentaries that will be written, produced and directed by 10 award-winning filmmakers.
Expansive in scope, the goal is not to countdown or list the “most important” days in U.S. history, but to select days that represent the broad themes that ultimately shaped America’s people, culture and history.
Watch it beginning April 9 at 9pm/8c
Massacre at Mystic, May 26, 1637 - Known as the Pequot War, this was the first time the English settlers engaged in the slaughter of Native Americans after years of relative peaceful coexistence. The massacre in Mystic, Connecticut set the pattern of the taking of Indian land, a process that was repeated throughout the country. (James Moll)
Shays’ Rebellion: America’s First Civil War, Jan. 25, 1787 - A violent protest against debt collection and taxation practices, known as Shays’ Rebellion, revealed the weakness of the Articles of Confederation of the fragile new nation and motivated George Washington to come out of retirement. This became a triggering event that led to the writing of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. (R.J. Cutler)
Gold Rush, January 24, 1848 - Though the Gold Rush itself would last only a few years, its explosive effects began a process that would spur tremendous financial and physical growth throughout the West. For the first time in history, individuals – not kings or sultans – could have gold for the taking, spurring tens of thousands of immigrants to make the arduous journey West. (Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman)
Antietam, Sept. 17, 1862 - The bloodiest day in American history, both sides paid a terrible price during this Civil War battle that resulted in 23,000 casualties. President Abraham Lincoln needed this victory in order to issue the Emancipation Proclamation and insure that no foreign country would support the Confederates. (Michael Epstein)
Homestead Strike, July 6, 1892 - Harsh working conditions and long hours In Carnegie’s Homestead steel mill led to a labor steel workers union strike. The battle fought between management and labor signaled a shift from workers believing they had an ownership over their jobs, and the divide between management and labor would remain wide. (Rory Kennedy)
Murder At The Fair: The Assassination of President McKinley, Sept. 6, 1901 - Set against the backdrop of the 1901 World’s Fair and the dawning of the new century, the assassination of President William McKinley by an anarchist ushered in the presidency of Teddy Roosevelt, which might never have happened, and a new progressive era. (Joe Berlinger)
Scopes Trial: The Battle Over America’s Soul, July 21, 1925 - The sensational courtroom battle between two giants – three-time presidential candidate and populist William Jennings Bryan and big city criminal defense lawyer Clarence Darrow – over the teaching of evolution in a small Tennessee town. The trial underscored a deep schism within the American psyche -- religion versus science, church and state, elitism versus populism. (Kate Davis, David Heilbroner)
Einstein’s Letter, July 16, 1939 - The fear that the Nazis were developing an atomic bomb motivated Albert Einstein to write a letter to President Franklin Roosevelt, urging him to fund the building of the bomb. The resulting effort, known as the Manhattan Project, brought government and science together in the successful project to build the bomb and change the world forever. (Barak Goodman)
When America Was Rocked, Sept. 9, 1956 - Elvis Presley’s appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on September 9, 1956,reached more people than had ever collectively witnessed any event in America. Elvis had become the lightening rod for a whole new culture that involved teenage independence, sexuality, race relations and a new form of music. (Bruce Sinofsky)
Freedom Summer, June 21, 1964 - This was a time when attempting to register to vote in Mississippi could get one killed. When two white and one black Civil Rights workers went missing there, national attention turned to Mississippi where countless black bodies were found. This attention eventually led to the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. (Marco Williams)
If you would like to win either a wonderful History Channel Duffel Bag or beautiful, stylish Watch, just answer this easy question: Another day in history that changed America was JFK's assassination, but on what day, date and year did this horrid event take place?!
Send us your answers and if you're correct you'll be in the running to win one of these wonderful new History Channel items! Just send us an e:mail here before May 1st with your answer and the subject title '10 DAYS STUFF' to:
Murder At The Fair: The Assassination of President McKinley, Sept. 6, 1901 - Set against the backdrop of the 1901 World’s Fair and the dawning of the new century, the assassination of President William McKinley by an anarchist ushered in the presidency of Teddy Roosevelt, which might never have happened, and a new progressive era. (Joe Berlinger)
When America Was Rocked, Sept. 9, 1956 - Elvis Presley’s appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on September 9, 1956,reached more people than had ever collectively witnessed any event in America. Elvis had become the lightening rod for a whole new culture that involved teenage independence, sexuality, race relations and a new form of music. (Bruce Sinofsky)
If you would like to win either a wonderful History Channel Duffel Bag or beautiful, stylish Watch, just answer this easy question: Another day in history that changed America was JFK's assassination, but on what day, date and year did this horrid event take place?!