Faces Of America With Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Wednesdays, February 10 through March 3, 2010 at 8 p.m. on KPBS TV
Above: Stephen Colbert (right), Henry Louis Gates Jr. (left)
January 29, 2010
Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr. turns to the latest tools of genealogy and genetics to explore the family histories of 12 renowned Americans. Looking beyond the African-American experience – which Gates spotlighted in previous documentaries – he offers a look at other immigrant stories by following the threads of his guests’ lives back to their earliest origins around the globe.
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Along the way, stories of displacement and homecoming, material success and dispossession, as well as assimilation and discrimination illuminate the American experience. Among Gates’ guests are comedian Stephen Colbert; journalist Malcolm Gladwell; musician Yo-Yo Ma; director Mike Nichols; Queen Noor of Jordan; heart surgeon Mehmet Oz, M.D.; multi-award winning-actor Meryl Streep; and former Olympic champion figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi.
