PIONEERS OF THIRTEEN, A NEW FOUR-PART SERIES, CELEBRATES THE 50 TH ANNIVERSARY OF THIRTEEN, AMERICA S MOST-WATCHED PUBLIC TELEVISION STATION

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1 Contact: Donna Williams ; Press Materials: thirteen.org/pressroom Facebook: Web site: thirteen.org/50 PIONEERS OF THIRTEEN, A NEW FOUR-PART SERIES, CELEBRATES THE 50 TH ANNIVERSARY OF THIRTEEN, AMERICA S MOST-WATCHED PUBLIC TELEVISION STATION The series explores the station s contributions to drama, music, historic perspective, and key events; Premieres Monday, September 17 at 8 pm on THIRTEEN Programs feature rarely seen footage unearthed from the WNET archives In honor of THIRTEEN s 50th anniversary on September 16, 2012, the flagship station of PBS is kicking off a year-long celebration the week of September 17-23, 2012 with the premiere of Pioneers of THIRTEEN, a four-part documentary chronicling the growth and breadth of the station s programming over 50 years. Episode one of Pioneers of THIRTEEN, The 60s Experimental Days, will air Monday, September 17, from 8:00-9:00 pm on THIRTEEN. The remaining three episodes, The 70s Bold and Fearless, The 80s Trusted Voice and The 90s and Beyond Changing Landscape will be broadcast later in the year, date: TBD.

2 Pioneers of THIRTEEN features rarely seen clips of the artistic and groundbreaking programming unearthed from the WNET archives, as well as first-hand stories from the people who created the inspiring programs over 50 years. Each episode tells the story of a decade, beginning with the launch, September 16, 1962, when Edward R. Murrow, host of the inaugural broadcast, introduced Channel 13/WNDT New Dimensions in Television, which would later evolve into WNET. Dustin Hoffman and Martin Sheen are seen at the nascent stages of their careers. Episode one: The 60s Experimental Days In 1961, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Newton N. Minow, challenges TV producers to do a better job, calling TV programming a vast wasteland. A year later, President John F. Kennedy signs the Educational Television Facilities Act and public television is born. In episode one, a pioneering group of producers and directors at WNET, then called WNDT New Dimensions in Television, broadcast shows with chef Julia Child and famed cellist Pablo Casals, and Black Journal, created by independent producer Al Perlmutter, which examines for the first time on television black issues, music, culture, and politics. Pop artist and cultural icon Andy Warhol introduces a new band called the Velvet Underground and The Doors play a concert in a TV studio. Documentary filmmaking brothers Albert and David Maysles follow Truman Capote in a black and white cinéma vérité film shot in 1966, just after the release and fame of his non-fiction novel In Cold Blood. In a precursor to Great Performances, the station begins to experiment with televising stage plays and films the play Journey of the Fifth Horse in 1966, starring a young Dustin Hoffman, a year before his breakthrough role in The Graduate. A new children s series called Sesame Street which challenged the norm by combining fantasy and reality to teach children is broadcast in Featured clips include: Aaron Copland, Music in the 20s Black Journal, William Greaves, executive producer and co-host Black Journal, Kathleen Cleaver Black Journal featuring: Jim Brown, Fannie Lou Hamer, Robert Johnson (Jet Magazine), Dr. Alvin Poussaint, Richard Moore (historian), Andrew Young, LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka), Reverend Jesse Jackson, and Huey P. Newton Bill Cosby, Kaleidoscope Court of Reason, weekly public affairs program Critique, hosted by rock journalist Richard Goldstein o Interview with The Doors

3 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Special, Public Broadcasting Laboratory (PBL) o During the lead up to the People s March a THIRTEEN photographer, Joseph Louw, was on the scene when Dr. King was assassinated and took the iconic photograph on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, TN o Interview with photographer Joseph Louw Free Time, featuring John Lennon and Yoko Ono in a remarkable art performance Glenn Gould, Public Broadcasting Laboratory The History of the Negro People: The Negro and The South o Ossie Davis Journey of the Fifth Horse, featuring Dustin Hoffman Jazz Casual o Carmen McRae o Vince Guaraldi, pianist, and Bola Sete, guitarist o B.B. King, King of the Blues o Mel Tormé Margaret Mead s New Guinea Journal, Writer/Producer Craig Gilbert Muhammad Ali, A Conversation with Muhammad Ali NET Festival, The Sound of Soul o Nina Simone performing Mississippi Goddam and her response to civil rights violence Bob Newhart s satirical look at a talk show Opening cartoon by John Hubley, Academy Award-winning animator (creator of cartoon character Mister Magoo) PBL: Who s Afraid of the Avant-Garde? o Allen Ginsberg o Cecil Taylor o Merce Cunningham Sesame Street o James Earl Jones Sleep of Prisoners, featuring Jon Voight, 12 years before his Academy Award win for Coming Home Take This Hammer, James Baldwin Ten Blocks on the Camino Real featuring Martin Sheen USA: Artists o Featuring Andy Warhol and the Velvet Underground with lead singer Lou Reed USA: Dance o Featuring the New York City Ballet and its artistic director, George Balanchine USA: The Novel o Featuring Vladimir Nabokov, author of Lolita

4 o Featuring Truman Capote USA: Photography o Featuring Ansel Adams o Featuring Dorothea Lange USA: Poetry o Featuring Frank O Hara What Harvest for the Reaper?, Writer/Producer/Director Morton Silverstein Frederick Wiseman, legendary filmmaker, featuring clips from o Titicut Follies (Bridgewater State Hospital for the criminally insane) o Law and Order (Kansas City Police Department) o Hospital (New York s Metropolitan Hospital) Featured interviews include: Stephen Battaglio, television historian & author Ward Chamberlin, vice president, NET Joan Ganz Cooney, staff producer, NET, and originator of Sesame Street Richard Heffner, founding general manager, WNDT Herb Homes, director of production/labor relations, NET, James Earl Jones, Oscar-nominated actor Robert Kotlowitz, senior vp for programming, WNET, Jessie Maple, independent filmmaker Bill Moyers, broadcast journalist Al Perlmutter, independent producer Sam Pollard, independent filmmaker Morton Silverstein, writer/producer/director, What Harvest for the Reaper? Michael Winship, writer & publicist, WNET, Jac Venza, culture & arts executive producer, NET, Pioneers of THIRTEEN is a production of THIRTEEN for WNET. WNET is the parent company of public television stations THIRTEEN and WLIW21 and operator of NJTV. Julie Anderson is executive producer. Denise Green and Charlotte Mangin are producers. Sue Ding is associate producer. Funding for Pioneers of THIRTEEN is provided by Rosalind P. Walter and the members of THIRTEEN. For more information about THIRTEEN s 50th anniversary visit: ###

5 About WNET In 2012, WNET is celebrating the 50 th Anniversary of THIRTEEN, New York s flagship public media provider. As the parent company of THIRTEEN and WLIW21 and operator of NJTV, WNET brings quality arts, education and public affairs programming to over 5 million viewers each week. WNET produces and presents such acclaimed PBS series as Nature, Great Performances, American Masters, Need to Know, Charlie Rose and a range of documentaries, children s programs, and local news and cultural offerings available on air and online. Pioneers in educational programming, WNET has created such groundbreaking series as Get the Math, Oh Noah! and Cyberchase and provides tools for educators that bring compelling content to life in the classroom and at home. WNET highlights the tri-state s unique culture and diverse communities through NYC-ARTS, Reel 13, NJ Today and the new online newsmagazine MetroFocus.