''The West'', sometimes marketed as ''Ken Burns Presents: The West'', is a 1996 television documentary

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...

about the

American Old West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

. It was directed by Stephen Ives and featured

Ken Burns Kenneth Lauren Burns (born July 29, 1953) is an American filmmaker known for his documentary film, documentary films and television series, many of which chronicle United States, American History of the United States, history and Culture of the ...

as executive producer. It was first broadcast on PBS on eight consecutive nights from September 15 to 22, 1996.

Production

Stephen Ives and Ken Burns had worked together on several previous series, including '' The Civil War'' (1990) and '' Baseball'' (1994). In 1988, Ives created his own production company, Insignia Films, and began working on ''The West'' as director, with Burns signed on to the project as executive producer. In order to create ''The West'', the film crew traveled over via airplane, conducted 72 interviews, visited 74 archives and collections, and filmed more than 250 hours of footage. Research consultants included Peter E. Palmquist, independent research expert on photographs of the period. The film's production was funded by

General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...

. Notable interviewees included historians Stephen Ambrose, J. S. Holliday, and Richard White; novelists

Maxine Hong Kingston Maxine Hong Kingston (; born Maxine Ting Ting Hong;Huntley, E. D. (2001). ''Maxine Hong Kingston: A Critical Companion'', p. 1. October 27, 1940) is an American novelist. She is a Professor Emerita at the University of California, Berkeley, wher ...

and

N. Scott Momaday Navarre Scott Momaday (born February 27, 1934) is a Kiowa novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet. His novel ''House Made of Dawn'' was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1969, and is considered the first major work of the Native ...

; environmentalists and writers

Terry Tempest Williams Terry Tempest Williams (born 8 September 1955), is an American writer, educator, conservationist, and activist. Williams' writing is rooted in the American West and has been significantly influenced by the arid landscape of Utah. Her work foc ...

and

Marc Reisner Marc Reisner (September 14, 1948 – July 21, 2000) was an American environmentalist and writer best known for his book ''Cadillac Desert'', a history of water management in the American West. Early life He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, th ...

; and politicians Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Ann Richards,

Stewart Udall Stewart Lee Udall (January 31, 1920 – March 20, 2010) was an American politician and later, a federal government official. After serving three terms as a congressman from Arizona, he served as Secretary of the Interior from 1961 to 1969, unde ...

, and Ralph Yarborough. Many notable actors lent their voices to ''The West'', including Adam Arkin, Matthew Broderick, Ossie Davis,

Keith Carradine Keith Ian Carradine ( ; born August 8, 1949) is an American actor who has had success on stage, film, and television. He is known for his roles as Tom Frank in Robert Altman's film ''Nashville'', Wild Bill Hickok in the HBO series '' Deadwood ...

John Lithgow John Arthur Lithgow ( ; born , 1945) is an American actor. Lithgow studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his work on the stage and screen. He has been the recipient of numerous ...

, Mary Stuart Masterson,

Blythe Danner Blythe Katherine Danner (born February 3, 1943) is an American actress. Accolades she has received include two Primetime Emmy Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Izzy Huffstodt on '' Huff'' (2004–2006), and a ...

, the famous playwright Arthur Miller, Jimmy Smits, and Eli Wallach. The film's narrator, Peter Coyote, would later narrate ten more documentary films directed or produced by Burns, including '' The National Parks: America's Best Idea'' (2009), '' The Roosevelts: An Intimate History'' (2014), '' The Vietnam War'' (2017), ''The

Mayo Clinic The Mayo Clinic () is a nonprofit American academic medical center focused on integrated health care, education, and research. It employs over 4,500 physicians and scientists, along with another 58,400 administrative and allied health staff, ...

: Faith--Hope--Science'' (2018), and '' Country Music'' (2019).

Original airing

''The West'' premiered on September 15, 1996, on PBS. The series was split into episodes, with one episode being aired each night for eight consecutive nights. Episodes were cut to about 90 minutes each in length, for a total length of over 12 hours for the entire series. The final episode aired on September 22, 1996.

Episodes

Home video release

When ''The West'' was released on VHS, the finale episode, "One Sky Above Us," was divided into two one-hour episodes, titled "Ghost Dance" and "One Sky Above Us." This VHS edition was released September 24, 1996. PBS later released a five-disc DVD set of ''The West'' on September 30, 2003.

Reception

''The West'' was well received by both popular audiences and historians. Over 38 million viewers watched the series during its original airing, and it earned an average national Nielsen rating of 5.0. In 1997, the

Organization of American Historians The Organization of American Historians (OAH), formerly known as the Mississippi Valley Historical Association, is the largest professional society dedicated to the teaching and study of American history. OAH's members in the U.S. and abroad inc ...

awarded ''The West'' its

Erik Barnouw Award The Erik Barnouw Award—also known as the OAH Erik Barnouw Award—is named after the late Erik Barnouw, a Columbia University historian and professor who was a specialist in mass media. The OAH -- Organization of American Historians -- gives one o ...

. Film and television critics also responded positively to ''The West''. Caryn James of '' The New York Times'' praised the series for its "enthralling detail" and authenticity, calling it "fiercely and brilliantly rooted in fact."

Richard Zoglin Richard Zoglin (born August 8, 1948) is an American journalist and author. Zoglin wrote about entertainment for ''Time'' for over 20 years. He is the author of ''Hope: Entertainer of the Century'', a 2014 biography of comedian Bob Hope. In 20 ...

of '' TIME'' judged the series "a sweeping, thoughtful, often moving look at America's conquest of the West", and

Howard Rosenberg Howard Anthony Rosenberg (born June 10, 1942) is an American television critic. He worked at ''The Louisville Times'' from 1968 through 1978 and then worked at the ''Los Angeles Times'' for 25 years where he won a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.

of the '' Los Angeles Times'' wrote that, "director Stephen Ives succeeds magnificently, delivering a lush work at once fully documented and fully entertaining... no one could ask for better television."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:West, The 1996 television films 1996 films PBS original programming History books about the American Old West 1990s American documentary television series