2 comments about Biography - Benjamin Franklin: Citizen of the World.

1. In my opinion an additional two hundred years of history has not changed the fact that Benjamin Franklin is the most talented American that has ever lived. His inventions, which include the lightning rod, Franklin stove and bifocals, were some of the most practical of the eighteenth century. He was also the most read author in the American colonies, with his Poor Richard’s Almanac being a source of humor and wisdom that can be read and reread without a loss of interest. Finally, his role as a public servant is extraordinary and where he made his greatest mark on the world. He was one of the driving forces behind the creation of the professional police and fire departments in Philadelphia as well as the founding of a lending library. Considered essential today, they were unusual in his time.
   When a full scale war broke out between the American colonies and Britain, the prospects for a colonial victory were not good. Although there was the advantage of distance, Britain possessed much greater military power and the colonists were not completely united. While George Washington commanded enormous respect as a general, his army was chronically under-equipped. Under these circumstances, the aged Franklin was dispatched to France in an attempt to woo aid from the French imperial court. His abilities to sway the aristocratic and cautious French leaders most likely made the difference in the success of the war. The difficulty of this task should not be underestimated. To the French aristocracy, the Americans were uncouth barbarians trying to establish a style of government they viewed with suspicion. Once French aid was given, the psychology of the situation dramatically changed. Franklin was clearly the only person who could have accomplished that delicate task. This is the most complex point of his life and the description in this tape explains it very well.
   While Thomas Jefferson is credited with authorship of the Declaration of Independence, Franklin had substantial input, with some of the most memorable lines being his ideas. This is another key point, often ignored, that is explained in this story.
   Given his long and productive life, it is very difficult to adequately describe him in fifty minutes of tape. In this case, the best possible job is done. You learn his extraordinary story of rising from poor circumstances to being a leading citizen of a new country. Franklin’s life was one from which legends can be made, although in this case the life itself is better than a legend could be. He also was apparently quite a lady killer as many women of the French court threw themselves at him. When one asked him to spend the night with her, he parried the offer with a beautiful response, “Let us wait until winter when the nights are longer so that we may spend as much time as possible together.” Now there is a line to use with the ladies!
   Benjamin Franklin may be the most talented person who lived in the eighteenth century and Americans should be proud to have him as part of their heritage. I cannot imagine anyone viewing this biography and not being amazed at what he accomplished.



2. It seems that the more you know about Benjamin Franklin, the less you know about him. He was a brilliant man who somehow managed to be both simple and very complicated all at the same time. If I tried to list all of his accomplishments here, I would surpass the maximum word limit before I could even get my review started. At the birth of the new Republic, his was the face of America to Europe. I must admit, though, that I have never been all that enraptured with Franklin, despite all of his brilliance. He broke with the British Empire only after being excoriated by the Privy Council for his role in the "Hutchinson affair," he was not what you would call a humble man, he went years without seeing his wife (his first "short" trip to England lasted seven years, and he could have come home much sooner had he wanted to), he has always struck me as something of a dandy and a skirt-chaser, and it is hard for me to embrace anyone who was more at home with the French than with his American compatriots (the French simply adored Benjamin Franklin).
   
   Still, the genius of the man cannot be denied, and this A&E Biography presentation does as good a job as possible given its allotted time of some 45 minutes. By necessity, it could only hit the high points without delving deeply into the man's character, but you can't help but be amazed by the wide range of knowledge and talent the man possessed, the inventions and innovations he bequeathed to his fellow man, the great spirit which animated him in all things for all of his 84 years, and his service to the new nation of America. It should be remembered that Franklin won international acclaim as a scientist years before he served as America's original elder statesman. Those with just a cursory knowledge of Franklin's life might be surprised to learn how little time he spent in America during the crucial years of rebellion and independence. How many know that he also produced an illegitimate son in his youthful, most arduous days (although he did adopt the child rather than shun him)? This video really does not go into detail about Franklin and women except to say that women in France fawned upon him and he had two particularly important lady friends there in his later years. Franklin's bold flirtation with the women of France scandalized the staid and proper John Adams, and some of Franklin's contemporaries considered him a hypocrite who preached morality while he indulged in his own lustful pleasures.
   
   A short video such as this cannot begin to penetrate the depths of Franklin's being and character; it can, though, give the viewer an appreciation for his remarkable, wide-ranging accomplishments and his important role in shaping the young American republic. If the first thing that pops into your mind when you hear the name Benjamin Franklin is the image of an old man flying a kite during a thunderstorm, you would do very well indeed to take a look at this A&E biography production and acquaint yourself with a set of accomplishments it seems impossible for one man to have achieved over the course of one lifetime. Men of Franklin's caliber and brilliance only come along about once a century.

1 comments about Biography - Marilyn Monroe: The Mortal Goddess.

1. This vhs is a pretty good video biography. Basically most of the tape is her friends being interviewed (including her 1st husband) still photographs of Marilyn, and short clips from her films, and even shorter clips of some of the rare footage that the press captured (like her and Jane Russell putting their hands and feet in cement to honor the sucess of "Gentlemen prefer blondes", her marriage to Joe DiMaggio, her announcing her divorce from DiMaggio, the announcement of her engagement to Arthur Miller, her coming out of the hospital after a miscarriage, her being released from the mental hospital, the infamous "Happy Birthday Mr. President" performance, etc.) and those clips were around 10-30 seconds at the most; I wish they would have been a lot longer! This is a SIMPLE biography to add to your collection, it does not reveal anything new & it doesn't go deep into her personal life. One of the best things about the tape is they included some footage from "Somethings got to give", Marilyn's last movie (but again, not enough!) Overall, its not the BEST Marilyn video biography, but it definitely wasn't a waste of time! I recommend renting it to see if you would like to purchase it! Enjoy!

1 comments about Biography - Liberace: Mr. Showmanship.

1. This piece about Mr. Showmanship himself will fulfill all of the amatur fans of Liberace as well as the fanatics like myself. I have never enountered anything that moved me with as much ethereal passion as his music and his delicate voice. It brings me back to the old shows at Radio City Music Hall and his performance live at the park in San Francisco. I throughly cannot recommend this enough. If Liberace is not your man then, you're not my man...

5 comments about Biography - Michelangelo.

1. This video wastes no time in delving into the life and times of Michelangelo. It explains the circumstances of his birth and ascent into the Medici sphere of influence. The video also busts certain myths about Michelangelo, for example a Michelangelo scholar tells us that the artist was actually very wealthy-- which is interesting since much of Michelangelo's writings to his family talk of his financial hardships. All in all this was a great video. In this fast paced world where most people don't have the time to sit and read a book, this is the next best thing!



2. I'm an art teacher at a middle school. I show "Michelangelo" every year to my 7th graders as they study the Renaissance. However this can as easily be used in a college course. This video not only has the specifics of his life, but gives a flavor of his time.



3. this is a relly good movie for ages 3 - 29 1/2. it doesn't go into a whole lot of detail though.



4. A well scripted CD on the life of Michelangelo. It is not only valuable for the student of the arts, but for anyone desiring to appreciate antiquity. I could almost experience his pain when he painted the ceiling of the chapel. It was a great overview of his life. KL



5. A&E does a fine job covering the important aspects of an unfathomable subject. There needs to be a piece on Michelangelo and a separate piece on his art. Such brilliance cannot be contained in one volume.

3 comments about Biography - General Douglas MacArthur.

1. What a joke. General Douglas MacArthur's contributions to victory in World War II are slight at best! If you want to know the truth about this man and what his accomplishments (or lack thereof) REALLY were, as well as what is taught in the military acadamies of this country, try reading some of the biographies about MacArthur that go beyond the surface. Want an example? How about letting the largest concentration of B-17 bombers west of Pearl Harbor be destroyed ON THE GROUND! Nearly 18 hours passed between the time Pearl Harbor was attacked and this man did NOTHING. His career throughout World War II is full of similar instances that cost lives, money and the foreign policy of the United States. He was against the leap-frogging policy that the he later claimed as his own idea by using the baseball phrase "hit-em where they ain't!" He fought hard against that idea until he saw that it worked. He was also against the whip-saw strategy of attack in the pacific. There are other books (Eric Larrabee's "Commander in Chief" is the best) that de-myth the mythical general. Don't buy this video! The people responsible for it should be ashamed for the poor and shameful job in not finding the truth about this man and instead, they took the easy way out in putting this superficial "biography" together. It is full of lies and distortions. A&E, you really should be ashamed!



2. It's so very easy to condem someone. Let's just take a moment to look at the BIG Picture. MacArthur was a human being if I remember correctly. We all have our weak moments. Humans some times do make mistakes and he did make a few serious mistakes. If your not biased or overly prejudice, then look at the Real complete FACTS and Big picture of MacArthur. Let us not attempt to twist and distort the true facts. Let us read the whole historical book not just one or two small paragraphs in the book. If you want to take something out of context, then just read one or two paragraphs about someone's few mistakes. Just read the facts about this Great Great man purely from a historical view point. Gerneral of the Army Douglas MacArthur, dispite a few of his human short commings was not an Angel as some may believe. He was though, a True Military Genius in every sense of the word!
   The man really had his moments of True Genius. A truly brilliant man and leader. Oh, leaders do make a few mistakes, but General Douglas MacArthur made so many great and intelligent decisions during world war II, Korea and in Japan that his human mistakes prior to WWII were blown into oblivion where they belong. His great decisions out weighed 100,000 times over and above the mistakes he made prior to WWII. Any one who can read and write and is not ignorant can easily see this. You would have to be deaf dumb and blind to read only one paragraph in a book and JUDGE a book only by its' cover, as some people are so happy to do. Gerneral Douglas MacArthur was really a true military genius and great leader who I have the greatest respect and admiration for. He was the best of the best Gernerals this country ever had. He was a God given gift to this great country and to Japan after the war ended.



3. Plain and simply a man who stood behind
   his words, and his military actions spo-
   ke even louder! Bravo to A & E again!

No comments about Biography: Tony Robbins - Secret of.

2 comments about Biography - Houdini: The Great Escape.

1. For all of you guys who thought Houdini died while performing his Water Torture Cell Illusion...THINK AGAIN! A&E gives you the real facts about Houdini's life and death! -Diamond Jim Tyler



2. All I can say is that this video is complete, informable, leaving NOTHING out in Houdini's life and acheivements. VERY GOOD VIDEO!!

1 comments about Biography - Steve Allen.

1. The late,great legendary Steve Allen was really a great actor/comedian/musician as shown in this A&E Biography.Steve,we all love and miss you!!!

2 comments about Biography - Paul Newman.

1. I was more than delighted when I was finally able to watch the biography of Paul Newman. I have been a fan for only a few months but I have seen a great number of his films and was becoming curious about his life as well. This documentary does a wonderful job of tying together his personal life and the different stages of his career. The biography explores not only Newman's acting career, but also his experiences in car racing and in philanthropy. I have already seen it twice and will watch it again very soon. I only wish it had been longer!



2. From descriptio of product expected it to work in cd plyer, but it does not work.

1 comments about Biography: J. Edgar Hoover - Private & Confidential.

1. This video truly depicts how for about half a century, the most powerful man in the world was not the President, but Hoover himself.