Product Details

• Actors: David Ogden Stiers, John Steele Gordon, Kenneth Jackson, Robert A.M. Stern, Mike Wallace
• Producers: Donald Rosenfeld, Helen Kaplan
• Format: Box set, Black & White, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 7
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Pbs Home Video
• DVD Release Date: September 25, 2001
• Run Time: 600 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (63 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005NC51
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #50,634 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "New York (7 Episode PBS Boxed Set)" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

If you're a fan of Ken Burns PBS documentaries such as The Civil War and Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery, then you'll want to add New York, produced by Ken's brother Ric, to your collection. This exhaustively thorough documentary chronicles the evolution of the city from its time as a Dutch settlement in the early 17th century to its current status as megalopolis extraordinaire. Famous New Yorkers including Martin Scorsese, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Fran Lebowitz, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, and former mayor Ed Koch lend their colorful local perspective. In addition, there's commentary by numerous historians and writers, most notably Pulitzer Prize-winning Mike Wallace (not of 60 Minutes fame, but rather author of Gotham) and the late Brendan Gill, who notes the distinctly capitalist foundation of the city. As he succinctly states, "New York was based upon greed." There's no mistaking that this is a Burns documentary; the story is told through the now-familiar mosaic of images, interviews, music, and narrative chronicling past events. However, there are noticeable differences in the two brothers' style. While Ken Burns tends to linger over his subject matter and personalize it, Ric is more focused on the task of recounting the events in chronological order. New York is also more upbeat, as it thankfully does not employ the tiresome, whining violin dirges of which brother Ken is so fond. You don't have to be a fan of New York City to enjoy this PBS production. You just have to enjoy the experience of discovering history through the popular Burns documentary style. --William Carr

Product Description

Available previously as a 5-part VHS set, New York now boasts two all-new episodes. The series offers fourteen spectacular hours of programming that chronicle the history of New York - from its beginning in 1609 as a Dutch trading post, through the turbulent years of change in the decades following World War II, to its present day status as one of the most important and influential cities in the world.

SYNOPSES
Episode 1: The Country and the City(1609 - 1825) chronicles the arrival of the Dutch, the impact of the English, the horrors of colonial slavery and New York's critical role in the American Revolution.
Episode 2: Order and Disorder(1825 - 1865) looks at New York's rise as a burgeoning cultural center and multi-ethnic port, concluding with the Civil War Riots - America's bloodiest civil disturbance. Episode 3: Sunshine and Shadow(1865 - 1898) turns the spotlight on a period of greed and wealth that fueled the expanding metropolis - even as politics and poverty defined it.
Episode 4: The Power and the People(1898 - 1918) follows New York into a new century, examining the interplay of capitalism, democracy and transformation in the wake of an extraordinary wave of immigration and the birth of the skyscraper.
Episode 5: Cosmopolis(1919 - 1931) details the African-American experience, the birth of new media industries and the incredible array of human and cultural energies that converged, ending with the construction of the world's tallest building.
Episode 6: City of Tomorrow(1929 - 1941) traces the spectacular but often troubling changes that overtook New York due to the crash of 1929 and the beginning of World War II.
Episode 7: The City and the World(1945 - Present) chronicles the history of New York from the end of World War II through today, exploring the complexities of the post-modern city and the turbulent years of physical, social and cultural change in the decades following the war.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More justice. Better as the DVD version, October 28, 2001

By	Eric V. Moye (New York, by way of Dallas) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The Burns family has come up with some fine work, from Baseball, to the Civil War; and now the latest, New York. A fine successor.
Ric Burns explores the early history of New York, starting with the God-created attributes of the region and one of the world's finest natural seaports. But the treasure is found in what man has added to the Apple, starting with the Erie Canal, Central Park, the Brooklyn Bridge and the Subway system. The Bridge's history has itself been the subject of much scholarship, and Burns does it well also. The creation of the skyline, including the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building are some of the series best moments, filled with some of the fascinating type of information that fans of Burns' documentaries have come to expect and enjoy.

The history of New York is the history of immigrants, and the interaction of Irish, Italians, Africans and other groups is splendidly examined. The politics of the City, such as the rise and demise of Al Smith and Jimmy Walker are well explored also.

My few complaints are minor, and don't detract from the work. F. Scott Fitzgerald seems to have become a demi-god to Burns, and after awhile, I found the continued references to him and his
work tiring. More than a few minutes on the early history of Harlem would have been a welcome replacement.

I purchased the DVD version, although I had the videocassettes. Am I glad I did! It has two additional discs, which try to bring the series up to date. Fiorello LaGuardia and Robert Moses, the two most pivotal figures in the history of the City, are splendidly explored. More examination of the development and contribution of Harlem (which I lamented in the review of the VHS version) is also welcomed. New York's post W.W. II predominance as the true center of the Earth is made plain. As the series progresses, we see the value of the City (any city), the destruction of the great and old in the name of urban renewal, and the slow cancer of suburban sprawl.

Even those not from New York will find it to be a rich, interesting history, worth of the length of time one must devote to its viewing. The rest of the world will understand some of why New Yorkers love their home as they do. Those expatriate New Yorkers will be tugged to head back home. All in all, brilliant, brilliant work.

37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Justice to the greatest city in the World., May 14, 2000

By	Eric V. Moye (New York, by way of Dallas) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: New York (5 Episode PBS Boxed Set) [VHS] (VHS Tape)

The Burns family has come up with some fine work, from Baseball, to the Civil War; and now the latest, New York. A fine successor.

Ric Burns explores the early history of New York, starting with the God-created attributes of the region and one of the world's finest natural seaports. But the treasure is found in what man has added to the Apple, starting with the Erie Canal, Central Park, the Brooklyn Bridge and the Subway system. The Bridge's history has itself been the subject of much scholarship, and Burns does it well also. The creation of the skyline, including the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building are some of the series best moments, filled with some of the fascinating type of information that fans of Burns' documentaries have come to expect and enjoy.

The history of New York is the history of immigrants, and the interaction of Irish, Italians, Africans and other groups is splendidly examined. The politics of the City, such as the rise and demise of Al Smith are well explored also.

My few complaints are minor, and don't detract from the work. F. Scott Fitzgerald seems to have become a demi-god to Burns, and after awhile, I found the continued references to him and his work tiring. More than a few minutes on the history of Harlem would have been a welcome replacement. Of course, history is harder to write the closer we are to it, but I would have liked to have seen the series end later (perhaps at the end of the 1960's).

Even those not from New York will find it to be a rich, interesting history, worth of the length of time one must devote to its viewing. Those expatriate New Yorkers will be tugged to head back home. All in all, very worthwhile.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Do yourself a favor - GET THIS!, August 21, 2005

By	noir head - See all my reviews

When I first sat down and watched this tremendous film on DVD, I was stunned at the magnitude of information it contains. I learned so much about New York's origins, I felt ashamed I knew so little about the world's greatest city.

As I got deeper into the film, I realised just how riveted I was at the musical score. What a tremendous soundtrack! The drawings, photos, camera sweeps and interviews come alive in a way that's hard to describe, when combined with the music.

I was taken aback by the weight of emotion (mostly sadness) that the documentary was able to well up inside of me; there were so many incidents I was unaware of in the city's history that are just heart-breaking. I learned so much about the city's lowlights but there are also a great deal of highlights too. I was extremely proud of the Statue of Liberty segment - tears literally filled my eyes as the inscription on the statue was read. That's the kind of emotion the film brings.

These are stories I'm not likely to ever forget. Because of the way Ric Burns and his team put them on film in a way that's more than watchable; it's simply stupendous.

This is the finest film I have ever witnessed.