American Presidents: Life Portraits

American Presidents: Life Portraits is a series produced by C-SPAN in 1999. Each episode was aired live, and was a two- to three-hour look at the life and times of one particular president of the United States. Episodes were broadcast from locations of importance to the profiled president, featured interviews with historians and other experts, and incorporated calls from viewers. The series served as a commemoration of C-SPAN's 20th anniversary.

American Presidents: Life Portraits
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes41
Release
Original networkC-SPAN
Original releaseMarch 15 (1999-03-15) –
December 20, 1999 (1999-12-20)
Related
American Writers: A Journey Through History

The first program aired on March 15, 1999, and profiled George Washington. Subsequent programs featured each president in succession, concluding with the then current president Bill Clinton on December 20, 1999. (Despite serving two non-consecutive terms, Grover Cleveland was only profiled on one program.)[1]

Peabody Award

American Presidents was awarded a George Foster Peabody Award in 1999.[2] Excerpts of the official rationale for that award appear below:

...From the sites, noted biographers, presidential scholars, descendants, and other guests presented revealing information and assessments of the life, times and legacies of the presidents. The tone set by chairman and CEO (and reluctant air personality) Brian P. Lamb remains on point: good television often takes time, requires few special effects and demands (and rewards) good listening...

...For creating a series that perfectly embodies the essence of public service in electronic communications, a Peabody Award is presented to C-SPAN for "American Presidents: Life Portraits."

Presidential portraits

Artist Chas Fagan was commissioned by C-SPAN to paint portraits of each of the 41 men who had held the office of U.S. president through 1999. He was given a 90-day window from the time he agreed to the assignment until the time that the project needed to be complete. In September 1999, Union Station in Washington, D.C., hosted a display of Fagan's presidential portraits.[3] Since then, Fagan has also painted portraits of George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump, and tours with exhibits of those portraits.[4]

Programs

Note: In addition to the interviewees listed, each program featured a variety of other experts, many of whom were employed by or volunteered for the historical sites from which the programs were being broadcast.

Original air date
with link to video		PresidentLocationFeatured interviewees
March 15, 1999George WashingtonMount Vernon Estate and Gardens,
Alexandria, Virginia		Richard Norton Smith
March 22, 1999John AdamsAdams National Historic Site,
Quincy, Massachusetts		David McCullough
April 2, 1999Thomas JeffersonMonticello,
Charlottesville, Virginia		Andrew Burstein, Annette Gordon-Reed
April 9, 1999James MadisonMontpelier,
Montpelier Station, Virginia		Jack Rakove, Holly Shulman
April 12, 1999James MonroeJames Monroe Museum,
Fredericksburg, Virginia
April 18, 1999John Quincy AdamsMassachusetts Historical Society,
Boston, Massachusetts		Lynn Hudson Parsons
April 26, 1999Andrew JacksonThe Hermitage,
Hermitage, Tennessee		Robert Remini
May 3, 1999Martin Van BurenMartin Van Buren National Historic Site,
Kinderhook, New York
May 10, 1999William Henry HarrisonTippecanoe Battlefield,
Battle Ground, Indiana
May 17, 1999John TylerSherwood Forest Plantation,
Charles City, Virginia		Edward Crapol, Harrison Ruffin Tyler
May 28, 1999James K. PolkPresident James K. Polk Home & Museum,
Columbia, Tennessee
May 31, 1999Zachary TaylorZachary Taylor National Cemetery,
Louisville, Kentucky
June 11, 1999Millard FillmoreFillmore House Museum,
East Aurora, New York
June 14, 1999Franklin PierceThe Pierce Manse,
Concord, New Hampshire		Barry Paris
June 21, 1999James BuchananWheatland,
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
June 28, 1999Abraham LincolnLincoln Home National Historic Site,
Springfield, Illinois
July 9, 1999Andrew JohnsonAndrew Johnson National Historic Site,
Greeneville, Tennessee
July 12, 1999Ulysses S. GrantGeneral Grant National Memorial,
New York City, New York		John Y. Simon, Allan Ballard, Ulysses Grant Dietz
July 19, 1999Rutherford B. HayesRutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center,
Spiegel Grove, Fremont, Ohio		Ari Hoogenboom
July 26, 1999James A. GarfieldJames A. Garfield National Historic Site,
Mentor, Ohio
August 6, 1999Chester A. ArthurUnion College,
Schenectady, New York		Thomas C. Reeves
August 13, 1999Grover ClevelandGrover Cleveland Birthplace,
Caldwell, New Jersey
August 20, 1999Benjamin HarrisonPresident Benjamin Harrison Home,
Indianapolis, Indiana
August 23, 1999William McKinleyMcKinley National Memorial and Museum,
Canton, Ohio
September 3, 1999Theodore RooseveltSagamore Hill National Historic Site,
Oyster Bay, New York		Edmund Morris, Sylvia Jukes Morris
September 6, 1999William Howard TaftWilliam Howard Taft National Historic Site,
Cincinnati, Ohio		David H. Burton
September 13, 1999Woodrow WilsonWoodrow Wilson Birthplace and Museum,
Staunton, Virginia		John Milton Cooper, Jr., Nell Irvin Painter
September 20, 1999Warren G. HardingPresident Harding's Home,
Marion, Ohio		Robert Ferrell, Eugene Trani
September 27, 1999Calvin CoolidgePresident Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site,
Plymouth, Vermont
October 4, 1999Herbert HooverHerbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum and
Herbert Hoover National Historic Site,
West Branch, Iowa		Richard Norton Smith
October 11, 1999Franklin D. RooseveltHome of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site and
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum,
Hyde Park, New York		David Kennedy, Hugh Gregory Gallagher, Allida Black
October 18, 1999Harry S. TrumanHarry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum,
Independence, Missouri		Alonzo Hamby, Margaret Truman Daniel
October 25, 1999Dwight D. EisenhowerDwight D. Eisenhower Center,
Abilene, Kansas		Geoffrey Perret
November 5, 1999John F. KennedyJohn F. Kennedy National Historic Site,
Brookline, Massachusetts		Robert Dallek, Thomas C. Reeves
November 12, 1999Lyndon B. JohnsonLBJ Ranch,
Stonewall, Texas		Joseph Califano, Robert Caro
November 19, 1999Richard NixonRichard M. Nixon Library and birthplace,
Yorba Linda, California		Melvin Small, Joan Hoff
November 22, 1999Gerald FordGerald R. Ford Presidential Museum,
Grand Rapids, Michigan		James M. Cannon, Richard Norton Smith
December 3, 1999Jimmy CarterJimmy Carter National Historic Site,
Plains, Georgia		Douglas Brinkley, Leo Ribuffo
December 6, 1999Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan ranch,
Santa Barbara, California		Lou Cannon
December 13, 1999George H. W. BushGeorge Bush Presidential Library,
College Station, Texas		John Robert Greene
December 20, 1999Bill ClintonClinton Center and Birthplace,
Hope, Arkansas		David Maraniss

References
  1. "American Presidents: Life Portraits". C-SPAN. Archived from the original on December 6, 2020. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  2. "American Presidents: Life Portraits (C-Span)". Peabody Awards. Archived from the original on July 29, 2020. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  3. "American Presidents Life Portrait Exhibit". C-SPAN. September 27, 1999. Archived from the original on March 24, 2016. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  4. "Trump has his first presidential portrait". USA Today. December 29, 2016. Archived from the original on March 12, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
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