American President on PBS

Part 2 (of 10) profiles John Tyler, Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, Chester A. Arthur and Harry Truman, all of whom ascended to the Presidency by happenstance (the deaths of their predecessors). Of the five, Truman, the only one to serve a second term, is the best-remembered. “If you get two terms you get a chapter in the history books,” says historian Richard E. Neustadt. “If you get one term, you get only a few paragraphs.” Voices: Charlie Rose (Tyler); Tim Russert (Fillmore); Don Imus (Johnson); Rep. Dan Rostenkowski (Arthur).