Join or Sign In
Sign in to customize your TV listings
By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy.
3 Episodes 2002 - 2002
Episode 1
Tue, Nov 19, 2002 60 mins
Chronicling the life and achievements of America's revolutionary genius in his own words (plus those of a parade of historians). Part 1: "Let the Experiment Be Made," charts Franklin's first 47 years (he was born in 1706), a period that saw the birth of the Enlightenment. Franklin took it to heart, writing aphorisms based on it in his "Poor Richard's Almanack" and making life easier for his fellow Philadelphians by thinking up such things as public libraries and a volunteer fire department. Then there was electricity. Richard Easton plays Franklin (Dylan Baker plays a younger Franklin).
Episode 2
Tue, Nov 19, 2002 54 mins
Part 2 covers Franklin's years in England, beginning in 1757, when he was sent to London as an emissary for Pennsylvania on a mission to allow the colony to tax the Penn family's lands. Franklin arrived as an ardent admirer of the empire as well as a lover of the American colonies ("There's nothing I want more than the prosperity of both," he says). Seventeen years later, he left a revolutionary. Richard Easton plays Franklin; Colm Feore narrates.
Episode 3
Wed, Nov 20, 2002 90 mins
Conclusion: "The Chess Master" follows "America's native genius," as historian Keith Arbour calls Franklin, through the final 14 years of his life, nine of which were spent in Paris as the rebellious colonies' ambassador to France. Franklin's first goal (aside from creating the U.S. foreign service on the fly) was to secure financial and military aid. He went about doing it in the same manner as he played chess. "There are always 16 or 32 moves to think of in advance," says Arbour. And, adds historian H.W. Brands: "He wasn't above moving the pieces." Richard Easton plays Franklin; Colm Feore narrates.