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American Masters (1986–present) — music on PBS
About American Masters
Now in its 30th year, American Masters has produced an exceptional library of more than 160 television programs, bringing unique originality and perspective to exploring the lives and illuminating the creative journeys of our most enduring writers, musicians, visual and performing artists, dramatists and filmmakers – those who have "left an indelible impression on our cultural landscape". Balancing a broad cast of characters and artistic approaches, while preserving historical authenticity and intellectual integrity, these portraits resonate the attention, style and substance each subject deserves. American Masters sustains high audience awareness and loyalty, averaging 2-to-5 million viewers per program.
American Masters episode schedule
1 upcoming · 313 aired . Next episode: May 19, 2026.
Upcoming · 1
| Date | Ep. | Title |
|---|---|---|
| May 19, 2026 | S40·E4 | W.E.B. Du Bois: Rebel With a Cause |
Aired · 313
| Date | Ep. | Title |
|---|---|---|
| February 20, 2026 | S40·E3 | Sun Ra: Do the Impossible |
| January 27, 2026 | S40·E2 | Elie Wiesel: Soul on Fire |
| December 16, 2025 | S40·E1 | Ten Times Better |
| December 12, 2025 | S39·E8 | Starring Dick Van Dyke |
| October 14, 2025 | S39·E7 | Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore |
| July 11, 2025 | S39·E6 | Marcella |
| June 27, 2025 | S39·E5 | Hannah Arendt: Facing Tyranny |
| June 20, 2025 | S39·E4 | Janis Ian: Breaking Silence |
| April 15, 2025 | S39·E3 | Art Spiegelman: Disaster is My Muse |
| April 1, 2025 | S39·E2 | LIZA: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story |
| February 21, 2025 | S39·E1 | The Disappearance of Miss Scott |
| December 16, 2024 | S38·E6 | Brenda Lee: Rockin' Around |
| September 17, 2024 | S38·E5 | Julia Alvarez: A Life Reimagined |
| August 27, 2024 | S38·E4 | Blake Edwards: A Love Story in 24 Frames |
| April 5, 2024 | S38·E3 | The Incomparable Mr. Buckley |
| March 29, 2024 | S38·E2 | Daniel Patrick Moynihan |
| January 2, 2024 | S38·E1 | HOPPER: An American Love Story |
| October 6, 2023 | S37·E9 | Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes |
| September 29, 2023 | S37·E8 | A Song for Cesar |
| September 22, 2023 | S37·E7 | Floyd Abrams: Speaking Freely |
| September 15, 2023 | S37·E6 | Jerry Brown: The Disrupter |
| June 2, 2023 | S37·E5 | Little Richard: The King and Queen of Rock and Roll |
| May 16, 2023 | S37·E4 | Nam June Paik: Moon Is the Oldest TV |
| March 24, 2023 | S37·E3 | In the Making |
| March 21, 2023 | S37·E2 | Dr. Tony Fauci |
| January 24, 2023 | S37·E1 | Roberta Flack |
| December 27, 2022 | S36·E8 | Groucho & Cavett |
| December 12, 2022 | S36·E7 | The Adventures of Saul Bellow |
| November 22, 2022 | S36·E6 | Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On |
| June 14, 2022 | S36·E5 | Brian Wilson - Long Promised Road |
Show next 200 of 283 earlier episodes
| June 3, 2022 | S36·E4 | Joe Papp in Five Acts |
| May 10, 2022 | S36·E3 | Waterman - Duke: Ambassador of Aloha |
| February 8, 2022 | S36·E2 | Marian Anderson: The Whole World in Her Hands |
| January 11, 2022 | S36·E1 | Ailey |
| October 19, 2021 | S35·E10 | Becoming Helen Keller |
| October 5, 2021 | S35·E9 | Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It |
| July 27, 2021 | S35·E8 | Buddy Guy: The Blues Chase the Blues Away |
| June 4, 2021 | S35·E7 | Ballerina Boys |
| May 3, 2021 | S35·E6 | Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir |
| April 9, 2021 | S35·E5 | Oliver Sacks: His Own Life |
| April 2, 2021 | S35·E4 | Never Too Late: The Doc Severinsen Story |
| March 26, 2021 | S35·E3 | Twyla Moves |
| March 23, 2021 | S35·E2 | Flannery O'Connor |
| January 18, 2021 | S35·E1 | How It Feels To Be Free |
| December 29, 2020 | S34·E9 | Laura Ingalls Wilder: Prairie to Page |
| December 11, 2020 | S34·E8 | Keith Haring: Street Art Boy |
| October 23, 2020 | S34·E7 | Michael Tilson Thomas: Where Now Is |
| October 20, 2020 | S34·E6 | Walter Winchell: The Power of Gossip |
| July 10, 2020 | S34·E5 | Unladylike2020: The Changemakers |
| June 30, 2020 | S34·E4 | And She Could Be Next Part Two |
| June 23, 2020 | S34·E3 | Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am |
| June 16, 2020 | S34·E2 | Mae West: Dirty Blonde |
| February 25, 2020 | S34·E1 | Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool |
| November 18, 2019 | S33·E12 | N. Scott Momaday: Words from a Bear |
| October 25, 2019 | S33·E11 | Rothko: Pictures Must Be Miraculous |
| September 13, 2019 | S33·E10 | Raul Julia: The World's a Stage |
| August 2, 2019 | S33·E9 | Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin |
| June 21, 2019 | S33·E8 | Robert Shaw - Man of Many Voices |
| June 14, 2019 | S33·E7 | Terrence McNally: Every Act of Life |
| April 19, 2019 | S33·E6 | Garry Winogrand: All Things are Photographable |
| April 12, 2019 | S33·E5 | Joseph Pulitzer: Voice of the People |
| March 1, 2019 | S33·E4 | Holly Near: Singing for Our Lives |
| February 22, 2019 | S33·E3 | Charley Pride: I'm Just Me |
| February 19, 2019 | S33·E2 | Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me |
| January 2, 2019 | S33·E1 | Decoding Watson |
| October 14, 2018 | S32·E8 | Itzhak |
| September 14, 2018 | S32·E7 | Basquiat: Rage to Riches |
| September 7, 2018 | S32·E6 | Andrew Wyeth |
| September 7, 2018 | S32·E5 | Everybody Knows... Elizabeth Murray |
| August 31, 2018 | S32·E4 | Eva Hesse |
| July 23, 2018 | S32·E3 | Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived |
| May 18, 2018 | S32·E2 | Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story |
| January 19, 2018 | S32·E1 | Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes/Feeling Heart |
| December 29, 2017 | S31·E11 | This Is Bob Hope... |
| November 8, 2017 | S31·E10 | Inspiring Woman Web Series |
| October 30, 2017 | S31·E9 | Edgar Allan Poe: Buried Alive |
| September 8, 2017 | S31·E8 | Tyrus Wong |
| September 1, 2017 | S31·E7 | Richard Linklater: Dream is Destiny |
| August 16, 2017 | S31·E6 | Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me |
| May 26, 2017 | S31·E5 | Jacques Pépin: The Art of Craft |
| May 19, 2017 | S31·E4 | James Beard: America's First Foodie |
| March 4, 2017 | S31·E3 | Patsy Cline |
| February 21, 2017 | S31·E2 | Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise |
| January 3, 2017 | S31·E1 | By Sidney Lumet |
| December 27, 2016 | S30·E9 | Eero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future |
| October 25, 2016 | S30·E8 | Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You |
| May 27, 2016 | S30·E7 | The Highwaymen: Friends Till the End |
| May 3, 2016 | S30·E6 | Janis Joplin: Little Girl Blue |
| March 4, 2016 | S30·E5 | Loretta Lynn: Still a Mountain Girl |
| February 26, 2016 | S30·E4 | Fats Domino: The Birth of Rock N' Roll |
| February 19, 2016 | S30·E3 | Carole King: Natural Woman |
| February 12, 2016 | S30·E2 | B.B. King: The Life of Riley |
| January 29, 2016 | S30·E1 | Mike Nichols: An American Master |
| September 25, 2015 | S29·E7 | The Women's List |
| September 18, 2015 | S29·E6 | Pedro E. Guerrero: A Photographer's Journey |
| September 4, 2015 | S29·E5 | Althea |
| May 15, 2015 | S29·E4 | American Ballet Theatre: A History |
| April 16, 2015 | S29·E3 | Jascha Heifetz: God's Fiddler |
| February 20, 2015 | S29·E2 | August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand |
| January 23, 2015 | S29·E1 | Ricky Jay: Deceptive Practice |
| December 2, 2014 | S28·E9 | Bing Crosby Rediscovered |
| September 23, 2014 | S28·E7 | Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work |
| September 23, 2014 | S28·E8 | The Boomer List |
| August 29, 2014 | S28·E6 | Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning |
| June 20, 2014 | S28·E5 | Tanaquil Le Clercq: Afternoon of a Faun |
| May 16, 2014 | S28·E4 | Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself |
| April 22, 2014 | S28·E3 | A Fierce Green Fire |
| February 7, 2014 | S28·E2 | Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth |
| January 21, 2014 | S28·E1 | Salinger |
| December 27, 2013 | S27·E6 | Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did for Love |
| November 5, 2013 | S27·E5 | Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train a Comin' |
| September 10, 2013 | S27·E4 | Billie Jean King |
| May 20, 2013 | S27·E3 | Mel Brooks: Make a Noise |
| March 29, 2013 | S27·E2 | Philip Roth: Unmasked |
| February 22, 2013 | S27·E1 | Sister Rosetta Tharpe: The Godmother of Rock & Roll |
| December 28, 2012 | S26·E8 | Joffrey: Mavericks of American Dance |
| November 20, 2012 | S26·E7 | Inventing David Geffen |
| September 24, 2012 | S26·E6 | The Day Carl Sandburg Died |
| May 14, 2012 | S26·E5 | Johnny Carson: King of Late Night |
| April 2, 2012 | S26·E4 | Harper Lee: Hey, Boo |
| April 2, 2012 | S26·E3 | Margaret Mitchell: American Rebel |
| February 27, 2012 | S26·E2 | Cab Calloway: Sketches |
| January 23, 2012 | S26·E1 | Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune |
| December 29, 2011 | S25·E9 | Charles & Ray Eames: The Architect and the Painter |
| November 21, 2011 | S25·E8 | Woody Allen: A Documentary: Part 2 |
| November 20, 2011 | S25·E7 | Woody Allen: A Documentary: Part 1 |
| November 11, 2011 | S25·E6 | Bill T. Jones: A Good Man |
| October 21, 2011 | S25·E5 | Pearl Jam Twenty |
| June 1, 2011 | S25·E4 | James Levine: America's Maestro |
| April 18, 2011 | S25·E3 | John Muir in the New World |
| March 2, 2011 | S25·E2 | Troubadors: Carole King/James Taylor & the Rise of the Singer-Songwriter |
| January 12, 2011 | S25·E1 | Jeff Bridges: The Dude Abides |
| December 27, 2010 | S24·E8 | Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould |
| November 22, 2010 | S24·E7 | Lennon NYC |
| October 4, 2010 | S24·E6 | A Letter to Elia |
| September 20, 2010 | S24·E5 | Cachao: Uno Más |
| July 21, 2010 | S24·E4 | Merle Haggard: Learning to Live with Myself |
| May 12, 2010 | S24·E3 | The Doors: When You're Strange |
| March 31, 2010 | S24·E2 | I.M. Pei: Building China Modern |
| January 11, 2010 | S24·E1 | Sam Cooke: Crossing Over |
| December 28, 2009 | S23·E8 | Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind 'Little Women' |
| October 14, 2009 | S23·E7 | Joan Baez: How Sweet the Sound |
| September 2, 2009 | S23·E6 | Trumbo |
| July 1, 2009 | S23·E5 | Garrison Keillor: The Man on the Radio in the Red Shoes |
| June 10, 2009 | S23·E4 | Neil Young: Don't Be Denied |
| May 27, 2009 | S23·E3 | Hollywood Chinese |
| April 8, 2009 | S23·E2 | Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts |
| February 18, 2009 | S23·E1 | Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About |
| September 25, 2008 | S22·E9 | The Brothers Warner |
| September 25, 2008 | S22·E8 | You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: The Big Tent (1980-Present) |
| September 24, 2008 | S22·E6 | You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: A New Reality (1950-1970) |
| September 24, 2008 | S22·E7 | You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: Woodstock Notions (1970-1989) |
| September 23, 2008 | S22·E5 | You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: Good War, Uneasy Peace (1935-1950) |
| September 23, 2008 | S22·E4 | You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story: You Ain't Heard Nothin' Yet (1923-1935) |
| May 7, 2008 | S22·E3 | Marvin Gaye: What's Going On |
| April 9, 2008 | S22·E2 | Zora Neale Hurston: Jump at the Sun |
| February 27, 2008 | S22·E1 | Pete Seeger: The Power of Song |
| November 5, 2007 | S21·E9 | Carol Burnett: A Woman of Character |
| October 29, 2007 | S21·E8 | Good Ol' Charles Schulz |
| September 19, 2007 | S21·E7 | Orozco: Man of Fire |
| September 12, 2007 | S21·E6 | Tony Bennett: The Music Never Ends |
| July 25, 2007 | S21·E5 | John James Audubon: Drawn from Nature |
| July 18, 2007 | S21·E4 | David Hockney: The Colors of Music |
| July 11, 2007 | S21·E3 | Les Paul: Chasing Sound |
| May 2, 2007 | S21·E2 | Atlantic Records: The House That Ahmet Built |
| April 4, 2007 | S21·E1 | Novel Reflections on the American Dream |
| January 3, 2007 | S20·E9 | Annie Leibovitz: Life Through a Lens |
| September 27, 2006 | S20·E8 | Sketches of Frank Gehry |
| September 21, 2006 | S20·E7 | Andy Warhol: A Documentary: Part 2 |
| September 20, 2006 | S20·E6 | Andy Warhol: A Documentary: Part 1 |
| July 26, 2006 | S20·E5 | Walter Cronkite: Witness to History |
| July 19, 2006 | S20·E4 | Marilyn Monroe: Still Life |
| July 12, 2006 | S20·E3 | Woodie Guthrie: Ain't Got No Home |
| May 17, 2006 | S20·E2 | The World of Nat King Cole |
| May 10, 2006 | S20·E1 | John Ford/John Wayne: The Filmmaker and the Legend |
| September 27, 2005 | S19·E7 | Bob Dylan: No Direction Home |
| September 14, 2005 | S19·E6 | Ernest Hemingway: Rivers to the Sea |
| September 7, 2005 | S19·E5 | Willa Cather: The Road is All |
| July 20, 2005 | S19·E4 | Bob Newhart: Unbuttoned |
| July 13, 2005 | S19·E3 | George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey |
| June 29, 2005 | S19·E2 | Sweet Honey in the Rock: Raise Your Voice |
| May 11, 2005 | S19·E1 | James Dean: Sense Memories |
| August 18, 2004 | S18·E8 | Julia! America's Favorite Chef |
| June 23, 2004 | S18·E7 | Hank Williams: Honky Tonk Blues |
| April 28, 2004 | S18·E6 | Henry Luce and Time-Life's America: A Vision of Empire |
| February 25, 2004 | S18·E5 | Judy Garland: By Myself |
| January 14, 2004 | S18·E4 | Balanchine |
| January 7, 2004 | S18·E3 | Cary Grant: A Class Apart |
| October 29, 2003 | S18·E2 | James Brown: Soul Survivor |
| September 3, 2003 | S18·E1 | Arthur Miller, Elia Kazan and the Blacklist |
| July 30, 2003 | S17·E8 | The Education of Gore Vidal |
| May 28, 2003 | S17·E7 | Robert Capa: In Love and War |
| April 23, 2003 | S17·E6 | Muddy Waters: Can't Be Satisfied |
| April 2, 2003 | S17·E5 | Joni Mitchell: A Woman of Heart and Mind |
| March 19, 2003 | S17·E4 | Alice Waters and Her Delicious Revolution |
| January 29, 2003 | S17·E3 | Juilliard |
| October 30, 2002 | S17·E2 | Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces |
| October 2, 2002 | S17·E1 | Willie Nelson: Still is Still Moving |
| March 1, 2002 | S16·E8 | Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer |
| February 19, 2002 | S16·E7 | Ralph Ellison: An American Journey |
| December 16, 2001 | S16·E6 | Merce Cunningham: A Lifetime of Dance |
| November 28, 2001 | S16·E5 | Good Rockin' Tonight: The Legacy of Sun Records |
| November 18, 2001 | S16·E4 | Quincy Jones: In the Pocket |
| October 21, 2001 | S16·E3 | Richard Rodgers: The Sweetest Sounds |
| October 14, 2001 | S16·E2 | F. Scott Fitzgerald: Winter Dreams |
| October 7, 2001 | S16·E1 | Goldwyn: The Man and His Movies |
| April 23, 2001 | S15·E8 | Coming to Light: Edward S. Curtis and the North American Indians |
| April 16, 2001 | S15·E7 | Alfred Stieglitz: The Eloquent Eye |
| April 9, 2001 | S15·E6 | A Conversation with Gregory Peck |
| February 14, 2001 | S15·E5 | Bob Marley: Rebel Music |
| December 3, 2000 | S15·E4 | Lucille Ball: Finding Lucy |
| November 22, 2000 | S15·E3 | On Cukor |
| October 4, 2000 | S15·E2 | Mailer on Mailer |
| September 27, 2000 | S15·E1 | Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows |
| May 31, 2000 | S14·E7 | The Source: The Story of the Beats and the Beat Generation |
| April 12, 2000 | S14·E6 | Isaac Stern: Life's Virtuoso |
| February 2, 2000 | S14·E5 | Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light |
| January 5, 2000 | S14·E4 | Paul Taylor: Dancemaker |
| December 8, 1999 | S14·E3 | Ella Fitzgerald: Something to Live For |
| November 24, 1999 | S14·E2 | Norman Rockwell: Painting America |
| November 1, 1999 | S14·E1 | Hitchcock, Selznick and the End of Hollywood |
| August 18, 1999 | S13·E7 | Yours for a Song: The Women of Tin Pan Alley |
| June 30, 1999 | S13·E5 | The Lives of Lillian Hellman |
| June 30, 1999 | S13·E6 | Dashiell Hammett: Detective, Writer |
| April 7, 1999 | S13·E4 | Robert Rauschenberg: Inventive Genius |
| February 24, 1999 | S13·E3 | Paul Robeson: Here I Stand |
| January 6, 1999 | S13·E2 | The Line King: Al Hirschfeld |
| October 28, 1998 | S13·E1 | Leonard Bernstein: Reaching for the Note |
| June 17, 1998 | S12·E6 | Alexander Calder |
| May 1, 1998 | S12·E5 | Don Hewitt: 90 Minutes on 60 Minutes |
…and 83 earlier episodes not shown. Long-running show.