Since 1986, “American Masters” has set the standard for documentary film profiles. This December, the award-winning biography series is premiering two new episodes.
“The Adventures of Saul Bellow”
7:00 p.m., December 12
Explore the Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winner’s impact on American literature in the first-ever major documentary on the writer. “American Masters: The Adventures of Saul Bellow” illuminates how Bellow transformed modern literature and navigated through the issues of his time, including race, gender and the Jewish immigrant experience, through rare archival footage and interviews with Philip Roth, Salman Rushdie and many others. The film traces Bellow’s rise to eminence and examines his many identities: reluctant public intellectual, “serial husband,” father, Chicagoan and Jewish American. It also sheds light on his willingness to confront social issues, his criticisms of American society and materialism and his provocative political view.
“Groucho & Cavett”
7:00 p.m., December 27
“American Masters: Groucho & Cavett” explores the enduring friendship between Emmy Award-winning television personality Dick Cavett and iconic comedian Groucho Marx. Cavett, a writer for Jack Parr on “The Tonight Show,” met Marx at the funeral of playwright George S. Kaufman in 1961. When Cavett made the transition from writer to comedian in 1965, he was encouraged and mentored by Marx. In 1968, Cavett became the host of his own talk show and Marx became a frequent guest capturing what Cavett calls, “the last of Groucho’s greatness.” “American Masters: Groucho & Cavett” chronicles the pair’s relationship through new interviews with Cavett, footage from Marx’s visits to “The Dick Cavett Show” and other rare recordings.
