Contact:
susan.soto@asu.edu | 480-965-3506
EIGHT/KAET-TV
HONORS VETERANS IN NOVEMBER
WITH SPECIAL PROGRAMMING
Eight/KAET presents a special collection of programs to honor the courage and sacrifice of America’s wartime heroes. The specials will air as follows:
Sunday, Nov. 8
4 p.m. – Hallowed Grounds
Nearly 125,000 American military men and women are buried overseas in the lands they died to liberate. The bodies of almost 100,000 more have never been found. But not one of them has been forgotten.
This PBS documentary features footage of 22 overseas U.S. military cemeteries from World Wars I and II, as well as vignettes about the heroic men and women buried there and those who visit them.
10 p.m. – Lest We Forget: A Survivor’s Story
Lest We Forget tells the story of a WWII veteran who survived four years of brutal captivity in the Japanese slave labor camp responsible for building the infamous bridge over the River Kwai.
Wednesday, Nov. 11
7:30 p.m. – Arizona Stories: WWII – Part One
Arizona during WWII…it’s where Americans were imprisoned, German soldiers escaped and veterans returned to help the state grow.
Featured stories include:
- The Great Escape of ‘44
- WWII Internment Camps
- American Legion Post 41
8 p.m. – Secrets of the Dead “Airmen and the Headhunters”
This documentary investigates the extraordinary survival story of a crew of airmen shot down over the jungles of Japanese-occupied Borneo during World War II. The film recounts the rescue of a U.S. bomber crew by Dayak tribesmen, known for taking the heads of their enemies. The Dayaks fed and protected the airmen before leading them to the base of the maverick British special ops officer, Major Tom Harrisson, who was fighting a guerrilla war against the Japanese with a band of Australian commandoes. The program features an exclusive interview with the sole surviving member of the U.S. crew, as well as interviews with a number of the Dayak tribespeople and Japanese and Australian veterans.
9 p.m. – POV “The Way We Get By”
On call 24 hours a day for the past five years, a group of senior citizens has made history by greeting nearly 800,000 American troops at a tiny airport in Bangor, Maine. “The Way We Get By” is an intimate look at three of these greeters as they confront the universal losses that come with aging and rediscover their reason for living. Bill Knight, Jerry Mundy and Joan Gaudet find the strength to overcome their personal battles and transform their lives through service. This inspirational and surprising story shatters the stereotypes of today’s senior citizens as the greeters redefine the meaning of community.
10:30 p.m. – Arizona Stories: WWII – Part Two
Arizona during WWII was home to some of America’s bravest and a place where thousands trained, sacrificed and pitched in to win the war.
Featured stories include:
- The USS Arizona
- Hispanic Flyboys
- The Home Front
- Ira Hayes
About Eight/KAET-TV
Eight, Arizona PBS specializes in the education of children, in-depth news and public affairs, lifelong learning, and the celebration of arts and culture — utilizing the power of noncommercial television, the Internet, educational outreach services, and community-based initiatives. The PBS station began broadcasting from the campus of Arizona State University on January 30, 1961. Now more than 80 percent of Arizonans receive the signal through a network of translators, cable and satellite systems. With more than 1.3 million viewers each week, Eight consistently ranks among the most-viewed public television stations per capita in the country. Arizonans provide more than 60 percent of the station’s annual budget. For more information, visit www.azpbs.org.
Eight is a member-supported service of Arizona State University.