P.T. Barnum: The Greatest Showman on Earth
Episode 15 · 1998-06-29
- Documentary
Episode overview
Explore the dazzling rise of the man who reshaped American entertainment through imagination, audacity, and relentless promotion. The episode traces Barnum’s early years as a hustling entrepreneur, his knack for spectacle, and his creation of curiosities like the Feejee Mermaid and General Tom Thumb that drew massive crowds. Biography explores how Barnum blended showmanship with shrewd business instincts, ultimately building the world‑famous circus that bore his name. Interviews with historians and rare archival material reveal both his genius for publicity and the controversies surrounding his methods. The program paints a vivid portrait of a visionary who understood the public’s appetite for wonder and turned it into a global phenomenon, securing his legacy as the father of modern popular entertainment.
60 minutes
Season 7 episodes
1. David Berkowitz: Son of Sam1998-03-23
2. Mao Tse Tung: China's Peasant Emperor1998-03-30
3. Amelia Earhart: Queen of the Air1998-04-06
4. Angela Lansbury: A Balancing Act1998-04-13
5. Anne Frank: The Life of a Young Girl1998-04-20
6. Beethoven: The Sound and the Fury1998-04-27
7. Colonel Sanders: America's Chicken King1998-05-04
8. Dwight D. Eisenhower: Commander-in-Chief1998-05-11
9. Ernest Hemingway: Wrestling With Life1998-05-18
10. Evel Knievel: Hell on Wheels1998-05-25
11. Howard Carter: Triumph and Treasure1998-06-01
12. Jackie Kennedy Onassis: In a Class of Her Own1998-06-08
13. Jim Jones: Journey into Madness1998-06-15
14. John Wayne: American Legend1998-06-22
15. P.T. Barnum: The Greatest Showman on Earth1998-06-29
16. Ray Kroc: Fast Food McMillionaire1998-07-06
17. Satan: Prince of Darkness1998-07-13
18. Vincent Van Gogh: A Stroke of Genius1998-07-20
19. Charles Lindbergh: Against the Wind1999-01-07
20. Fred Gwynne: More than a Munster1999-01-18
21. John Wayne Gacy: A Monster in Disguise1999-01-25
22. Nicolae Ceausescu: The Unrepentant Tyrant1999-02-01
23. The Tiffanys: Mark of Excellence1999-02-08
44. Dean Martin: Everybody Loves Somebody1995-09-04
63. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid1995-10-20
67. Nostradamus: Prophet of Doom1995-11-06
