Vietnam: A Television History - Season 1

Episodes

Roots of a War (1945-1953)

Season 1Episode 160 min

Roots of a War (1945-1953)

The end of World War II opened the way for the return of French rule to Indochina. Despite the ties he had forged within the American intelligence community, and his professed respect for democratic ideals, Ho Chi Minh was unable to convince Washington to recognize the legitimacy of his independence movement against the French. French generals and their American advisors expected Ho's rag-tag Viet Minh guerrillas to be defeated easily. But after eight years of fighting and $2.5 billion in U.S. aid, the French lost a crucial battle at Dienbienphu -- and with it, their Asian empire.

America's Mandarin (1954-1963)

Season 1Episode 260 min

America's Mandarin (1954-1963)

The eight-year battle between the French and Vietminh is examined.

LBJ Goes to War (1964-1965)

Season 1Episode 360 min

LBJ Goes to War (1964-1965)

With a goal of stopping the spread of communism in Southeast Asia, America replaced France in South Vietnam -- supporting autocratic President Ngo Dinh Diem until his own generals turned against him in a coup that brought political chaos to Saigon.

America Takes Charge (1965-1967)

Season 1Episode 460 min

America Takes Charge (1965-1967)

With Ho Chi Minh determined to reunite Vietnam, President Lyndon Baines Johnson determined to prevent it, and South Vietnam on the verge of collapse, the stage was set for massive escalation of the undeclared Vietnam War.

America's Enemy (1954-1967)

Season 1Episode 560 min

America's Enemy (1954-1967)

In two years, the Johnson administration's troop build-up dispatched 1.5 million Americans to Vietnam to fight a war they found baffling, tedious, exciting, deadly and unforgettable.

Season 1Episode 660 min

Tet 1968

The Vietnam War as seen from different perspectives by Vietcong guerrillas and sympathizers, by North Vietnamese leaders and rank and file, and by Americans held prisoner in Hanoi.

Vietnamizing the War (1969-1973)

Season 1Episode 760 min

Vietnamizing the War (1969-1973)

The massive enemy offensive at the lunar New Year decimated the Vietcong and failed to topple the Saigon government -- but led to the beginning of America's military withdrawal from Vietnam.

Cambodia and Laos

Season 1Episode 860 min

Cambodia and Laos

President Richard Nixon's program of troop pull-outs, stepped-up bombing and huge arms shipments to Saigon changed the war and left GIs wondering which of them would be the last to die in Vietnam.

Peace is at Hand (1968-1973)

Season 1Episode 960 min

Peace is at Hand (1968-1973)

Despite technical neutrality, both of Vietnam's smaller neighbors were drawn into the war, suffered massive bombings, and, in the case of Cambodia, endured a post-war holocaust of nightmarish proportions.

Season 1Episode 1060 min

Homefront USA

While American and Vietnamese soldiers continued to clash in battle, diplomats in Paris argued about making peace. After more than four years, they reached an accord that proved to be a preface to further bloodshed.

The End of the Tunnel (1973-1975)

Season 1Episode 1160 min

The End of the Tunnel (1973-1975)

Through troubled years of controversy and violence, U.S .casualties mounted, victory remained elusive, and American opinion moved from general approval to general dissatisfaction with the Vietnam War.

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