Vegas PBS Presents The Story of the Jews with Simon Schama

Published on Fri, Mar 21, 2014 (12:03 p.m.)

Submitted by Vegas PBS

New five-part documentary series leads lineup of
Jewish history programming on Vegas PBS


(Las Vegas) - Vegas PBS proudly presents the television debut of The Story of the Jews with Simon Schama, an intriguing historical five-part documentary series that explores the imprint Jewish culture has made upon the world, and the suffering, resilience and rebirth of its people. The premiere episode will debut at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, March 25 on Vegas PBS, with an encore presentation at noon on Sunday, April 6.

Schama, Emmy-award winner and author of 15 books, travels all over the world from Russia and the Ukraine to Egypt, Israel and Spain. Through his discoveries, including a collection of 5th century BC manuscripts illuminating the life of a town of Jewish soldiers and their families in ancient Egypt; and correspondence between the leader of the Arab revolt during World War 1, Emir Feisal, and the leader of the Zionist movement, Chaim Weizmann, among other sources, the series will take us on a journey that highlights the contribution Jews have made to human culture, thus demonstrating how Jewish history is everyone’s history.

Along with the premiere of The Story of the Jews with Simon Schama, Vegas PBS will be highlighting select Jewish history programming throughout March and the month of April, which is National Holocaust Remembrance Month. The station will rebroadcast Jews in Nevada at 10 p.m. on Monday, March 24. The one-hour program explores and examines the impact of Jewish families here in Nevada. Jews in Nevada will show us how Jewish owners of casino and hotel properties helped shape Las Vegas as a tourist destination, along with profiles of Adolph Sutro, Jacob Davis, Hank Greenspun, the Fahri family and many more.

Israel: The Royal Tour, will premiere at 11 a.m. on Sunday, April 6. The latest in the Royal Tour series hosted by CBS News Travel Editor Peter Greenberg, the program is an unprecedented tour inside the country with a very special guide: the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu.

At 5 p.m. on April 6, Vegas PBS will rebroadcast Remembering the Holocaust: Las Vegas Survivors Tell Their Stories. Between 1945 and 1952 more than 80,000 Holocaust survivors immigrated to the United States. Nearly 350 survivors live in the Las Vegas area. Though they survived the Holocaust, most have not escaped the pain. A one hour documentary, survivors share their recollections of Las Vegans who wanted to share their stories.

Jewish history programming on Vegas PBS is sponsored by The Jewish Federation of Las Vegas. For more information on The Story of the Jews with Simon Schama and the programming line-up, please visit VegasPBS.org.

About Vegas PBS
Dedicated to enriching the lives of those who call Southern Nevada home, Vegas PBS Channel 10 is one of America’s most watched PBS stations on a per capita basis. Five additional channels are available over the air or on cable and satellite including Create, Vme, Worldview, Rewind and Jackpot!

Vegas PBS expands its television broadcast impact through supplemental materials on Vegas PBS.org, PBS.org, PBSKids.org, PBSParents.org, PBSTeachers.org and NextAvenue.org. Vegas PBS also offers extensive online distance education for workforce development and economic diversification through Global Online Advanced Learning (GOAL).

Vegas PBS provides K-12 educational resources to teachers and students in public, private, charter and home schools including TeacherLine professional development courses; One Place, a curriculum-correlated online media service; the Described and Captioned Media Center (DCMC) containing materials for deaf, hard of hearing, blind and vision impaired individuals and those who assist them; and Ready To Learn literacy and health community workshops based on curriculum materials in daytime children’s programs.

For more information on programming and services, please visit VegasPBS.org, like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/VegasPBS, or follow us on Twitter at Twitter.com/VegasPBS.

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