History

In this spoof of great moments in history from the dawn of humanity through the French Revolution, director Mel Brooks delivers a twisted history lesson through his signature satirical, madcap… In this spoof of great moments in history from the dawn of humanity through the French Revolution, director Mel Brooks delivers a twisted history lesson through his signature satirical, madcap humor. Funny, vulgar, and narrated by the great Orson Welles, HISTORY OF THE WORLD - PART I tells the progress of humankind as cave dweller, tap-dancing slave, and biblical hero. The most famous bit in the film features Moses coming down from Mount Sinai. Other highlights include a hilarious “Hitler on Ice” sequence and other outrageous comic situations, unbelievably silly jokes, and inspired casting (Sid Caesar, Gregory Hines, and Madeline Kahn included), with the film itself mimicking several historical Hollywood epics, most notably THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD and THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, as well as a brilliant parody of 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY.

This History Channel series takes a fascinating look at the rise and decline of one of the most powerful fleets the world has ever known The Royal Navy.

To coincide with the US elections of 2008 comes this refreshing antidote to the whir of sensationalist spin and scandal, measuring up to the seriousness of the moment without diluting the excitement of campaign politics. After 9/11, after Katrina, Enron and Baghdad, the robustness of American optimism is struggling to reassert itself against the sobering reality of military frustration and domestic anxieties. This is an America grappling with an un-American sense of its own limits.

For most Americans, the history of the United States is built on a set of long-accepted beliefs about events, each of which resonates in the nation's collective memory. But what if those beliefs—however familiar—don't really tell the whole story? Our knowledge of history—or what we believe to be history—is the lens through which we view and interpret the world. And when that lens is distorted with misleading information, it has powerful effects on how we perceive the present and how we make decisions in the future, from choosing whom to vote for to interpreting the latest developments in today's news and opinion pieces.