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Ken Burns (I)

Director | Producer | Cinematographer

Celebrated American documentarian who gradually amassed a considerable reputation and a devoted audience with a series of reassuringly traditional meditations on Americana. Burns' works are treasure troves of archival materials; he skillfully utilizes period music and footage, photographs, periodicals and ordinary people's correspondence... See full bio »

Born:

Kenneth Lauren Burns
in Brooklyn, New York, USA
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Chris Rock and Ken Burns Still of Ken Burns and Timothy Egan in The Dust Bowl Ken Burns Ken Burns at event of Mission: Impossible III Ken Burns, David McMahon and Sarah Burns Still of Ken Burns in The Dust Bowl
31 photos | 6 videos | 509 news articles »

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Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 22 wins & 20 nominations See more awards »

Known For


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Filmography

Hide HideDirector (24 titles)
2016 Vietnam (TV series documentary) (pre-production)
 
2013 Jack Johnson (TV mini-series) (pre-production)
 
2012 The Dust Bowl (TV mini-series)
– Reaping the Whirlwind (2012)
– The Great Plow Up (2012)
 
2012 The Central Park Five (documentary)
 
2011 Prohibition (TV mini-series documentary)
– A Nation of Hypocrites (2011)
– A Nation of Scofflaws (2011)
– A Nation of Drunkards (2011)
 
2009 The National Parks: America's Best Idea (TV mini-series documentary)
– The Morning of Creation: 1946-1980 (2009)
– Great Nature: 1933-1945 (2009)
– Going Home: 1920-1933 (2009)
– The Empire of Grandeur: 1915-1919 (2009)
– The Last Refuge: 1890-1915 (2009)
See all 6 episodes »
 
2007 The War (TV mini-series documentary)
– A World Without War: March 1945 - September 1945 (2007) (co-director)
– The Ghost Front: December 1944 - March 1945 (2007) (co-director)
– FUBAR: September 1944 - December 1944 (2007) (co-director)
– Pride of Our Nation: June 1944 - August 1944 (2007) (co-director)
– A Deadly Calling: November 1943 - June 1944 (2007) (co-director)
See all 7 episodes »
 
2004 Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson (documentary)
 
2003 Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip (TV documentary)
 
2001 Mark Twain (TV documentary)
 
2001 Jazz (TV mini-series documentary)
– A Masterpiece by Midnight: 1960 to the Present (2001)
– The Adventure: 1956-1960 (2001)
– Risk: 1945-1955 (2001)
– Dedicated to Chaos: 1940-1945 (2001)
– Swing: The Velocity of Celebration - 1937-1939 (2001)
See all 10 episodes »
 
1999 Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B. Anthony (TV mini-series documentary)
 
1998 Frank Lloyd Wright (documentary)
 
1997 Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery (TV special documentary)
 
1997 Thomas Jefferson (TV mini-series)
 
1994 Baseball (TV mini-series documentary)
– The Tenth Inning: Bottom of the Tenth (1994)
– The Tenth Inning: Top of the Tenth (1994)
– Home (1994)
– A Whole New Ball Game (1994)
– The Capital of Baseball (1994)
See all 11 episodes »
 
1991 Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio (documentary)
 
1990 The Civil War (TV mini-series documentary)
– The Better Angels of Our Nature (1865) (1990)
– War Is All Hell (1865) (1990)
– Most Hallowed Ground (1864) (1990)
– Valley of the Shadow of Death (1864) (1990)
– Simply Murder (1863) (1990)
See all 9 episodes »
 
1988 Thomas Hart Benton (TV movie)
 
1988 The Congress (TV documentary)
 
1985 Huey Long (documentary)
 
1985 The Statue of Liberty (documentary)
 
1984 The Shakers: Hands to Work, Hearts to God (documentary)
 
1981 Brooklyn Bridge (documentary)
 
Show ShowProducer (27 titles)
2016 Vietnam (TV series documentary) (producer) (pre-production)
 
2013 Jack Johnson (TV mini-series) (executive producer) (pre-production)
 
2012 The Dust Bowl (TV mini-series) (executive producer - 2 episodes, 2012) (producer - 2 episodes, 2012)
– Reaping the Whirlwind (2012) (executive producer, producer)
– The Great Plow Up (2012) (executive producer, producer)
 
Baseball (TV mini-series documentary) (executive producer - 10 episodes, 1994-2012) (producer - 3 episodes, 1994)
– AirHogs vs. Laredo Lemurs (2012) (executive producer)
– The Tenth Inning: Bottom of the Tenth (1994) (producer)
– The Tenth Inning: Top of the Tenth (1994) (producer)
– Home (1994) (executive producer)
– A Whole New Ball Game (1994) (executive producer)
See all 12 episodes »
 
2012 The Central Park Five (documentary) (executive producer, producer)
 
2011 Prohibition (TV mini-series documentary) (executive producer - 2 episodes, 2011) (producer - 1 episode, 2011)
– A Nation of Hypocrites (2011) (executive producer)
– A Nation of Scofflaws (2011) (executive producer)
– A Nation of Drunkards (2011) (producer)
 
2009 The National Parks: America's Best Idea (TV mini-series documentary) (executive producer - 6 episodes, 2009) (producer - 6 episodes, 2009)
– The Morning of Creation: 1946-1980 (2009) (executive producer, producer)
– Great Nature: 1933-1945 (2009) (executive producer, producer)
– Going Home: 1920-1933 (2009) (executive producer, producer)
– The Empire of Grandeur: 1915-1919 (2009) (executive producer, producer)
– The Last Refuge: 1890-1915 (2009) (executive producer, producer)
See all 6 episodes »
 
2008 Medal of Honor (TV documentary) (executive producer)
 
2007 The War (TV mini-series documentary) (executive producer - 7 episodes, 2007) (producer - 7 episodes, 2007)
– A World Without War: March 1945 - September 1945 (2007) (executive producer, producer)
– The Ghost Front: December 1944 - March 1945 (2007) (executive producer, producer)
– FUBAR: September 1944 - December 1944 (2007) (executive producer, producer)
– Pride of Our Nation: June 1944 - August 1944 (2007) (executive producer, producer)
– A Deadly Calling: November 1943 - June 1944 (2007) (executive producer, producer)
See all 7 episodes »
 
2004 Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson (documentary) (producer)
 
2003 Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip (TV documentary) (producer)
 
2001 Mark Twain (TV documentary) (producer)
 
2000 Biography (TV series documentary) (executive producer - 1 episode)
– Richard Widmark: Strength of Characters (2000) (executive producer)
 
1999 Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B. Anthony (TV mini-series documentary) (producer)
 
1998 Frank Lloyd Wright (documentary) (executive producer, producer)
 
1997 Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery (TV special documentary) (executive producer, producer)
 
1997 Thomas Jefferson (TV mini-series) (producer)
 
1996 The West (TV series documentary) (executive producer) (senior producer)
 
1991 Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio (documentary) (producer)
 
1990 The Civil War (TV mini-series documentary) (executive producer - 9 episodes)
– The Better Angels of Our Nature (1865) (1990) (executive producer)
– War Is All Hell (1865) (1990) (executive producer)
– Most Hallowed Ground (1864) (1990) (executive producer)
– Valley of the Shadow of Death (1864) (1990) (executive producer)
– Simply Murder (1863) (1990) (executive producer)
See all 9 episodes »
 
1990 The American Experience (TV series documentary) (co-producer - 1 episode)
– Lindbergh (1990) (co-producer)
 
1988 Thomas Hart Benton (TV movie) (producer)
 
1988 The Congress (TV documentary) (producer)
 
1985 Huey Long (documentary) (producer)
 
1985 The Statue of Liberty (documentary) (producer)
 
1984 The Shakers: Hands to Work, Hearts to God (documentary) (producer)
 
1981 Brooklyn Bridge (documentary) (producer)
 
Show ShowCinematographer (14 titles)
2009 The National Parks: America's Best Idea (TV mini-series documentary)
– The Morning of Creation: 1946-1980 (2009)
– Great Nature: 1933-1945 (2009)
– Going Home: 1920-1933 (2009)
– The Empire of Grandeur: 1915-1919 (2009)
– The Last Refuge: 1890-1915 (2009)
See all 6 episodes »
 
2003 Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip (TV documentary)
 
2001 Mark Twain (TV documentary)
 
1999 Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B. Anthony (TV mini-series documentary)
 
1998 Frank Lloyd Wright (documentary)
 
1997 Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery (TV special documentary)
 
1997 Thomas Jefferson (TV mini-series)
 
1994 Baseball (TV mini-series documentary)
– The Tenth Inning: Bottom of the Tenth (1994)
– The Tenth Inning: Top of the Tenth (1994)
– Home (1994)
– A Whole New Ball Game (1994)
– The Capital of Baseball (1994)
See all 11 episodes »
 
1990 The Civil War (TV mini-series documentary)
– The Better Angels of Our Nature (1865) (1990)
– War Is All Hell (1865) (1990)
– Most Hallowed Ground (1864) (1990)
– Valley of the Shadow of Death (1864) (1990)
– Simply Murder (1863) (1990)
See all 9 episodes »
 
1988 The Congress (TV documentary)
 
1985 Huey Long (documentary)
 
1985 The Statue of Liberty (documentary)
 
1984 The Shakers: Hands to Work, Hearts to God (documentary)
 
1981 Brooklyn Bridge (documentary)
 
Show ShowWriter (5 titles)
2012 The Central Park Five (documentary)
 
1997 Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery (TV special documentary) (book)
 
1994 Baseball (TV mini-series documentary)
– The Tenth Inning: Bottom of the Tenth (1994) (written by)
– The Tenth Inning: Top of the Tenth (1994) (written by)
– Home (1994) (written by)
– A Whole New Ball Game (1994) (written by)
– The Capital of Baseball (1994) (written by)
See all 11 episodes »
 
1991 Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio (documentary) (additional)
 
1990 The Civil War (TV mini-series documentary)
– The Better Angels of Our Nature (1865) (1990) (written by)
– War Is All Hell (1865) (1990) (written by)
– Most Hallowed Ground (1864) (1990) (written by)
– Valley of the Shadow of Death (1864) (1990) (written by)
– Simply Murder (1863) (1990) (written by)
See all 9 episodes »
 
Show ShowMusic Department (4 titles)
2004 Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson (documentary) (music producer)
 
1994 Baseball (TV mini-series documentary) (musical director - 9 episodes)
– Home (1994) (musical director)
– A Whole New Ball Game (1994) (musical director)
– The Capital of Baseball (1994) (musical director)
– The National Pastime (1994) (musical director)
– Shadow Ball (1994) (musical director)
See all 9 episodes »
 
1991 Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio (documentary) (musical director)
 
1990 The Civil War (TV mini-series documentary) (musical director - 9 episodes)
– The Better Angels of Our Nature (1865) (1990) (musical director)
– War Is All Hell (1865) (1990) (musical director)
– Most Hallowed Ground (1864) (1990) (musical director)
– Valley of the Shadow of Death (1864) (1990) (musical director)
– Simply Murder (1863) (1990) (musical director)
See all 9 episodes »
 
Show ShowMiscellaneous Crew (2 titles)
1993 The Making of 'Gettysburg' (video documentary) (commentary)
 
1990 The American Experience (TV series documentary) (senior creative consultant - 3 episodes)
– Nixon: Part III (1990) (senior creative consultant)
– Richard Nixon: Part II (1990) (senior creative consultant)
– Nixon: Part I (1990) (senior creative consultant)
 
Show ShowActor (3 titles)
2012 The Simpsons (TV series)
Ken Burns
– Moonshine River (2012) … Ken Burns (voice)
 
2012 Glue Man (short)
Ken Burns
 
1993 Gettysburg
Hancock's Aide
 
Show ShowCamera and Electrical Department (2 titles)
2009 The National Parks: America's Best Idea (TV mini-series documentary) (camera operator - 1 episode)
– The Scripture of Nature: 1851-1890 (2009) (camera operator)
 
1990 The American Experience (TV series documentary) (additional cinematographer - 1 episode)
– Lindbergh (1990) (additional cinematographer)
 
Show ShowSoundtrack (1 title)
2004 Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson (documentary) (arranger: "Levee Low Moan")
 
Show ShowThanks (5 titles)
2010 Mary and Bill (documentary) (special thanks)
 
2006 Spaceman: A Baseball Odyssey (TV documentary) (special thanks)
 
2003 The Making of 'The Devil's Den' (video documentary) (thanks)
 
2001 The Cat's Meow (special thanks)
 
1998 Eternal Memory: Voices from the Great Terror (documentary) (thanks)
 
Show ShowSelf (31 titles)
2013 Good Day L.A. (TV series)
Himself
– Episode dated 10 April 2013 (2013) … Himself
 
2007-2013 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (TV series)
Himself
– Ken Burns (2013) … Himself
– Ken Burns (2007) … Himself
 
2012 The Hour (TV series)
Himself
– Episode #9.63 (2012) … Himself
 
2007-2012 Late Show with David Letterman (TV series)
Himself / Himself - Guest
– Episode #20.32 (2012) … Himself
– Anne Heche/Ken Burns/The Specials (2010) … Himself
– Episode #16.190 (2009) … Himself
– Episode #15.12 (2007) … Himself - Guest
 
1994-2012 Charlie Rose (TV series)
Himself - Guest
– Episode dated 20 November 2012 (2012) … Himself - Guest
– Episode dated 30 September 2009 (2009) … Himself - Guest
– Episode dated 25 September 2002 (2002) … Himself - Guest
– Episode dated 14 January 2002 (2002) … Himself - Guest
– Episode dated 8 January 2001 (2001) … Himself - Guest
See all 8 episodes »
 
2012 Lessons from the Dust Bowl with Ken Burns (TV movie)
Himself - Guest
 
2012 CBS This Morning (TV series)
Himself - Guest
– Episode #1.221 (2012) … Himself - Guest
 
2005-2012 The Colbert Report (TV series)
Himself - Guest / Himself / Himself - Announcer
– Ken Burns (2012) … Himself - Announcer
– Episode dated 28 September 2011 (2011) … Himself - Guest
– Ken Burns (2010) … Himself - Guest
– Ken Burns (2009) … Himself - Guest
– Ken Burns (2005) … Himself
 
2012 Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself (documentary)
Himself
 
2011 Drinks and Conversation (TV movie)
Himself
 
2011 The Simpsons (TV series)
Himself
– The Ned-Liest Catch (2011) … Himself (voice)
 
2011 Doc Talk (TV series)
Himself
– Change Is Gonna Come (2011) … Himself
 
2010-2011 Prime 9 (TV series)
Himself
– Curve Balls (2011) … Himself
– Greatest Plays at the Plate (2010) … Himself
 
2009-2010 Tavis Smiley (TV series)
Himself
– Episode dated 24 September 2010 (2010) … Himself
– Episode #7.2 (2009) … Himself
– Episode dated 28 September 2009 (2009) … Himself
 
2010 A Hall for Heroes: The Inaugural Hall of Fame Induction of 1939 (TV documentary)
Himself
 
2009 Today (TV series)
Himself
– Episode dated 25 September 2009 (2009) … Himself
 
2003-2007 Late Night with Conan O'Brien (TV series)
Himself
– Episode dated 1 October 2007 (2007) … Himself
– Episode dated 24 September 2003 (2003) … Himself
 
2007 Real Time with Bill Maher (TV series)
Himself
– Episode #5.20 (2007) … Himself
 
2007 Budapest to Gettysburg (documentary)
 
2006 Wordplay (documentary)
Himself
 
2005 Last Call with Carson Daly (TV series)
Himself
– Episode dated 3 February 2005 (2005) … Himself
 
2005 The Tony Danza Show (TV series)
Himself
– Episode #1.72 (2005) … Himself
 
2003 100 Years of the World Series (video documentary)
Himself
 
2002-2003 ESPN SportsCentury (TV series documentary)
Himself
– New York Yankees: Part 1 (2003) … Himself
– Yogi Berra (2002) … Himself
– 1988 (2002) … Himself
 
2003 Tribeca Film Festival Presents (TV documentary)
Himself
 
2002 Independent View (TV series documentary)
Himself
 
2002 The Tim McCarver Show (TV series)
Himself - Guest
 
2001 Boston Red Sox: 100 Years of Baseball History (video documentary)
Himself - Interviewee
 
2000 Great Performances (TV series)
Himself
– Chuck Jones: Extremes and In-Betweens - A Life in Animation (2000) … Himself
 
1993 The Making of 'Gettysburg' (video documentary)
Himself - Filmmaker
 
1991 The 17th Annual People's Choice Awards (TV movie)
Himself - Accepting Award for Favourite Mini-Series
 

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Personal Details

Other Works:

Book (with D. C. Ward): "Jazz: A History of America's Music"

Publicity Listings:

4 Interviews  | 5 Articles  | See more »

Alternate Names:

Kenneth Lauren Burns
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Did You Know?

Personal Quote:

In so many films that I've done, short-sightedness is one of the major human themes. We live for the moment. No one's willing to do the necessary rolling up the sleeves until the catastrophe happens. See more »

Trivia:

Father, Robert Burns, was a cultural anthropologist See more »

Trademark:

Takes a single photograph or painting, and utilizes close ups, music, voice overs and sound effects to make it seem like a lengthy action sequence. See more »

Star Sign:

Leo