Top Rated Documentary TV Shows - Page 497

One Punk Under God

2006

One Punk Under God

2006
9
One Punk Under God is a 2006 original observational documentary that airs on the Sundance Channel, directed and produced by Jeremy Simmons. It focused on the life of Jay Bakker, only son of Jim Bakker and Tammy Faye Messner, formerly evangelical ministers and hosts of The PTL Club. The documentary is a six-part series of half-hour episodes.
Heritage Minutes

1991

Heritage Minutes

1991
5
Heritage Minutes, also known officially as Historica Minutes: History by the Minute, are a series of sixty-second short films, each illustrating an important moment in Canadian history. They appear frequently on Canadian television and in cinemas before movies and are now also sold on DVD. The Minutes were first introduced on March 31, 1991 as part of a one-off heavily-promoted history quiz show hosted by Rex Murphy. The thirteen original short films were broken up and run between shows on CBC Television and CTV Network. The continued broadcast of the Minutes and the production of new ones was pioneered by Charles Bronfman's CRB Foundation, Canada Post Power Broadcasting, and the National Film Board. They were devised, developed and largely narrated by noted Canadian broadcaster Patrick Watson, while the producer of the series was Robert Guy Scully. In 2009 Historica merged with The Dominion Institute to become The Historica-Dominion Institute. While the foundations have not paid networks to air Minutes, they hav
Prototype This!

2008

Prototype This!

2008
5
Prototype This! was a TV series that claimed to "look into the viability of gadgets and technology seen in science-fiction movies". The series premiered on October 15, 2008, on The Discovery Channel. It was filmed on Treasure Island in Building 180 and occasionally at Standard Metal Products in San Francisco. The show follows a team of inventors: ⁕Dr. Mike North – Material Science, University of California, Santa Barbara ⁕Joe Grand – Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, Boston University ⁕Terry Sandin – Special Effects Guru, Hollywood ⁕Dr. Andrew 'Zoz' Brooks – 3 degrees from the University of Adelaide, namely, Bachelor of Science, First Class Honours in Computer Science and a Graduate Diploma in Education plus a Masters from the Australian National University's robotics laboratory and a PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Cool Stuff: How It Works

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Cool Stuff: How It Works

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Cool Stuff: How It Works is a multi-part documentary television mini-series that premiered in 2007 on the Discovery Channel. The program is based on an existing book about how "Modern Marvels" actually work. The show is hosted by Steve Truitt. It is produced by Sydney-based Beyond Television Productions, the creator of the successful Discovery Channel series MythBusters and Prototype This!.
Juvies

2007

Juvies

2007
10
Juvies is an MTV television show following minors in the Lake County, Indiana Juvenile Justice Complex. The series' first and only season debuted on MTV in February 2007, and has re-aired regularly since. On July 30, 2008 the NWI Times reported that production was underway for another documentary series also to be filmed at the Lake County Juvenile Justice Complex in Crown Point, Indiana. The MSNBC version, re-branded as "Lockup - Lake County Juvenile Justice," takes a deeper look at the inner workings of the LCJC detention and court systems, and it ventures into other correctional facilities in Indiana, and premiered on MSNBC on July 4, 2009 at 10:00 E.T.
An Island Parish

2007

An Island Parish

2007
6
A documentary which covers the lives of residents in the island parishes of England.
Anatomy of a Scene

2001

Anatomy of a Scene

2001
6
Anatomy of a Scene is a television series produced by and aired regularly on Sundance Channel since 2001. As a tagline for the series notes, each 30-minute episode "dissects the art of filmmaking" of a scene from a specific film, often a film previously showcased at a Sundance Film Festival. An episode examines the scene from multiple perspectives, such as production design, costume design, cinematography, storyboards, writing, music, acting, and directing. Interviews with the cast and crew are interspersed with snippets from the film. Episodes of the show are often included on the DVD release of the films they study.
You Asked for It

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You Asked for It

0000
6
You Asked for It was a popular human interest show created and hosted by Art Baker. Initially titled The Art Baker Show, the program originally aired on American television between 1950 and 1959. Later versions of the series were seen in 1972, 1981, and 2000. On the show, viewers were asked to send in postcards describing something that they wanted to see on television, such as the reenactment of William Tell shooting an apple off his son's head. The show was originally broadcast live, so some of the riskier propositions took on added elements of danger and suspense. A segment where animal trainer and stuntman, Reed Parham wrestled a huge, deadly anaconda, for example, nearly became disastrous until assistants interceded with guns drawn, visibly unnerving host Art Baker.
Dominick Dunne's Power, Privilege, and Justice

2002

Dominick Dunne's Power, Privilege, and Justice

2002
7
Dominick Dunne's Power, Privilege, and Justice is an American crime TV series that examined real-life cases of crime, passion, and greed involving privileged or famous people. The episodes were shown on truTV and on Star TV in Canada as well as Zone Reality in Europe and Bio. in Australia. The host of the show was Dominick Dunne. The nine-season series started in 2002 and ended in late 2009 with Dunne's death.
The Fabulous Life of...

2003

The Fabulous Life of...

2003
6
The Fabulous Life Of... is a VH1 television series detailing the places, things, and services various celebrities enjoy. It first aired in 2003, with a special about Britney Spears. The show is tightly based on the television show Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. The show is one of VH1's most successful, and is constantly releasing new episodes. Though most episodes are about specific people, some are about categories of people. The show is narrated by Christopher Flockton. The show has appearances by celebrities, columnists and experts, which continue the show's narration. In 2005, The Fabulous Life of the Women of Desperate Housewives was broadcast due to the huge success of ABC's Desperate Housewives.
Beef: The Series

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Beef: The Series

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8
Beef: is a television series that airs on Black Entertainment Television. The show premiered on October 4, 2006, and aired six episodes for the first season, with the last original episode airing on November 8, 2006. Due to the lack of numbers in ratings, BET did not continue the Beef Series. Based on the popular documentary series that premiered on DVD starting in 2003, this current series explores arguments and feuds in the hip-hop genre and beyond. Those also include personal conflicts between those in both the sports and entertainment worlds, as well politics. DeRay Davis is featured in wraparound segments, speaking with ordinary people about who would they "beef" with when it comes to personal conflict. The show is executive produced by Quincy D. Jones III.
Meeting of Minds

1977

Meeting of Minds

1977
10
The show featured guests who played significant roles in world history. Guests would interact with each other and host Steve Allen, discussing philosophy, religion, history, science, and many other topics. As nearly as was possible, the actual words of the historical figures were used. The show was fully scripted, yet the scripts were carefully crafted to give the appearance of spontaneous discussion among historic figures. Typically, each episode would be split into two parts, broadcast separately, with most or all of the guests introduced over the course of the first part, and the discussions continuing into the second part. A total of 24 episodes were produced.
Bill Moyers Journal

0000

Bill Moyers Journal

0000
9
Bill Moyers Journal is an American television current affairs program that covered an array of current affairs and human issues, including but not limited to economics, history, literature, religion, philosophy, science, and most frequently politics. Originally, Bill Moyers executive produced, wrote and hosted the Journal. WNET in New York produced it and PBS aired it from 1972 to 1976. In 1979, following a nearly three-year hiatus, many presidential members of PBS announced that Bill Moyers Journal would return for a second series. The second series covered a broader range of issues in depth. This included election coverage and documentary footage from several U.S. states, among them Florida, Texas, Illinois, D.C. and Nevada. In addition, among its pop-culture coverage, the Journal reported on the 25th anniversary of the premiere of the long-running NBC talk program The Tonight Show. Like the first installment, the second one was produced by WNET in New York City, and was aired on PBS. However, the second install
Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels

2005

Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels

2005
10
Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels is a television show based on cook Rachael Ray and her travels around the world. However, in this show she is not restricted by a budget and showcases food from more upscale eateries. She tries different types of food from each place she visits, and gives a "Hot List of Values", which includes some of her favorite places visited from $40 a Day. The show airs on the Food Network and is her fourth Food Network program. It first aired on August 26, 2005. She provides voiceovers for most of the show and is shown at only one or two places. Her husband, John Cusimano, usually accompanies her at the one or two restaurants she visits per episode. Forty-one episodes were produced during the series' first two years; Ray stated on a September 7, 2007 appearance on Late Show with David Letterman that she had just completed work on twenty additional episodes, which had begun airing the previous week.
Haunting Evidence

2006

Haunting Evidence

2006
10
Follow the travels of a psychic profiler, a medium, and a paranormal investigator. As the trio travels the United States investigating "cold case" homicide and missing persons cases.
Beyond the Glory

2001

Beyond the Glory

2001
6
Beyond the Glory was a documentary series that profiles some of the most legendary and controversial athletes in recent history. Executive produced by Steve Michaels and Frank Sinton and narrated by Jay Mohr, the show used archived video, on-camera interviews and player histories to take viewers beyond the playing field and into the athletes' lives and minds. The series was produced by Asylum Entertainment.
Cathedral

2005

Cathedral

2005
Cathedral is an educational television miniseries of five episodes first broadcast in 2005 by the BBC. It describes the construction of five cathedrals in the United Kingdom: ⁕Canterbury Cathedral ⁕Lincoln Cathedral ⁕Winchester Cathedral ⁕St. Giles' Cathedral ⁕York Minster The show features historical re-enactments using actors and CGI.
10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America

2006

10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America

2006
2
10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America is a ten-hour, ten-part television miniseries that aired on the History Channel from April 9 through April 14, 2006. The material was later adapted and published as a book by the same title.
Heavy: The Story of Metal

2006

Heavy: The Story of Metal

2006
7
Heavy: The Story of Metal is a four-part documentary special that aired on VH1 in 2006. The series focuses on the origins, subgenres, and the bands of heavy metal music, paying close attention to influential bands like Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden, who helped to define heavy metal in its early years. Other bands on the program include, Alice Cooper, Kiss, AC/DC, Van Halen, Def Leppard, Quiet Riot, Mötley Crüe, Megadeth, Metallica, Anthrax, Guns N' Roses, and Marilyn Manson. However, the documentary notably passes over lower profile metal sub-genres such as death metal, black metal, doom metal, progressive metal, power metal and many others considered core elements of today's metal pantheon, focusing mostly on hard rock & traditional heavy metal. In Canada, the documentary aired on MuchMoreMusic and on C4 in New Zealand. It is not available on DVD or video.
California's Gold

1991

California's Gold

1991
8
California's Gold is a public television human interest program that explores the natural, cultural, and historical features of California. The series ran for 24 seasons beginning in 1991, and was produced and hosted by Huell Howser in collaboration with KCET, Los Angeles. The series ceased production when Howser retired in November 2012, shortly before his death on January 7, 2013, although episodes continue to be shown on KCET and are featured on the page at the station's website about his shows. The show's theme song varies between several renditions of "California, Here I Come", but was most often played on the series by local musicians Eddie Enderle and Richard Chon.