Watch Legends of the Silver Screen

Based on Neal Gabler's best seller "An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood", this 2-hour special shows how Jewish producers created the idealized image of America depicted in the movies.

She was America's princess - an adorable little girl who, in film after film, captured the hearts of millions with her charm, talents, and optimism. Kings and Presidents sought to meet her, and she single-handedly saved a film studio from bankruptcy. But by the tender age of 12 her career was virtually over, leaving Shirley Temple to create a new private life - always in the public eye. Shirley Temple was born in 1928, and by the time she was four, dance lessons had helped land her roles in short films called "Baby Burlesques". Strongly encouraged by a mother who had yearned for her own theatrical career, Shirley was taken from studio to studio, eventually landing at Twentieth Century Fox. After a string of bit parts, she was noticed by the public in STAND UP & CHEER, but wasn't taken seriously by the Fox studio until her mother secretly auditioned her for the lead role in LITTLE MISS MARKER at Paramount. LITTLE MISS MARKER became a box-office sensation in 1933, and Fox finally realized what they had. From 1934 to 1938, Shirley made more than a dozen films at Fox, and quickly became the number one draw at the box-office. Depression-era audiences found Shirley to be an irresistible comfort and inspiration, and in return made each of her films more popular than the one before. In films like BRIGHT EYES, CURLY TOP, DIMPLES, and THE LITTLEST REBEL, Shirley sang, danced and thoroughly charmed audiences. Along the way she became an international sensation - receiveing thousands of fan letters a week, and being visited by royalty, celebrities and dignitaries from around the world. But as Shirley became older, her films became less popular, and at the age of 12 she was released from her contract with Fox. After living in the public eye for almost her entire life, Shirley focused her energy on her private life, where after a difficult four-year marriage to actor John Agar, she settled happily in the San Francisco Bay Area with her second husband and three children. In 1967, Shirley turned her early experience as an international celebrity ambassador into that of a true political ambassador. After an unsuccessful bid for Congress, Shirley was appointed U.S. Representitive to the United Nations. Her life-long involvement in campaigns and organizations devoted to the public good was perfect timing for a career in national affairs.

Award-winning actor, director and producer Robert Redford is an international movie icon, who continues to juggle his high-profile celebrity with a carefully guarded private life. Spectacular film clips, trailers, behind the scenes footage and interviews with friends and colleagues illuminate the illustrious career and life of Robert Redford. Robert Redford was born in Santa Monica, California on August 18, 1937. A rebellious teen, Redford struggled to find his place in the world: disenchanted with college, he hitchhiked across Europe, and began to drink heavily. In 1957, his life turned around when he met his future wife, Lola Van Wagenen. Hoping to become a professional artist, he moved to New York City to study at the prestigious Pratt Institute. He became interested in set design, and was persuaded to study performing to learn more about theater. To his surprise, Redford passionately connected with acting. Redford's big break came in 1963 when the 26-year-old was cast in Neil Simon's Broadway comedy "Barefoot in the Park." Redford won raves for his performance and in 1967 made the leap to movie star in the hit film version. Two years later, he set his superstar status in stone when he co-starred with Paul Newman in the Oscar-winning smash "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." Throughout the 1970s, Redford starred in a string of critical and box office hits, including "The Candidate," "The Way We Were," "The Sting," for which he received his first Best Actor Oscar nomination, "Three Days of the Condor," and "All The President's Men." In 1980, Redford made a long-desired move behind the camera, to direct his first motion picture. His sensitive adaptation of Judith Guest's novel "Ordinary People" resulted in box office gold, as well as four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. While continuing to star in films like "Out of Africa" and "Sneakers," Redford went on to direct "The Milagro Bean Field War," "A River Runs Through It," "Quiz Show," "The Horse Whisperer" (in which he also starred) and this year's "The Legend of Bagger Vance." Redford has been a passionate champion of environmental and political causes. He has also played a key role in the history of independent film, with his creation of the Sundance Institute, which helped launch such films as "Sex, Lies and Videotape," "Shine," and "The Usual Suspects." At age 63, Robert Redford remains a unique force in and outside of Hollywood, as an uncompromising actor, filmmaker and activist.

Through his tireless pursuit of excellence, Paul Newman has come to embody the role of heroic leading man not only on film but in real life. Spectacular film clips, rare screen tests, never-before-seen home movies, archival photographs and revealing interviews illuminate the public and private life of the Oscar-winning actor. Paul Newman defined a new kind of American hero: tough, confident and charming. Often he played outsiders; roles that stood in sharp contrast to his striking good looks. Off-screen, he was the consummate risk-taker; an entrepreneur, racecar driver, political activist and one of America's leading philanthropists. His face, on everything from movie posters to bottles of salad dressing, has come to represent not only quality but also integrity.

Katharine Hepburn's life and career are legendary. She has been a star of the first rank for sixty-four years, and has won four Academy Awards. Her life had its roots in an extraordinary family - a family shrouded in tragedy and mystery. Her tumultuous relationships with men such as Howard Hughes, John Ford, and, of course, Spencer Tracy fascinated the public - and she has served as a role model for generations of American women. BIOGRAPHY's profile of Katharine Hepburn takes a detailed, first-hand look at the life of this extraordinary woman. Exclusive interviews with several Hepburn intimates highlight the program. Screenwriter and director Garson Kanin, a life-long friend of both Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, offers insight into the Hepburn mystique and the twenty-six year relationship between Hepburn and Tracy. Hepburn's brother Dr. Robert Hepburn, contributes his childhood memories of the outspoken, troubled Hepburn family, and offers rare glimpses into his sister's private life. Anthony Harvey, director of four Hepburn films including THE LION IN WINTER and THE GLASS MENAGERIE recalls working with Hepburn - and remembers favorite moments both on and off screen. Also appearing are Kate's Broadway co-star Tony Award-winner Dorothy Loudon, and noted Hepburn biographer Anne Edwards. Rare interview footage with Ms. Hepburn herself rounds out the profile. The show includes clips from some of Hepburn's best work: A BILL OF DIVORCEMENT, LITTLE WOMEN, ADAM'S RIB, GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER, THE LION IN WINTER and ON GOLDEN POND. Behind-the-scenes action of recent Hepburn movies is also included, as well as rare footage of the teenage Katharine Hepburn - and her first screen test for director John Ford.

Go ahead. Make my day." Clint Eastwood made the line famous in "Sudden Impact" (1983), a film he starred in, directed and produced. In his remarkable career, Eastwood has achieved a level of prestige that few in Hollywood can match. Highlights from films such as "Unforgiven" (1992), "Dirty Harry" (1971) and "Mystic River" (2003), as well as home movies, behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with Eastwood, his family and contemporaries, such as Quincy Jones, Tim Robbins, Don Rickles, and Laurence Fishburne, chronicle the life of actor, director, producer, musician, innkeeper, clothing manufacturer, golfer, and former mayor of Carmel, CA, Clint Eastwood. Born on May 31, 1930, Clinton Eastwood Jr. was quickly uprooted from his birthplace of San Francisco as his father, Clinton Sr. desperately sought work during the Great Depression. In 1940, the Eastwoods settled in Piedmont, California, where Clint worked countless part-time jobs to help support his family. A handsome 6'4" teenager, he developed a passion for cars and jazz. In 1951, 20-year-old Eastwood was drafted into the Korean War and sent to basic training in Fort Ord, California. After befriending an actor at the Army base, Eastwood made the decision to explore the unique profession. In 1954, with a new wife in tow, Eastwood tested and signed a contract with Universal, who saw promise in the actor's rugged good looks. After a lackluster beginning, however, Eastwood made the move to CBS in 1959, where he landed the second lead role in the successful western, "Rawhide." During hiatus and after the cancellation of "Rawhide," Eastwood traveled to Italy to star in director Sergio Leone's "spaghetti westerns," among them the heralded "Fistful of Dollars" (1964) and "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly" (1966). After returning to the States, forming his own production company and fathering two children with his wife Maggie, Eastwood secured a role in "Coogan's Bluff" (1968), directed by Don Siegel, who became a lifelong mentor. Eager to take on more responsibility in filmmaking, Clint Eastwood made his directing debut with the 1971 film "Play Misty for Me." Future directorial successes would include the commercial blockbusters "Dirty Harry" and "Sudden Impact." Though inspired by his professional achievements, Eastwood was unfulfilled by his marriage. His divorce to Maggie was finalized in 1984. Two years later, eager for another challenge and frustrated by the town's bureaucracy, Clint Eastwood became the heralded mayor of Carmel, CA. He entered office as the long-time boyfriend of actress Sondra Locke, but a bitter two-year palimony suit ensued when Eastwood left her for actress Frances Fisher, with whom he fathered a child. After a string of box-office disappointments, Eastwood emerged victorious with the 1992 hit, "Unforgiven." The film grossed more than $100 million in the U.S. and earned four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Clint Eastwood. The 63-year-old followed up his success with a critically acclaimed performance in 1993's "In the Line of Fire." In 1995, Clint Eastwood married for the second time. Dina Ruiz, a TV reporter from Salinas, CA, captured Eastwood's heart and graciously welcomed his extended family, which also includes a daughter by Fisher, into their life. The happy couple welcomed their own child, Morgan in 1997. In October of 2003, Eastwood will release his 24th directing effort, "Mystic River," starring Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon and Laurence Fishburne. Incorporating his lifelong love of jazz, Eastwood also co-wrote the music for the film, demonstrating that the ambitious entrepreneur shows little signs of slowing his pace.

In this very special edition, we will explore the life, music and talent of the Fleischer studios' very own "Boop Oop a Doop" girl, Betty Boop. Audiences may not remember her humble beginnings cast as an unnamed cabaret singer in the 1930 film, DIZZY DISHES. Of course the young starlet was almost unrecognizable because she had the face of a dog and the body of a woman! She made the most of every frame of film she appeared on and so began a career from dog-starlet to being known as "The Queen of Cartoons". After that first appearance, it didn't take long for theater audiences and even Max Fleischer, the artist and genius behind the New York based animation studio, to see Betty's box office potential. By 1932, in the film ANY RAGS, the darling Betty we know and love today had been re-invented. The long dog ears were replaced by the now famous hoop earrings, her nose and mouth perfectly suited for the perfectly proportioned body that is so Betty. We'll sing along with Betty, the hot siren of animation and co-star, Cab Calloway, the red hot jazz man, performing their now famous rendition from the movie of the same name, MINNIE AND THE MOOCHER. In fact, Calloway worked and sang in two more Betty Boop films, OLD MAN AND THE MOUNTAIN and the fairy tale classic, SNOW WHITE. Because of Betty's sometimes naughty, sometimes teasing but always pleasing style, her films began to be censored by the movie industry's moral and decency watchdog, the Hays office. Richard Fleischer, son of Max Fleischer and an Academy Award-winning film director explains what effect the censoring of Betty Boop had on her popularity, style and performances. He also gives us some touching and revealing moments as he discusses his father's inventions and vision that revolutionized the animation industry. Myron Waldman, one of the early animators of Betty Boop cartoons, gives us a humorous look at the rambunctious and wild style of the early days at the Fleischer Studios. This youthful and spontaneous artistry became known as the "New York Style of animation". Mark Langer, Professor at Carlton University in Ottowa, Canada and a Fleischer film historian gives us new insights into the life and charm of Betty Boop and how this 1930s' icon is even more popular today. Of course Betty's star was shining brightly when her popularity was used to introduce a new animated film star, Popeye the Sailor. Max Fleischer had tremendous faith in Betty and also had her star in 1934 in POOR CINDERELLA, utilizing his new system of colorization and animation known as 3D Cinecolor. Although Betty was a redhead for this production no one could mistake that face, that body or that voice! Most of all this special presentation of BETTY BOOP: QUEEN OF CARTOONS will celebrate Betty's re-emergence as the cultural pop icon, who still teaches the world to "Boop Oop A Doop".

Humphrey Bogart is one of Hollywood's greatest enigmas. Physically, he wasn't a typical movie star, but he became one of the screen's biggest. He was a father of two children, and the father of the notorious Rat Pack. He was a consummate professional, while his private life was often laced with alcohol and troubled marriages. He loved to battle authority, yet was a dedicated patriot. He went to Washington to denounce the infamous blacklist, and later recanted. The one thing that can't be questioned is his stardom, and that only seems to increase as time goes by.