You Are There: Abraham Lincoln's Greatest Moments

The vintage CBS television series You Are There (1953-1957) offered reenactments of major historical events, presented as though they were news stories being covered by the network's correspondents, with Walter Cronkite serving as anchorman. Woodhaven Entertainment is releasing 12 double-episode titles, available individually, or as two six-volume collections priced at $44.99 each. Abraham Lincoln's Greatest Moments features two episodes centering on the Civil War era, built around Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863 and his Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863; in the former the president is played by Jeff Morrow, in the latter by Paul Tripp. Of course, these shows are from the days of live television, and the limitations of mid-20th century technology are apparent, but while the scripts sometimes seem rather simplistic by today's standards, they are based on good sources--the first program here was drawn from the work of Carl Sandburg, a solid popular historian--and they hearken back to a time when network television actually strove to educate viewers on occasion. It's also amusing to encounter such actors as Denver Pyle (here a Union officer and later Uncle Jesse on The Dukes of Hazzard) and Ray Walston (here General William Tecumseh Sherman and later My Favorite Martian) in smaller roles. Other titles in the series include: Ancient Greece, America Grows Up, The Outlaws, and World War II Begins. Recommended, and not merely for reasons of nostalgia. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)