The Crash of 1929

Written by: Ronald Blumer

Narrated by: Philip Bosco

The "American Experience" series is essential public television viewing. This episode, "The Crash of 1929" documents the time just before and just after the stock market crash of 1929, which devastated the economy and marked the beginning of the Great Depression.

This documentary is not narrative heavy. Rather, some prior knowledge of the historical significance of the event is helpful, because it does not drag on and on about the details of the events. Nor does it have long lists of historians explaining each and every facet of the crash.

What this documentary does, which I did not anticipate, is to tell the story from the perspective of those most affected by the stock market crash. That is, to say, those who were working on the stock market. Most of the interviews are with the children of bankers and investors whose lives took a dramatic turn on that fateful day. Typically, these are not the most sympathetic figures in history (given that it was their actions which precipitated the crash), but their voices are important in documenting the "American Experience." They were the closest to the epicenter of the economic quake that shook our nation.

So, from a philosophical perspective, it's a great documentary. From a viewing perspective, it's not a thriller. It's a pretty straight-forward interview-style documentary.

I enjoyed it, but I enjoy "American Experience" anyway. If you're of a like mind, I'd recommend it to you.