Ken Burns on the American Revolution: Simulcast Screening courtesy of The New York Historical

In celebration of America's 250th anniversary, the Great Neck Library will be livestreaming a discussion hosted by The New York Historical, featuring Ken Burns and moderated by David M. Rubenstein as they discuss the film, The American Revolution, co-directed with Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt.

The film examines how America’s founding turned the world upside-down. Thirteen British colonies on the Atlantic Coast rose in rebellion, won their independence, and established a new form of government that radically reshaped the continent and inspired centuries of democratic movements around the globe. An expansive look at the virtues and contradictions of the war and the birth of the United States of America, the film follows dozens of figures from a wide variety of backgrounds: the rank-and-file Continental soldiers and American militiamen (some of them teenagers), Patriot political and military leaders, British Army officers, American Loyalists, Native soldiers and civilians, enslaved and free African Americans, German soldiers in the British service, French and Spanish allies, and various civilians living in North America, Loyalist as well as Patriot, including many made refugees by the war.

The American Revolution was a war for independence, a civil war, and a world war. It impacted millions – from Canada to the Caribbean and beyond. Few escaped its violence. At one time or another, the British Army occupied all the major population centers in the United States – including New York City for more than seven years.

Ken Burns is an award-winning filmmaker and producer, whose documentary series include Baseball, The Civil War, and his most recent, The American Revolution.

David M. Rubenstein (moderator), co-founder and co-chairman of the Carlyle Group, is the host of History with David Rubenstein on PBS, and the author of The Highest Calling: Conversations on the American Presidency, among other books.

The screening will take place in person at the Main Library's Community Room. No registration required, first come first seated. For more information, please call Great Neck Library at (516) 466-8055 or email adultprogramming@greatnecklibrary.org.