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Click here for more information on WWII in HD
(History Channel Website)
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A
LOU REDA PRODUCTION
WWII in HD
A 10-PART
SERIES ON HISTORY™ TO PREMIERE THE
WEEK OF NOVEMBER 15
Gary Sinise to narrate
Other top Hollywood names lend their voices
to bring this extraordinary project to
life
THIS IS THE WAR AS IT HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN
BEFORE
NEW YORK, September
7, 2009 – HISTORY™ announced today that the upcoming 10-hour
series,
WWII in HD, one of the network’s most ambitious projects to date,
is set to premiere the week of November
15-19, with two hours airing each night. WWII
in HD promises to be the most visually astonishing
World
War II drama/documentary ever shown on television – original,
color footage, most of which has never been
seen before, viewed through the eyes of 12
Americans who fought in or contributed to the
war effort. Emmy
Award winner Gary Sinise (CSI: NY) will narrate.
The ten-part series draws upon more than 3,000 hours of WWII footage culled from archives and private
collections around the world. Restored and enhanced through HD technology, the series brings to light
riveting footage from sources that range from the National Archives and the Army Heritage and Education
Center in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, to Homer Helter’s Military Mall in Naples, Florida.
The series follows a handful of people as their personal journeys intersect with one another throughout the
war. Their stories, culled from diaries, journals, and new interviews, will be delivered with emotional impact
by some of Hollywood’s top talents, helping to recreate the war’s events not as detached historical facts, but
rather as profound experiences on the level of a great Hollywood epic. The veterans themselves also appear,
recounting their experiences first hand.
In addition, individual war stories of these 12 Americans will be voiced by the following actors:
Jack
Werner: JUSTIN BARTHA
Rockie Blunt: ROB CORDDRY
Richard Tregaskis: TIM DEKAY
Archie Sweeney: MARK HEFTI
Jimmie Kanaya: JAMES KYSON LEE
Charles Scheffel: RON LIVINGSTON |
Shelby
F. Westbrook: LL COOL J
Robert Sherrod: ROB LOWE
Bert Stiles: JOSH LUCAS
Jack Yusen: JASON RITTER
June Wandrey: AMY SMART
Nolen Marbrey: STEVE ZAHN |
HISTORY has preserved and restored thousands of hours of color archival footage unearthed from archives
and private collections across the globe and never seen by most Americans. The archival footage has been
restored to pristine condition through advanced HD technology. Some of this “lost” footage has not been
seen since the 1940s.
The story of WWII in HD is told through the experiences of 12 main characters who served during the
conflict. Among those profiled, viewers will learn about the war reporter Robert Sherrod, as well as
narratives detailing the lives of an Army nurse named June Wandrey who served from the beginnings of the
war in North Africa to the liberation of the camps in Germany; Shelby Westbrook, a young African
American from Toledo, who became a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen; Jimmie Kanaya, the son of
Japanese immigrants, who served in the U.S. Army and was imprisoned in Europe; and Jack Werner, a
Jewish émigré who escaped from Austria before the war and wound up fighting in the Pacific Theater rather
than against the man and people he despised, Hitler and the Nazis.
Diaries, journals, interviews and Dolby “soundscape” also are incorporated to enhance these striking visuals.
WWII in HD thus transforms a war that many Americans know only through black-and-white newsreel
footage into something viscerally real, relatable and newly relevant. Viewers will experience, for the first
time on television, what this war truly looked and felt like.
As part of HISTORY’s multi-media partnership with the Library
of Congress and its collection of nearly
140 million items, HISTORY also will incorporate
original Library of Congress audio recordings
from
World War II into the series.
“WWII in HD underscores our ownership of history,” said
Nancy Dubuc, Executive Vice President and
General Manager of HISTORY. “We are committed to preserving our
heritage and the remarkable digital
technology of WWII in HD will go a long way
in ensuring that we never forget the sacrifice
made by the
Greatest Generation.”
Executive Producers for HISTORY are Michael
Stiller and David McKillop. WWII in HD is produced
for HISTORY by Lou Reda Productions. Executive
Producers for Lou Reda Productions are Lou
Reda and
Scott L. Reda, Producer Liz Reph and Director
Frederic Lumiere, with Executive Producer Matthew
Ginsburg.
LOU REDA PRODUCTIONS is internationally recognized
as one of the nation’s outstanding
documentary filmmakers, producing programs
of the highest quality for cable and network
television. To
learn more about Reda go to www.redafilms.com.
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 Lou Reda Productions is internationally recognized as one of
this nation’s outstanding documentary filmmakers, regularly producing
programs of the highest quality for cable and network television.
Best known for its documentaries exploring events which have shaped the
modern world, the company has also earned critical acclaim for its biographies,
including a series of programs spotlighting performing artists, especially
icons of the contemporary music industry.
 Under the guidance of Executive Producers Lou
and Scott Reda, Lou Reda Productions has produced more than four hundred cable
and network programs as well as numerous shorts and special presentations in
the thirty years since its founding. The exceptional quality of work is
evidenced by the numerous awards and recognitions which Lou Reda Productions
has been honored with over the years.
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