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Vietnam: The Ten Thousand Day War (1980)
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The real story behind the longest, most controversial war in modern history.
Narrated By Richard Basehart
This superb award-winning series of programs reexamines without blame or judgment the rise and fall of America's twenty-year commitment to the war in Vietnam.
Disc I:
America In Vietnam gives the overall perspective of the shifting attitudes of the United States toward Vietnam from 1945 when the battleground was known as French Indochina to 1975 when Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese.Dien Bien Phu examines the French surrender at this crucial battle, how it ended the French colonial period and triggered 20 years of direct American involvement in Vietnam.Days Of Decision traces the crucial decisions which led to war.Failure of South Vietnamese leaders to reform and the Tonkin Gulf incident convince President Johnson to press for bombing in the North.On the ground, Johnson agrees to the generals' request to commit thousands of additional combat troops.Uneasy Allies looks at the American switch from fighting a defensive war with their South Vietnamese allies to taking control of the fighting.The U.S. begins employing a greater number of ground troops to meet the increasing numbers of Viet Cong guerrillas and regular North Vietnamese troops infiltrating the South.Resentment grows among our South Vietnamese allies.The Guerrilla Society explores the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the 1,500-mile symbol and lifeline for the North Vietnamese.Undeterred by American ground troops and massive bombing, guerrillas and North Vietnamese regulars infiltrate the South along its jungle paths, mountain streams and underground tunnels.Firepower examines the American strategy to stop the war through air power and studies U.S. military operations at the time of maximum involvement.Fifteen million bombs are dropped, 500,000 American troops are on the ground, and despite the positive statements from the American generals, the war drags on without any lasting or meaningful signs that victory is at hand.Tet! looks at the turning point in the war -- the 77-day siege at Khe Sahn and the infamous Tet Offensive.The war leaves the jungles of Vietnam, and anti-war sentiment intensifies in the U.S.Frontline America focuses on Nixon's determination to end the war by bringing pressure on the North.He begins troop withdrawals but secretly expands the war into Laos and Cambodia.New and more violent protests are ignited at home.Students die on college campuses as the most violent dissent since the Civil War rocks America.
Disc II:
Soldiering On looks at the effects of Nixon's policies on the men still left on the battlefield after the decision to turn the command of the war over to our South Vietnamese allies.The military brass must cope with the dual problems of prisoners of war and sagging morale.The war is winding down, but the problems in the field and at home continue.The Village War explores the constant and continuing struggle for the hearts and minds of the thousands of villages in the South.When the American troops pull out, the armies of the South are unable to maintain control.Place examines the long search for peace which extends throughout the entire history of the war.When the negotiations stall in 1972, Nixon orders the bombing of Hanoi.Then comes a breakthrough.The "cease fire in place" is signed in Paris and viewed by Washington as the long-sought "peace with honor," but our allies in the South call it "the final sellout."Surrender looks at South Vietnam two years after American withdrawal as the final offensive begins.The Unsung Soldiers explores the readjustment of the 2.8 million Vietnam veterans to???????? ????????
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