American Experience

Did you know, Theodore Roosevelt and Richard Nixon have been ranked as the top two "green” U.S. presidents? 

Watch more original interviews at pbs.org/waltdisney. 

Kurt Vonnegut, American author

Frank Lloyd Wright, 1867 - 1959

A famous architect, Frank Lloyd Wright would design over 500 buildings in his lifetime. He was a leader in the Prairie School movement of architecture, which advocated for the use of smooth, horizontal lines in structures. You can see this in action in his buildings Unity Temple and his home and studio, both located in Oak Park, IL.

Iconic First Ladies of the United States

1. As First Lady, Dolley Madison founded an orphanage for girls in Washington, D.C., and redecorated the White House to give it a more stately look. Check out our website on Mrs. Madison.

2. Eleanor Roosevelt was an early civil rights activist, insisting that New Deal benefits be extended to African Americans in an equal manner. Check out our website on Mrs. Roosevelt.

3. Jacqueline Kennedy renovated and refurbished the White House, while also extending support for the arts in America. Check out bios of Kennedy women here.

4. National beautification became Lady Bird Johnson’s cause of choice. She led efforts in improving physical conditions in Washington, D.C., in particular. Check out our website on Mrs. Johnson.

5. Rosalynn Carter sat in on Cabinet meetings (which was then unprecedented) and supported reform for mental health legislation and aiding senior citizens. Learn more about Mrs. Carter here.

6. Hillary Clinton headed the Task Force on National Health Care Reform and traveled to over 75 countries during her time as First Lady. Read our biography of Mrs. Clinton here.

Geronimo, c. 1886. 

A prominent leader of the Bedonkohe Apache tribe, Geronimo led his tribe’s resistance against the white colonization of southwestern North American. He eventually surrendered after a year of fighting, in 1886. He spent the last 20 years of his life as a prisoner

Check out our short film clip on Geronimo here.

The creator of the popular Peanuts comic strip Charles Schultz poses with a drawing of his well-known character Charlie Brown. 

After returning from the war in 1945, he began his career as a professional cartoonist with a weekly comic strip, Li’l Folks, in the St. Paul Pioneer Press. His first Peanuts strip appeared in newspapers nationwide on October 2, 1950. 

The Coast Guard was created on August 4, 1790, making it 225 years old today.

Above: A recruiting poster from New Orleans, Louisiana, c. 1942. Below left: Poster soliciting enlistees for the Coast Guard, c. 1917. Below right: A Coast Guard recruiting station in Detroit, Michigan, c. 1942.