Yeah No January 9 Share January 9 Episode premiers on PBS: 8 p.m. ET, Tuesday, January 7, 2025 https://www.pbs.org/video/larger-than-life-wz3hsi/ Quote Henry Louis Gates, Jr. introduces actors Lea Salonga and Amanda Seyfried to ancestors who are every bit as dramatic as the characters they’ve played on stage and screen. Moving from a naval base in the Philippines to a small town bakery in Pennsylvania to steamships on the Atlantic Ocean, Lea and Amanda hear stories of relatives who survived wars, murders, and heart-wrenching ordeals. Aired 01/07/2025 | Expires 02/05/2025 | Rating TV-PG I didn't see a thread for this so I added one. I really liked this episode. Every time this series comes back I am thankful. I'll probably write more later. 2 2 Link to comment https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/151363-s11e1-larger-than-life/
Lovecat January 9 Share January 9 I'm from the Lehigh Valley, the area of Pennsylvania where Allentown is located, so I got a kick out of all of the local references in Amanda Seyfried's story, including the photo of her in her Trexler Middle School band uniform :) Her family does have some deep roots in this area. I play the piccolo in a local community band that traces its roots back to a Civil War era band whose members mustered as musicians for the official band of the Pennsylvania Volunteers, 47th Regiment, so I watched Amanda's bandsman ancestor's story with great interest. I couldn't recall the Regiment our band "ancestors" served while I was watching the episode, but I was almost expecting Amanda's ancestor to have been one of them--until I realized he was from the Pittsburgh area, where he returned once his service concluded. Good stories. Amanda Seyfried was quite thoughtful, and Lea Salonga is just a delight. 4 Link to comment https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/151363-s11e1-larger-than-life/#findComment-8550358
Mermaid Under January 9 Share January 9 Quote I'm from the Lehigh Valley, the area of Pennsylvania where Allentown is located, so I got a kick out of all of the local references Did you ever ride a Bieber bus? I tuned in at the beginning, but ended up switching channels a lot, as I found neither actress (although they were both nice enough) or their stories particularly engaging, and Gates has read pretty much the same script for 11 years. Although Gates certainly seemed happier with celebrities than he did with the "real people" they forced on him for one episode last season. 5 Link to comment https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/151363-s11e1-larger-than-life/#findComment-8550613
Yeah No January 10 Author Share January 10 I actually appreciated both stories. I found the history on the Pacific War during WWII fascinating as I don't know much about that side of it, especially the stuff about the Philippines. And I knew who both actresses were but had never previously seen them just being themselves. Both are quite attractive and pleasant. 4 Link to comment https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/151363-s11e1-larger-than-life/#findComment-8550789
Lovecat January 10 Share January 10 16 hours ago, Mermaid Under said: Did you ever ride a Bieber bus? I did indeed! In fact, I turned to my husband and said that if there was ever any doubt Amanda Seyfried was from Allentown, using the phrase "Bieber bus" would most certainly eliminate it. Most people would just say "I took the bus to New York," but a resident of the Lehigh Valley will always specify whether they took Bieber (RIP) or TransBridge (now the only option). My family used to take the Bieber bus to Philadelphia quite often. When I was younger I was prone to carsickness, and barfed in a Bieber bus lavatory on one of those trips :/ 1 1 Link to comment https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/151363-s11e1-larger-than-life/#findComment-8551089
iMonrey January 11 Share January 11 On 1/9/2025 at 4:15 PM, Mermaid Under said: I tuned in at the beginning, but ended up switching channels a lot, as I found neither actress (although they were both nice enough) or their stories particularly engaging, and Gates has read pretty much the same script for 11 years. Yeah. First of all, I have never heard of Lea Salonga, ever. She seems nice enough but I find my interest in the stories is heavily dependent on who the celebrity is and how much I care about them. And while I've seen Amanda Seyfried in one or two things I'm not especially invested in her either. Second, as you say, I'm growing weary of the formula. I get the distinct impression the show knows it is reaching for an interesting story, the way the camera quickly pans up the family tree to land on the ancestor they want to talk about. They sort of "yada yada" the explanation of how, exactly, the celeb is descended from said ancestor: i.e. their mother's father's father's mother's father. They just sort of dig around up there until they land on someone connected in some way to an historical event. I don't feel a strong connection that way. It's basically just a random history lesson. 1 Link to comment https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/151363-s11e1-larger-than-life/#findComment-8552121
Yeah No January 11 Author Share January 11 25 minutes ago, iMonrey said: It's basically just a random history lesson. I like random history lessons, especially if they're about something I haven't heard 35 times before, which is my major beef with this show. I feel like he has zeroed in on the same places and historical events over and over again. At least this time the focus was on the Pacific War and a murderous soap opera in Allentown, PA. Of course he had to squeeze in a bit about the Civil War, but I guess he just can't help himself. I don't really know or care about these two stars but I don't mind as long the history is interesting and not the same old stuff as we've seen here many times before. I suppose not everyone would find the same history interesting. I'm not that interested in the Civil War but I've had to suffer through a LOT of it on this show. 2 Link to comment https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/151363-s11e1-larger-than-life/#findComment-8552141
shapeshifter January 13 Share January 13 (edited) I just watched this. HLG Jr. tells Amanda Seyfried that in the 1870s Quote It was their decision to immigrate and that's why you are here Does he always phrase it like that? It kind of rings a certain way these days. They sure skirted around how old Amanda's other third great-grandfather was when he impregnated/raped a 14-year-old. He was 36?! I guess that was common then, but it sure isn't now. Which is probably why they kind of white washed it. From the transcript: …John was born in Germany in 1844.… …25 years ago, when Mr. Ebert was baker at the poor house, there was a certain woman and there was an infatuation, and the son was born.… Published March 2nd, 1905 [25 years before 1905 would be 1880, 36 years after his birth in 1844].… Newspapers described how Mary had arrived in the poor house when she was just 12 years old and given birth to Herbert at 15.… (https://www.pbs.org/video/larger-than-life-wz3hsi/#Transcript) The article also said he was a "retired baker." Amanda seems very awkward. I was (am?) the same, which just makes me cringe more. She says about the murder “Poor Amanda and those kids,” but it was 25 years after he started his family. They wouldn't be little kids, and if he was retired, his wife would probably be financially fine, right? Lea Salonga was delightful. Edited January 13 by shapeshifter 1 1 Link to comment https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/151363-s11e1-larger-than-life/#findComment-8553439
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