New Documentary Commemorates Carl Sandburg’s Death.
Explore the controversial life and legacy of Carl Sandburg through archival footage and interviews with Pete Seeger, the late Studs Terkel and
Norman Corwin, family, poets, and scholars.
The Day Carl Sandburg Died, premieres nationwide Monday, September 24
on PBS (check local listings).
For much of the 20th century, Carl Sandburg (1/6/1878 – 7/22/1967) was synonymous with the
American experience, a spokesman on behalf of “the people.” One of the most successful writers
in the English language, Sandburg was a three-time Pulitzer Prize-winner for his poetry
(Cornhuskers, 1918 and Complete Poems, 1950) and part of his six-volume Lincoln biography
(Abraham Lincoln: The War Years, 1939). He was also a groundbreaking journalist, folk song
collector, children’s storyteller, political organizer/activist, novelist, autobiographer, and
captivating performer.
Yet, after his death, Sandburg’s literary legacy faded and his poems, once
taught in schools across America, were dismissed under the weight of massive critical attack.
The new 90-minute documentary provides a dynamic examination of Sandburg’s
life, work and controversial legacy from a modern perspective.
Fans of Sandburg should not miss the chance to tour his homestead, now a historic site, while visiting Asheville.
