American Experience

Season 14 Episode 9: Monkey Trial

Recalling the "epic battle" over evolution waged in 1925 by fundamentalist titan William Jennings Bryan and freethinking Clarence Darrow. This chronicle also explores trial oddities. It was held in Dayton, Tenn., because civic boosters wanted to put the town "on the map." Then there's John Scopes, the football coach (teaching science was a side job) who volunteered to be prosecuted. The offending book he used was Tennessee's "official" science text. Moreover, as he wrote in his memoirs, he didn't recall ever actually teaching evolution.

Genre:

Documentary

Seasons:

37

Episodes:

396

Cast:

Quality:

HD

Duration:

55 min

First Air:

1988

Rating:

6.5