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Read the archive   of Wattenberg's   syndicated column     Irving Berlin’s America, Part II From Ragtime to Swing and from Broadway to Hollywood, Irving Berlin’s music defined American songwriting for more than half a century. ... more Irving Berlin’s America, Part I Irving Berlin pulled himself up from poverty on New York’s Lower East Side to become America’s most famous and enduring songwriter. ... more   The Western: America’s Story, Part One main page The Western: America’s Story, Part One Aired 1/11/2007 The Great Train Robbery, considered by many historians to be the first Western film, premiered a century ago in 1903. In the years that followed, generations of filmmakers turned again and again to the stories from the frontier--the conquest of Indian land, the California Gold Rush, the expansion of the transcontinental railroad and all of the other tales of rugged individualists settling a wild land. Did Hollywood’s silver dreams reflect fact or legend? What do Westerns tell us about America?   Read the full transcript   Holly George-Warren     Author of Cowboy: How Hollywood Invented the Wild West   R. Philip Loy     Professor of political science at Taylor University   Scott Simmon     Co-director of film studies at the University of California at Davis Originally Aired: 5/15/2003     Be sure to also check out: Here are some previous Think Tank programs that may be of interest. The American Musical, Part 2   aired 5/24/2007 The American Musical, Part 1   aired 5/17/2007 One Nation, One Standard   aired 5/10/2007 Send us your thoughts Think Tank is made possible by generous support from the Smith Richardson Foundation, the Bernard and Irene Schwartz Foundation, the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, the John M. Olin Foundation, the Donner Canadian Foundation, the Dodge Jones Foundation, and Pfizer, Inc. ©Copyright Think Tank. All rights reserved.     Web development by Bean Creative.