Benjamin Franklin

Franklin Firsts
Industrious and determined, Benjamin Franklin made the most of his life in Philadelphia, maturing his craft as a printer, his savvy as a businessman and the gift for writing that would ultimately make bestsellers of publications such as The Way to Wealth and Poor Richard's Almanac. He formed a social club of other young men bent on self-improvement and gathered fellow citizens together to create lasting institutions, many that still exist today:
-1731 Founded the colonies' first public library, The Philadelphia Free Library.
-1736 Organized the first volunteer fire department in Philadelphia.
-1751 Helped found Pennsylvania Hospital, the first public _hospital in America.
-1752 Helped form the first fire insurance company.
-1757 Turned the citizens "Night Watch" into the first Philadelphia police department.
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A sneak peek at the making of Benjamin Franklin

A new film brings America's most "electric" founding father to life
Edited by Jennifer Fletcher

Radical. Brilliant. Diplomatic. Scientific. Witty. Driven. Benjamin Franklin was an American genius who revolutionized his times with the scope of his intellect, the charm of his wit and the passion of his belief that ordinary men, and women, could shape their world.

Born in obscurity, Franklin became the most famous American of his day, helping to give birth to the modern age and to a whole new nation. The innovative three-part series Benjamin Franklin, premiering Tuesday, November 19 at 9 p.m. on WHYY TV12, brings this extraordinary man and his breathtaking times to life in a way that is as lively and groundbreaking as its subject.

Eschewing a textbook presentation of his life, the film vividly recreates Franklin’s mind and his world. Tony Award-winning actor Richard Easton portrays Franklin, speaking directly and intimately to the viewer, scripted entirely with Franklin’s own words. "Richard Easton’s performance does for Benjamin Franklin what Hal Holbrook did for Mark Twain. He captures the wit, humanity, joie de vivre, brilliance and foibles of this remarkable American," says Gerry Richman, executive in charge of production.

The distinguished cast also includes Dylan Baker as young Franklin, Blair Brown as his sister Jane Mecom, Peter Donaldson as his nemesis John Adams and Roberta Maxwell as his wife Deborah. The actors portraying Franklin’s contemporaries address the viewer as a confidant, bringing to life emotions and anecdotes preserved in letters and diaries.

Noted Franklin experts, including H.W. Brands, author of a current Pulitzer Prize-nominated Franklin biography; Nobel Prize-winner Dudley Herschbach; and journalist and Franklin history buff Walter Isaacson, chairman of CNN, provide historical context and commentary.

It is a fascinating tale they tell. The film follows Franklin’s career from his humble origins in Boston to prosperity as a self-made businessman, publisher and civic booster in Philadelphia, to international superstardom as a scientist and revolutionary, a founding father and America’s first diplomat to France.

Franklin’s life spanned most of the 18th century, and to immerse viewers in the sights and sounds of this tumultuous era, the filmmakers staged evocative historical scenes at various colonial sites, including many in Philadelphia, the place where Franklin came to seek his fortune and where he signed the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, helping to forge a new nation.

Benjamin Franklin airs Tuesday, November 19 and Wednesday, November 20 at 9 p.m. on WHYY TV12.

Each weekday at 4:30 p.m. on TV12, veteran journalist Walter Cronkite leads an all-star cast as the voice of Benjamin Franklin in the exciting animated children’s series Liberty’s Kids, which introduces the stories and people behind the birth of our nation, as seen through the eyes of two young apprentices in Franklin’s print shop.