Quick -- name the one family that had the most powerful influence on American politics in the 20th century.
Nope. Guess again.
While most might immediately think "Kennedy," the correct answer is Roosevelt. Cousins Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt were members of the most influential family in the history of American politics, and Ken Burns is out to prove the point.
The Roosevelts: An Intimate History is a seven-part, 14-hour Burns epic that debuts at 7 p.m. today on PBS and AETN. The series continues nightly at the same time through Saturday.
The Roosevelt saga stretches more than a century and marks the first time their individual stories have been told in a single narrative. It all begins in 1858 with Teddy's birth in New York and continues until Eleanor's death in 1962 at the age of 78.
Eleanor (of the Oyster Bay Roosevelts) and her husband, Franklin (of the Hyde Park Roosevelts), were fifth cousins (once removed). Eleanor's father was Elliott Bulloch Roosevelt, Teddy's younger brother. Franklin (1882-1945) and Teddy (1858-1919) were also fifth cousins.
Political influence? Following the assassination of President William McKinley in 1901, Teddy became the 26th president of the United States at the age of 42. Teddy would oversee the beginning of the national park system and the digging of the Panama Canal.
Franklin, the 32nd president, would serve in the White House longer than anyone -- 1933 to his death in 1945. He guided the country through the Great Depression and World War II.
Eleanor was on the front lines in the postwar struggles for civil rights at home and human rights around the world.
Expect Burns to do his usual thoroughly entertaining and enlightening job with the series. Going far beyond mere politics, the "intimate" aspect of the tale reaches to the heart of a very human story -- a story "about love and betrayal, family feeling and personal courage, and the conquest of fear."
Meryl Streep lends her voice to Eleanor, while Paul Giamatti supplies the voice of Theodore, and Edward Herrmann, two-time Emmy Award nominee for his performance as Franklin Roosevelt, does the voice of FDR.
Rounding out the cast are Patricia Clarkson, Adam Arkin, Philip Bosco, Keith Carradine, Kevin Conway, Ed Harris, John Lithgow, Josh Lucas, Carl Lumbly, Amy Madigan, Carolyn McCormick, Pamela Reed, Billy Bob Thornton and the late Eli Wallach.
• Let's dance. Dancing With the Stars returns to ABC on Monday. Season 19 waltzes in at 7 p.m. with a two-hour premiere.
Back to the Future actress Lea Thompson, 53; Duck Dynasty daughter Sadie Robertson, 17; and NASCAR driver Michael Waltrip, 51, are set to vie for the Mirrorball Trophy.
Also among the 13 contestants are PBS and NPR talk-show host Tavis Smiley, 49; Pretty Little Liars star Janel Parrish, 25; Olympic track star Lolo Jones, 32; hunky actor Antonio Sabato Jr., 42; and fashion designer Betsey Johnson, 72.
Other amateur dancers are Cheech & Chong comedy veteran Tommy Chong, 76; bubbly YouTube, Twitter and Instagram star Bethany Mota, 18; Ultimate Fighting champ Randy Couture, 51; Mean Girls star Jonathan Bennett, 33; and actor-dancer Alfonso Ribeiro, 42, of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air fame.
Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews return as co-hosts.
Equally as popular as the amateur "stars" are their professional partners. Here's the lineup.
Bennett is paired with newcomer Allison Holker; Chong with Peta Murgatroyd; Couture and Karina Smirnoff; Johnson and Tony Dovolani; Jones and newcomer Keo Motsepe; Mota and Derek Hough; Parrish and Valentin Chmerkovskiy.
Other pairings are Ribeiro and Witney Carson; Robertson and Mark Ballas; Sabato and Cheryl Burke; Smiley and Sharna Burgess; Thompson and Artem Chigvintsev; and Waltrip with Emma Slater.
This season's judges include professional dancer and fan favorite Julianne Hough. She'll be joining Len Goodman, Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli.
One couple will be eliminated on the live results at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
• The View. In case you missed the memo, the new season of The View begins at 10 a.m. Monday on ABC with one former and two new panel members.
Actress Rosie Perez and Republican media operative Nicolle Wallace will be joining Whoopi Goldberg and Rosie O'Donnell on the panel.
Goldberg was the only co-host left standing following Barbara Walters' retirement from her onscreen role last spring. O'Donnell was co-host during 2006-07 and spent much of her time in on-air battles with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck.
Perez is best known for her role in Do the Right Thing, and Wallace, a political analyst for MSNBC, was communications chief for President George W. Bush's re-election campaign and was an adviser on John McCain's 2008 campaign.
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Style on 09/14/2014