The economic and cultural growth of Colorado, spanning two centuries, from the mid 1700s to the late 1970s.The economic and cultural growth of Colorado, spanning two centuries, from the mid 1700s to the late 1970s.The economic and cultural growth of Colorado, spanning two centuries, from the mid 1700s to the late 1970s.
- Nominated for 2 Primetime Emmys
- 3 wins & 4 nominations total
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I read the book Centennial in 1976 when it was first published in hardback. Its the only book I ever read that kept me up all night. A truly amazing story of the west, as it really was.
I missed the mini series in 1978 for some reason and just happened to see it available in the public library and took it in in one gulp. All I can say is WOW! What have I been missing all these years. Thank god for home video.
This is as close to a perfect presentation of Michener's novel as I could ever imagine. If you are in love with the west and it's history you will love every minute you spend watching this delightful program. It's characters capture every nuance of those in the novel. Romance, treachery, adventure, loyalty, history, the whole spectrum of humanity is here and well done too. And a word about the cast. How was it possible to assemble such a grand group. Just terrific. The only thing done lately to compare with this is "Gods and Generals".
If you love history I recommend it to you.
I missed the mini series in 1978 for some reason and just happened to see it available in the public library and took it in in one gulp. All I can say is WOW! What have I been missing all these years. Thank god for home video.
This is as close to a perfect presentation of Michener's novel as I could ever imagine. If you are in love with the west and it's history you will love every minute you spend watching this delightful program. It's characters capture every nuance of those in the novel. Romance, treachery, adventure, loyalty, history, the whole spectrum of humanity is here and well done too. And a word about the cast. How was it possible to assemble such a grand group. Just terrific. The only thing done lately to compare with this is "Gods and Generals".
If you love history I recommend it to you.
10mspeed44
I will join the list of saying this is the best mini-series every put on film and, today, any part of it would make an excellent movie! To say every actor plays his/her role to perfection is probably too much, but it comes close. The picture of the American west is absolutely beautiful, so very realistic, so much detail. Robert Conrad and Richard Chamberlain are the ancestors we all wish to have. This book should be required reading for every high school kid in the USA (well, Michener wrote several that should be required reading!!) Gregory Harrison and Stephanie Zimbalist are beyond description in their roles as a young couple going west. While some find fault with the environmental ending, it is very true to what is happening in the west today--remember when this was written and filmed. Also, if you are fast, you can see a very young George Clooney in St Louis! Buy the DVD! This movie will never be made again. Watch it with your kids!
I agree with all comments regarding a DVD of this film. It is by far the best mini series ever.
Brilliant acting. Amazing photography. The costumes were incredible. And well researched.
The portrayal of the Native American people was very well done.
This should now be available for new generations to enjoy and understand how hard life was back then. The pioneer spirit should be allowed to live on in this creation.
The whole crew on this venture must be very proud of this masterpiece.
DVD NOW PLEASE
Brilliant acting. Amazing photography. The costumes were incredible. And well researched.
The portrayal of the Native American people was very well done.
This should now be available for new generations to enjoy and understand how hard life was back then. The pioneer spirit should be allowed to live on in this creation.
The whole crew on this venture must be very proud of this masterpiece.
DVD NOW PLEASE
"Centennial" is a great mini-series to discover America
It goes over a span of 200 years
It's about Pasquinel, a solitary trader with the Indians, who made his way through territory no white man has ever traveled, defending his trade and his life
It's about a man from Scotland who had come seeking solitude, but he found friendship and love
His name was Alexander McKeag
It's about the legendary Arapaho leader, Lame Beaver, who knew that the coming of the white man was the beginning of change
"Centennial" is also about strong men, men of destiny and vision It's also about stubborn men who only saw little in the windy, water-shy stretch of plains to stop for on their trek to a new place called Oregon
"Centennial" is also about men of integrity like the young Mennonite named Levi Zendt who could not know it at the time that he was destined to leave the home he loved and share the dream of Alexander McKeag It's about traders like Zendt, and soldiers like Maxwell Mercy It's about men of honor, like Major Mercy who worked tirelessly to bring about a lasting peace Men of vision like the stubborn German from the Volga named Hans Brumbaugh, who had walked from St. Louis to find gold It's about the Englishman Oliver Seccombe, who would found an empire from the dream of a lifetime A ranch that would spread from the Rocky Mountains on the west to the Nebraska border with Longhorns driven north from Texas by John Skimmerhorn and R. J. Poteet
"Centennial is about many more characters like Clay Basket, the fiery Indian woman who shared the life Pasquinel loved best; Lise Bockweiss, the golden-haired lady of St. Louis; Pasquinel brothers whose names would strike terror into the hearts of all white men who thought of crossing the plains; Frank Skimmerhorn, the obsessed militia colonel who led a disgraceful massacre against Cheyenne chief, Broken Thumb; the frontier lawman Alex Dumire who would fall prey to a kind of crime the presence of his badge and gun could not prevent; the traveling actors, Mervin and Maude Wendell who founded its fortune power and prestige on stolen money and a murder
"Centennial" is also about strong men, men of destiny and vision It's also about stubborn men who only saw little in the windy, water-shy stretch of plains to stop for on their trek to a new place called Oregon
"Centennial" is also about men of integrity like the young Mennonite named Levi Zendt who could not know it at the time that he was destined to leave the home he loved and share the dream of Alexander McKeag It's about traders like Zendt, and soldiers like Maxwell Mercy It's about men of honor, like Major Mercy who worked tirelessly to bring about a lasting peace Men of vision like the stubborn German from the Volga named Hans Brumbaugh, who had walked from St. Louis to find gold It's about the Englishman Oliver Seccombe, who would found an empire from the dream of a lifetime A ranch that would spread from the Rocky Mountains on the west to the Nebraska border with Longhorns driven north from Texas by John Skimmerhorn and R. J. Poteet
"Centennial is about many more characters like Clay Basket, the fiery Indian woman who shared the life Pasquinel loved best; Lise Bockweiss, the golden-haired lady of St. Louis; Pasquinel brothers whose names would strike terror into the hearts of all white men who thought of crossing the plains; Frank Skimmerhorn, the obsessed militia colonel who led a disgraceful massacre against Cheyenne chief, Broken Thumb; the frontier lawman Alex Dumire who would fall prey to a kind of crime the presence of his badge and gun could not prevent; the traveling actors, Mervin and Maude Wendell who founded its fortune power and prestige on stolen money and a murder
10Flamio
I watched WAY TOO MUCH T.V. in the 70's, but for lucky dogs like you that's cool! Centennial was probably my favorite mini of all of them! It covered generations of a few main families through 200yrs in Colorado, and was narrated awesomely by David Janssen, and had a mystery to boot! I don't have enough space to review this whole series, but here are a few notes: Yes, Robert Conrad and the first few episodes were the best in my opinion, and in the opinions of others on this site. His portrayal of Pasquinel was incredible. A French Canadian coming to America to hunt beaver and start a life here is the American dream! Just ask Arnold if you doubt me! Roots, Shogun (Richard C. was in that one too), and Shaka Zulu also were all excellent mini-series in this vein but Centennial hit home here in America. Not many of us can relate to the other three biggies, but Centennial was U.S. all the way. Other big name actors that did a great job in this were Andy Griffith, Alex Karras (Hans Brumbaugh, man he did a great job for a new actor!), Dennis Weaver, Dan Janssen, Crenna, Carrera, Chamberlain, Kellerman, Keith, Dalton, Vaughn, I could go on forever! A POWER cast indeed! What in the heck was the budget on this thing! Some library's have this, rent it now! Hopefully AMC will show this next year uncut for it's 25th Anniv. and hopefully it will also come out on a DVD set! I'll be the first in line!!! FLAMIO
Did you know
- TriviaThe ranch that was used as the Venneford Mansion was the Highlands Ranch Mansion, located on Highlands Ranch, which is near the real-life town of Centennial, Colorado. Several years after this miniseries was shot, the property was developed for housing by the Mission Veijo Company. One of the streets within the development was named Venneford Ranch Road by the company as a tribute to the miniseries.
- GoofsDuring "The Massacre" episode, Colonel Skimmerhorn is walking through the streets of Denver and there is a large crowd of people cheering and waving 50 star United States flags. There were no 50 star United States flags in 1864.
- Alternate versionsThis was originally shown on the NBC network in twelve separate episodes, with the first and last each running three hours and the ten in between at two hours each (this is with commercials). Some basic cable channels have rerun it in thirteen two-hour segments, with all but the opening and closing episodes consisting of the last hour of one segment and the first hour of the next.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Memories of Centennial (2008)
- How many seasons does Centennial have?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Centennial
- Filming locations
- Bracken County, Kentucky, USA(exterior shots representing St. Louis, MO)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 45 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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