Ellis Island (1984)

Directed by

Jerry London

Genre

drama

Country

United States

Length

1 season, 3 episodes

Rating

5.1 of 10 from 10 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

Four immigrants from different backgrounds travel to America in 1907, seeking a better life. The miniseries follows their individual journeys and hardships through 1916 as they pursue the American Dream.

hopefulpoignanthistoricaldramaticslow-burnstrugglingearnestsweeping

What happens

Ellis Island is a television miniseries, broadcast in three parts in 1984 on the CBS television network. The screenplay was co-written by Fred Mustard Stewart, adapted from his 1983 novel of the same title. The series tells the story of four immigrants to America, played by Peter Riegert as a Russian Jew, Gregory Paul Martin as a working-class Italian, and Alice Krige and Judi Bowker as two Irish sisters. It starts in 1907 as they manage to leave Europe and travel by boat to Ellis Island, hoping for a better life, and follows their individual struggles, hopes, and successes through the end of 1916, as they try to achieve the American Dream. Ellis Island highlights a number of historic events in Europe and the U.S. throughout the time period, and some of the characters involved are based on real persons, such as Irving Berlin. The series was the final screen appearance of Richard Burton. It was dedicated to his memory, and the cast includes his daughter Kate Burton as his character's daughter. Faye Dunaway won a Golden Globe award for her role in the miniseries, and Ben Vereen was nominated for his role. Originally seven hours long and telecast in three parts on three consecutive nights in November 1984, Ellis Island was shortened to six hours and re-telecast in three parts in the summer of 1986, to celebrate the Statue of Liberty Centennial. The miniseries features six Irving Berlin–style songs, composed by John Addison, with lyrics by Douglas Brayfield and Fred Mustard Stewart. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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