The Missionary
the last independent automaker

Sat, Nov 15 9:00 A.M. NH Explore (11.2)  

The U.S. car market booms in the wake of World War II, until a price war between Ford and Chevrolet decimates competitors. American Motors Corporation is created through the merger of two smaller companies. To survive in an age of conspicuous consumption, president George Romney boldly bets the company's future on a new niche: economy cars.

Duration: 28 minutes and 0 seconds

Episode Number: 101

All broadcast times for this episode: (show all)

Sat, Nov 15 9:00 A.M. The Missionary     NH Explore (11.2)
Sun, Nov 16 4:30 P.M. The Missionary     NH Explore (11.2)
Mon, Nov 17 4:30 A.M. The Missionary     NH Explore (11.2)

About The Last Independent Automaker:

Take a wild ride through history as nostalgia and great cars combine in this uniquely American story of grit, innovation, and hard work.

THE LAST INDEPENDENT AUTOMAKER is a documentary series featuring six half-hour episodes that detail the unlikely rise and tragic fall of American Motors Corporation (AMC).

Through more than 40 exclusive interviews with CEOs, engineers, designers, salespeople, journalists, factory workers, and labor union members, THE LAST INDEPENDENT AUTOMAKER is a deep, unvarnished look at the inner workings of a car company.

Since its inception, the automobile industry has been a mirror of America, reflecting our collective past through the cars we build and buy.

At half the size of its competitors, AMC had to innovate to survive with breakthroughs in fuel efficiency, rustproofing, air conditioning, and four-wheel drive.

When the nation confronted the air pollution, traffic fatalities, and energy crises caused by our love affair with the automobile, AMC engineers and designers met these problems head-on with solutions that still influence how vehicles are manufactured and marketed today.

Through personal interviews and stories, viewers also learn how AMC factories provided a pathway to the middle class for thousands of immigrants and people of color.

Compared to larger automakers, it offered more opportunities for women and minorities, including the youngest and the first Jewish CEO to lead a major U.S.

car company.

The series traces AMC's history through more than four decades and tells its story through hours of lost film archives combined with thousands of historic photographs and new 4K footage of gorgeous classic cars.

Each episode focuses on a different period, weaving together the drama of a cutthroat industry packed with big personalities and iconic cars.

The series climaxes as the cumulative storm of economics, mismanagement, and betrayal brings everything crashing down.


Watch The Last Independent Automaker - Clips, Episodes & Previews


Future Broadcast times for "The Last Independent Automaker": (show all)

Sun, Oct 26 4:31 P.M. The Pacer     NH Explore (11.2)
Sat, Nov 1 8:30 A.M. The Alliance     NH Explore (11.2)
Sun, Nov 2 4:33 P.M. The Alliance     NH Explore (11.2)
Mon, Nov 3 4:31 A.M. The Alliance     NH Explore (11.2)
Sat, Nov 8 8:30 A.M. The Betrayal     NH Explore (11.2)
Sun, Nov 9 4:31 P.M. The Betrayal     NH Explore (11.2)
Mon, Nov 10 4:31 A.M. The Betrayal     NH Explore (11.2)
Sat, Nov 15 9:00 A.M. The Missionary     NH Explore (11.2)
Sun, Nov 16 4:30 P.M. The Missionary     NH Explore (11.2)
Mon, Nov 17 4:30 A.M. The Missionary     NH Explore (11.2)
Sat, Nov 22 9:00 A.M. The NOW Cars     NH Explore (11.2)
Sun, Nov 23 4:30 P.M. The NOW Cars     NH Explore (11.2)
Mon, Nov 24 4:30 A.M. The NOW Cars     NH Explore (11.2)
Sat, Nov 29 9:00 A.M. The Odd Couple     NH Explore (11.2)
Sat, Dec 6 9:00 A.M. The Pacer     NH Explore (11.2)


NHPBS Over-the-Air Broadcast

WENH-TV Ch. 11 Durham

WLED-TV Ch. 48 Littleton

WEKW-TV Ch. 18 Keene

W50DP-D Ch. 50 Hanover

W34DQ-D Ch. 34 Pittsburg

Cable and Satellite Channels


NHPBS Five Channels

NHPBS - 11.1

Explore - 11.2

World - 11.3

Create - 11.4

Kids - 11.5

All of our channels and NHK World Japan are streaming LIVE ONLINE and on the PBS App, available on most devices.

Learn More


 

Community Impact

NHPBS NHPBS Passport Passport

This Old House | E3 | Carolina Rebuilds | All Clear
Ask This Old House | E3 | Houseplant Soil, Spot Point Brick | Ask This Old House
Maigret | Episode 1: The Lazy Burglar, Part 1
The Gold | Episode 1
Hispanic Heritage Awards | 38th Hispanic Heritage Awards
The Caverns Sessions | Violent Femmes
Big Cats 24/7 | Reunion
Sacred Planet with Gulnaz Khan | Saving the World's Forests
American Experience | The Presidents: FDR (Part 2)
Antiques Roadshow | Vintage San Jose, Hour 2
Becoming Thurgood: America's Social Architect | Becoming Thurgood: America's Social Architect
POV | A New Kind of Wilderness
Unforgotten | Episode 2
The Marlow Murder Club | Episode 2
Professor T | Overboard
The Last Ecstatic Days | The Last Ecstatic Days
The Carnival of More Animals | The Carnival of More Animals
Cinema Nomad | Bosnia & Herzegovina
Wisdom Keepers: Healing a Divided People | John Vervaeke - Finding Meaning Through our Common Connections
The Future of Farming | The Future of Farming
Kerry: Tides of Time | Episode 1
VOCES | Slumlord Millionaire
Impossible Town | Impossible Town
American Masters | Marcella [Extended Audio Description]
Renaissance: The Blood and the Beauty | Rivalry
Doc World | Call Me Dancer
City of Songs | Austin: The Next Verse
Grantchester | Episode 8
Walking with Dinosaurs | The Orphan
Patience | Paper Mountain Girl (Part 1)