(March–September 1945) The War finally reaches its end: the bloody Battle of Okinawa and the kamikaze attacks. The death of President Roosevelt and the assumption to office of Harry Truman. The Soviets commence their final assault on Berlin. Hitler's suicide and the fall of the Third Reich. The awful reality of Nazi Germany is discovered with the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps and death camps. VE Day following Germany's surrender. The sinking of USS Indianapolis. Plans for the ultimate, long, and bloody conquest of Japan. The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The liberation of the American POWs in Japan and VJ Day following the Japanese surrender at the USS Missouri. The episode concludes with the return and reunification of the American fighting men, and the fates of the towns and personalities first featured earlier in this series as they, and the United States, continue with the business of living in a postwar world. Extras: This is followed by David Brancaccio interviewing Ken Burns, Rev. Forbes, and Lynn Novick about what they were attempting to accomplish in this production.

Starring:

Keith David , Katharine Phillips , Tom Hanks , Paul Fussell , Quentin Aanenson , Burt Wilson , Sascha Weinzheimer , Sam Hynes , Daniel Inouye , Rebecca Holtz , Glenn D. Frazier , Emma Belle Pelcher , Olga Ciarlo , Maurice Bell , Dwain Luce , John Gray , Sidney Phillips , Susumu Satow , Jim Sherman , Robert Kashiwagi , Kevin Conway , Burnett Miller , Ray Leopold , Earl Burke , Asako Tokuno , Tom Galloway , Jackie Greer , Josh Lucas

Genre:

Documentary, History, War