C-SPAN PRESENTS THE CAPITOL

Three-Part Original TV Series Offers Rare Look Inside the U.S. Capitol Starts Wednesday, May 31, at 8 p.m. ET
 
 
WASHINGTON (Wednesday, May 24, 2006) - Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Dennis Hastert (R-IL), Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV), Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT) and Senator Trent Lott (R-MS) are just a few of the headliners in C-SPAN's new three-part series, The Capitol. Recorded in high definition, the series is the most extensive story of the U.S. Capitol building ever told on television. Over the course of three nights and nearly 10 hours, The Capitol explores the history, art and architecture of this symbol of American democracy while touring the well-loved public areas of the Capitol and parts of the building rarely seen by the public or aired on television.

C-SPAN's special presentation of The Capitol airs Wednesday, May 31, through Friday, June 2, starting at 8 p.m. ET. Each part is approximately three hours long and includes taped segments and live studio interludes with Capitol historians and viewer phone calls.

"This is the most extensive look at the history and the magnificent art and architecture of the Capitol ever seen on television," said Brian Lamb, CEO of C-SPAN. "This is a project that just made sense for C-SPAN. We've spent 27 years covering events inside this building. Telling the story of the Capitol building helps tell the story of the United States."

Each night, C-SPAN cameras will take viewers inside the Capitol, with footage of the building's grand public spaces, areas currently off-limits to tourists and some spaces never before seen on television.

Following are highlights from each program:

· Part One: Wednesday, May 31 at 8 p.m. ET: "An American Icon"
Part one explores the history of the Capitol, focusing on the Capitol dome, rotunda and crypt. This segment also takes an up-close look at Constantino Brumidi's fresco, the Apotheosis of Washington, and includes interviews with members of the House and Senate.

Part 2: Thursday, June 1 at 8 p.m.ET: "The U.S. House of Representatives"
Viewers will see the House chamber; Statuary Hall; The Corrine "Lindy" Boggs Congressional Women's Reading Room, site of John Quincy Adams' death in 1848; and go inside the Board of Education Room, also known as House Speaker Sam Rayburn's hideaway office, where Harry Truman first learned he had become President.

Interviews with Speaker Hastert (R-IL), Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-PA), Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN) are featured.

Part 3: Friday, June 2 at 8 p.m. ET: "The U.S. Senate"
The old and current Senate chambers are featured in the final segment. Senator Frist provides a tour by of the Majority Leader's suite of offices, situated in the most historical section of the building; and we'll explore the Vice President's Ceremonial Office, where Ulysses S. Grant's Vice President Henry Wilson died in 1875; the Brumidi Corridors; the Old Supreme Court Chamber; and tour the Old Senate Baths.

Interviewed in part three are Senator Byrd, Senator Dodd, Senator Frist, Senator Lott and Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), who takes viewers inside his personal hideaway office.

Viewers will hear from more than 20 guests, including members of Congress, historians, curators, journalists and authors who share their knowledge of the Capitol. Guests include Senate Historian Richard A. Baker, Historian of the House of Representatives Robert V. Remini, Associate Senate Historian Don Ritchie, House Curator Farar Elliott, Senate Curator Diane Skvarla and Architectural Historian of the Capitol Bill Allen.

"Because of C-SPAN's history of covering Capitol Hill, the Senate and House were willing to give us extensive access to the Capitol building," said Mark Farkas, The Capitol's producer. Farkas produced many of the network's major history programs, including American Writers (2001-2), American Presidents (1999), Alexis de Tocqueville: Exploring Democracy in America (1997), and The Lincoln-Douglas Debates (1994).

Accompanying the TV series is a companion Web site, www.the-capitol.org, that features interviews and additional resources such as a virtual tour of the building, approximately 30 hours of interviews that collect stories from the Capitol's occupants, speeches, recordings, photos and biographies that enhance the on-air programming. C-SPAN will also make podcasts of The Capitol available from the program's Web site.

As a complement to C-SPAN's TV series, C-SPAN Radio is airing The Capitol Oral History Project starting Saturday, June 3, and airing every Saturday in June. This series will present new and exclusive interviews with members of Congress. The Capitol Oral History Project airs during C-SPAN Radio's American Political Archive block on Saturdays at 10 a.m. ET and re-airs Mondays at 10 p.m. ET.

About C-SPAN Radio
Launched in 1997, C-SPAN Radio is heard on WCSP 90.1 FM in the Washington, D.C./Baltimore area, and nationally on XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio, and online at:
www.c-spanradio.org

About C-SPAN
C-SPAN, the political network of record, was created in 1979 by America's cable companies as a public service. C-SPAN is currently available in 89.8 million households, C-SPAN2 in 80 million households, and C-SPAN3 in 13 million households nationwide. For more information, visit:
www.c-span.org

NOTE TO EDITORS:
Screener copies on DVD and photos are available by contacting Jennifer Moire of C-SPAN at jmoire@c-span.org or by phone at 202-626-8797.