Executioner's Current

Mr. Moran talked about his book Executioner’s Current: Thomas Edison, George Westinghouse, and the Invention of the Electric Chair, publishe… read more

Mr. Moran talked about his book Executioner’s Current: Thomas Edison, George Westinghouse, and the Invention of the Electric Chair, published by Knopf. It’s the story behind the struggle to control New York’s electric market and how that struggle led to the use of the electric chair for executions. Mr. Moran explains how Thomas Edison set out to tarnish the image of Westinghouse’s company by convincing the State of New York to use Westinghouse’s AC current to execute criminals. To Westinghouse’s chagrin, AC current was thereafter dubbed the “executioner’s current.” Professor Moran also gave a brief history of capital punishment in the United States and talked about why he wrote the book. Following his talk, Professor Moran answered questions from members of the audience. close

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Executioner's Current

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Program ID:
173872-1
Category:
Public Affairs Event
Format:
Speech
Location:
South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States
First Aired:
Nov 30, 2002 | 11:51am EST | C-SPAN 2
Last Aired:
Dec 22, 2002 | 10:00am EST | C-SPAN 2

Airing Details

  • Nov 30, 2002 | 11:51am EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Nov 30, 2002 | 4:54pm EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Nov 30, 2002 | 11:01pm EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Dec 01, 2002 | 8:00pm EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Dec 08, 2002 | 3:42pm EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Dec 08, 2002 | 4:51pm EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Dec 09, 2002 | 2:22am EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Dec 11, 2002 | 7:03pm EST | C-SPAN 1
  • Dec 13, 2002 | 9:47am EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Dec 13, 2002 | 12:07pm EST | C-SPAN 1
  • Dec 14, 2002 | 4:48am EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Dec 14, 2002 | 12:01pm EST | C-SPAN 2
  • Dec 22, 2002 | 10:00am EST | C-SPAN 2
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Executioner's Current

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