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'Who Do You Think You Are?': Celebs discover their roots
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"Who Do You Think You Are?" is first and foremost a TV show, and thus it requires the presence of stars and a story arc punctuated with dramatic moments, and it has all those things.But the series, which premieres at 8 p.m. ET Friday (March 5) on NBC, doesn't necessarily need all those things. In tracing their own roots, the celebrities who take part in the show get to tell larger American stories, and that's pretty cool even without voiceover narration and music cues.
"Who Do You Think You Are?" is executive produced by "Friends" star Lisa Kudrow (who will be the subject of the March 19 episode) and based on a British series of the same name. Friday's premiere features "Sex and the City" star Sarah Jessica Parker, who had assumed that she was primarily of German descent and that her family had only been in the United States since the mid-19th century.
She discovers, though, that there's a lot more to it than that -- tracing her roots all the way back to colonial Massachusetts.
The second episode is devoted to NFL Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith, who delves into the history of slavery in America while tracing his roots.
"Who Do You Think You Are?" premieres on the heels of a similar PBS series called "Faces of America," in which Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. helps the likes of Eva Longoria Parker, Meryl Streep and Stephen Colbert trace their history. It does so without some of the more conventional TV trappings of "Who Do You Think," and whether you prefer one over the other is probably going to come down to a matter of taste.
What they both succeed in doing, though, is using the famous people involved to help tell bigger stories. And that makes for a pretty worthwhile hour of TV.
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Lisa Kudrow, Sarah Jessica Parker discuss 'Who Do You Think You Are?'
Photo credit: NBC
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Loved it! I will watch next week!!!
While it is not ROOTS, I hope the show inspires people to trace their family history.
Hopefully, they will realize that research takes time, dedication, and a financial commitment. You don't just walk into a library or archives, tell them your name, and your family history is laid out before you. Sarah Jessica Parker did not do her own research. A team of professional genealogists did the research, and you can bet it took time to do it.
I have been an active researcher since ROOTS first appeared on television. I started asking questions about family in 1979, then began in earnest in March 1984 and have been at it since then. Helen Graves
The show was "over the top" -- way too much dramatic emoting. It made it difficult to watch. Ms. Parker's family history was interesting. Unfortunately her reaction to that history detracted from her family story.
I love family history -- and the stories that we can ALL discover. And I know they have to use celebrities to try to attract viewers. But TONE IT DOWN. I'll go for honest reaction any day rather than the over-emoting served up by Ms. Parker.
Agree with JB_Iowa. Didn't understand why SJP was exclaiming, "I'm an American! I'm an American!" at the end of the show. She was American before she discovered her British-American ancestors. Having ancestors from the 17th century does not make you "more American". That's the beauty of the good old USA!
wow, she (sarah) said "i'm an American!"? That's pretty lame. they should have 2 celeb's roots per show instead of one, it dragged on too much in parts.
Hundreds of people, knowing of my research skills, have sought my assistance for a general search or after they hit a brick wall only two or three generations removed (see their testimonials). In most cases, I was able to find their ancestors several generations beyond their brick wall. Even, in a few cases, back as far as The Mayflower! I search for the information that is available online through my paid subscription to Ancestry.com, and my other research sources. Please visit my website http://ancestorstraced.com/
Sarah Jessica Parker on Who Do You Think You Are?
I highly recommend this great program for everyone. It gives an excellent preview of the positive life enriching discoveries waiting to be found by each person who seeks to know about the bigger picture of where we came from.
More importantly from a Family Forest® perspective, if you liked this show, you’ll love the Family Forest® National Treasure Edition. It picks up where the show leaves off.
For more on her family ties see: http://familyforest.wordpress.com/
It is great inspiration to see someone like Sarah finding out about their ancestors.
How many ancestors do you have?
see http://www.familyforest.com/resources
for the answers!
Lisa Kudrow's epidsode was all about the holocaust. Her ancestry only took her as far as her great grandmother and a cousin... big whooping deal! Emmitt Smith's was a much better show! Is this about ancestry or the holocaust? Let's not go through all that again, ok?
I saw the episode on Brooke Shields and it was really terrific! Everyone should be inspired to explore their own ancestral history. Find out how it is to walk in your own ancestral homeland which could even be a castle!
For more on Brooke where the show leaves off see:
http://familyforest.wordpress.com