The Murder of Dr. Parkman
(See our prototype Web site) 
Co-produced by Eric Stange and Melissa Banta 
With historian Simon Schama 
Made possible by a major production grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities 

A MURDER MOST FOUL... Edmund Pearson, the historian of homicide, called it "America's most celebrated murder." Edward Everett, a president of Harvard, said it was "the most painful event in our domestic history." 

When Charles Dickens visited Boston one of his first requests was to see "the room where Dr. Parkman was murdered." Even by today's numbingly sensationalist standards, the grisly tale is disturbing. 

It happened in November 1849 when Dr. George Parkman, a physician and scion of one of Boston's richest families, was allegedly beaten to death and dismembered by a Harvard professor of chemistry named John Webster. A week after Parkman's disappearance, the janitor of the Harvard Medical School discovered body parts dispersed about Webster's laboratory. Webster was put on trial in a spectacle that drew tens of thousands of on-lookers, as well as journalists from as far away as Europe. Webster was convicted and hanged. But his guilt is one of many uncertain details which have confounded those attempting to tell the story of the Parkman case for the past 150 years. 

THE MURDER OF DR. PARKMAN, a one-hour TV documentary and Web site, examines different accounts of this infamous crime as an entertaining vehicle through which to analyze varieties of historical presentation. With historian SIMON SCHAMA (author of Death of a Harvard Man - an account of the murder) as our guide, we will demystify the work of historical storytellers, and in the process, uncover how the decisions they make affect the way the rest of us perceive the past. In an age when many people receive their knowledge of the past from popular media, this documentary provides audiences tools with which to better understand the uses-and potential abuses-of historical genres, from traditional works of history to popular entertainment. 

Produced in association with the Center for Independent Documentary.
Anticipated completion date: May 2001.