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“The Most Beloved Man on the Planet”: Ken Burns on Muhammad Ali

TNR editor Michael Tomasky talks with the acclaimed filmmaker about his new project, airing Sunday on PBS.

Ken Burns, the celebrated documentarian whose films have chronicled America’s story from jazz to baseball to war, is out with his and his team’s newest work, a four-part documentary about the life of Muhammad Ali. The film, called simply Muhammad Ali and produced by Burns, daughter Sarah Burns, and David McMahon, tells Ali’s full life story, from his Louisville, Kentucky, childhood to his final years, with incredible footage and an array of talking heads—boxing writers, political journalists, poets—that reflects the breadth of Ali’s impact on the world. The series debuts this Sunday, September 19, on PBS (check local listing). TNR editor Michael Tomasky spoke with Burns earlier this month.

This is the second episode of Tomaskycast, TNR’s new video interview series.