Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

8.7
/10
  • real genres
  • teacher
  • school
  • family relationships
  • documentary
  • science
  • mystery and drama
  • friends
  • world war two
  • watched
Before the popularity of AncestryDNA, journalist and cultural critic Henry Louis Gates, Jr. divulges the family trees of various celebrities, many times with stunning revelations.
  • 51min
  • Seasons: 10
  • Episodes: 106
T4
Continuing

Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

season 4

serie United States 2012

Episode rating

8.0
E1
8.1
E2
7.8
E3
7.9
E4
7.8
E5
8.0
E6
7.7
E7
8.2
E8
8.0
E9
7.5
E10

Cast of season 4

In order of relevance in the season

Episodes of season 410

  • 8
    /10

    The Impression

    episode S4.E1 october 2017
    Comedian Larry David and leftist U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, whom David famously impersonated on Saturday Night Live (1975), learn about the horrors their ancestors faced. They also discover that they have more in common than they thought.
  • 8.1
    /10

    Unfamiliar Kin

    episode S4.E2 october 2017
    In an episode filled with incredible twists and turns, actor Christopher Walken, singer Carly Simon, and comedian Fred Armisen, each learn about a grandparent whose real identity and background had been a mystery to them.
  • 7.8
    /10

    Puritans and Pioneers

    episode S4.E3 october 2017
    Actors Ted Danson, his wife Mary Steenburgen, and William H. Macy, are three mainstays of modern-day Hollywood, who discover that their family legacies predate the United States, itself.
  • 7.9
    /10

    The Vanguard

    episode S4.E4 october 2017
    Three guests, journalist and author Ta-Nehisi Coates, film director Ava DuVernay and transgender activist Janet Mock, find their identities challenged. By placing their ancestors' lives in the context of history, they gain an appreciation for their family narratives and see how those narratives illustrate the diversity of the black experience.
  • 7.8
    /10

    Immigrant Nation

    episode S4.E5 october 2017
    Three guests, actress Scarlett Johansson, comedian Paul Rudd and actor John Turturro, explore the tremendous challenges faced by their immigrant forebears.
  • 8
    /10

    Black Like Me

    episode S4.E6 november 2017
    Three African-American guests, TV host Bryant Gumbel, producer Tonya Lewis-Lee and CNN journalist Suzanne Malveaux, delve deep into their family trees, discovering unexpected stories that challenge our assumptions about black history.
  • 7.7
    /10

    Children of the Revolution

    episode S4.E7 november 2017
    Three guests, actress Lupita Nyong'o, NBA star Carmelo Anthony and Republican strategist Ana Navarro, explore how their family trees were shaped by political turmoil and violence, discovering sometimes unexpected ancestry along the way.
  • 8.2
    /10

    Relatives We Never Knew We Had

    episode S4.E8 november 2017
    Actresses Téa Leoni and Gaby Hoffman, two guests whose lives have been shaped by family mysteries, are introduced to biological ancestors they never knew they had thanks to genetic detective work.
  • 8
    /10

    Southern Roots

    episode S4.E9 december 2017
    Musician Questlove, TV personality Dr. Phil and journalist Charlayne Hunter-Gault, three guests of disparate backgrounds, dig into their Southern roots, where slavery and its aftermath shaped families both black and white.
  • 7.5
    /10

    Funny Business

    episode S4.E10 december 2017
    Humorist Garrison Keillor (replaced by earlier Maya Rudolph story), comedienne Amy Schumer and comedian Aziz Ansari, who have found fame mining their family stories for comedy, learn about ancestors who overcame immense suffering.