Branford Marsalis and Harry Connick, Jr.

For more than a decade, renowned Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr. has helped to expand America’s sense of itself, stimulating a national conversation about identity with humor, wisdom, and compassion. Professor Gates has explored the ancestry of dozens of influential people from diverse backgrounds, taking millions of viewers deep into the past to reveal the connections that bind us all.

Season 1 Episode 2 | 52m 40s | CC

In the first episode of Finding Your Roots, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. takes a trip to New Orleans to uncover the genealogical pasts and family histories of well-known musicians Branford Marsalis and Harry Connick Jr.

Finding Your Roots

Watch more episodes

52:41

Finding Your Roots

Adrian Grenier, Michelle Rodriguez, and Linda Chavez

The ancestral pasts of Adrian Grenier, Michelle Rodriguez, and Linda Chavez.

52:40

Finding Your Roots

John Lewis and Cory Booker

Henry Louis Gates, Jr. examines the pasts of politicians, John Lewis and Cory Booker.

52:40

Finding Your Roots

Barbara Walters and Geoffrey Canada

The ancestral pasts of journalist Barbara Walters and educator Geoffrey Canada.

Corporate support for Season 11 of FINDING YOUR ROOTS WITH HENRY LOUIS GATES, JR. is provided by Gilead Sciences, Inc., Ancestry® and Johnson & Johnson. Major support is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Support is also provided by Ford Foundation; Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation; Candace King Weir; by the Inkwell Society together with many of its members; and by public television viewers.

Subscribe to Our Newsletters

Get trusted Colorado stories, programs, and events from Rocky Mountain PBS straight to your inbox.

Set Your Preferences >