Hostage in Iran

S04 E01 • Tuesday, Jan 21, 1986 • Jan 21

While the whole world watched, 52 Americans were held hostage in Iran by Islamic revolutionaries for 444 days. On the fifth anniversary of their release, using never-before-seen footage from inside the American embassy compound in Tehran, the hostages tell the story of their long ordeal.

Sue the Doctor?

S04 E02 • Tuesday, Jan 28, 1986 • Jan 28

For many doctors, practicing medicine has become a nightmare. Today, one out of every six American doctors faces a malpractice suit. Frontline takes an inside look at the fierce battle developing between doctors and lawyers over medical malpractice suits.

Growing Up Poor

S04 E03 • Tuesday, Feb 4, 1986 • Feb 4

The children of Chester, Pennsylvania are plagued by poor health, malnutrition, drugs, and family problems. Half of them live below the poverty line. Frontline follows them through the maze of social service programs available to them and discovers what it is like growing up poor.

Russia-Love It or Leave It

S04 E04 • Tuesday, Feb 11, 1986 • Feb 11

A unique look at the Soviet Union through the eyes of Americans as they attempt to escape the confines of a carefully managed Russian tour. They elude their government guides and search for their fellow man on the streets of the Soviet Union.

Tobacco on Trial

S04 E05 • Tuesday, Feb 18, 1986 • Feb 18

Life-long smokers who say their health has been destroyed by cigarettes are suing tobacco companies. Frontline correspondent Judy Woodruff takes an inside look at the preparation of these massive lawsuits, concentrating on a suit that would later reach the Supreme Court as well as presenting the emphatic denials of the tobacco industry, which says smoking is a simple question of personal choice and responsibility.

Divorce Wars

S04 E06 • Tuesday, Feb 25, 1986 • Feb 25

Half of all American marriages end in divorce. Using unique access to mediation and court proceedings, Frontline profiles the couples, the lawyers, the judges, and most poignantly, the children caught between parents.

Who's Running this War?

S04 E07 • Tuesday, Mar 18, 1986 • Mar 18

Eight months before the Iran-contra scandal broke, Frontline investigated the contras, probed the legality of private aid, and asked questions about the role of the White House and a mysterious Marine colonel named Oliver North.

AIDS: a National Inquiry

S04 E08 • Tuesday, Mar 25, 1986 • Mar 25

Fabian Bridges, a homosexual prostitute, bragged he had sex with six partners a night and refused to stop even though he knew he had AIDS. In a special broadcast, Frontline first follows Bridges' tragic journey across the US and later, a panel of national experts, led by Harvard Law School professor Charles Nesson, discuss how Americans should respond to this urgent public health issue.

Standoff in Mexico

S04 E09 • Tuesday, Apr 1, 1986 • Apr 1

Political violence is breaking out in northern Mexico. Frontline documents the growing unrest in Mexico caused by fixed elections, corruption, violence, and the widening gap between Mexico City and the more conservative border states.

Inside the Jury Room

S04 E10 • Tuesday, Apr 8, 1986 • Apr 8

For the first time on American television, Frontline cameras move inside a jury room to record the deliberations in a Wisconsin criminal trial. The results yield a view of 12 Americans grappling with guilt, innocence, and the nature of justice as never before seen.

Taxes Behind Closed Doors

S04 E11 • Tuesday, Apr 15, 1986 • Apr 15

For more than a year, Frontline has been behind the scenes with congressmen and lobbyists covering the deals, dollars, and politics of tax reform. Correspondent William Greider investigates how Washington really works as seen through this exclusive access to the inner circles of Congress.

The Disillusionment of David Stockman

S04 E12 • Sunday, Apr 20, 1986 • Apr 20

Former budget director David Stockman gives an exclusive interview to correspondent William Greider on what has been called 'the greatest free lunch fiscal policy' in modern times.

Visions of Star Wars

S04 E13 • Tuesday, Apr 22, 1986 • Apr 22

Frontline and Nova combine resources for the first time to explore the Strategic Defense Initiative. The program contains the most comprehensive information on Star Wars ever produced. Correspondent Bill Kurtis interviews Russian and American scientists, arms-control experts, and politicians to reveal the scientific and political implications of what could become the world's most sophisticated military technology.

Hollywood Dreams

S04 E14 • Tuesday, May 13, 1986 • May 13

Hollywood is called an industry, a place, a state of mind. But making it in Hollywood, and making movies, persists as part of the American dream. In the real world of agents, casting directors, aspiring actors, and studio executives, how are movies made? Frontline examines the fantasy and reality of Hollywood's five billion dollar a year industry.

The Bloods of 'Nam

S04 E15 • Tuesday, May 20, 1986 • May 20

A high percentage of men on the frontlines in Vietnam were young, poor, undereducated, and black. By most accounts, they had the highest casualties. But these young men say they were fighting two wars-against the enemy and against discrimination. Correspondent Wallace Terry, the author of 'Bloods,' the national bestseller on which this film is based, talks with black veterans who fought discrimination in Vietnam and who later confronted disillusionment when they came home.

A Matter of the Mind

S04 E16 • Tuesday, May 27, 1986 • May 27

Millions of Americans are mentally ill. They live in a world that is fragile and often frightening. Inside a halfway house in St. Paul, Minnesota, Frontline examines mental illness from the point of view of those who struggle with it as they fight their psychological demons and confront the social stigma of their disease.

Holy War, Holy Terror

S04 E17 • Tuesday, Jun 3, 1986 • Jun 3

Frontline correspondent John Laurence examines the background of the Islamic Revolution, the roots of radical Shiism and reveals why Iran's war with Iraq is an important step in spreading their brand of Islam throughout the world.

Will There Always Be an England?

S04 E18 • Tuesday, Jun 10, 1986 • Jun 10

England is a country divided. One in five workers in northern England is unemployed, while in the south of the country, power, privilege prevail. Ofra Bikel explores Britain's social structure, cultural values, and attitudes toward enterprise and work.

Assault on Affirmative Action

S04 E19 • Tuesday, Jun 17, 1986 • Jun 17

The Supreme Court ruled against a Memphis firefighter who successfully fought for an affirmative action plan for the hiring of fellow firefighters in 1984. As a result, the Justice Department asked 50 cities to tighten their affirmative action policies. Correspondent George Curry examines the 20 year conflict over these policies and reveals the point of view of those whom it affects.

Comrades I: The Education of Rita

S04 E20 • Tuesday, Jul 1, 1986 • Jul 1

Rita Tikhonova, 21, is a model Russian citizen. The lifestyle and ambitions of an outstanding Young Communist League member in Moscow are depicted as she completes her education at a prestigious school and begins her first teaching job.

Comrades II: Hunter and Son

S04 E21 • Tuesday, Jul 8, 1986 • Jul 8

For four months every year, Mikhail Kuzakov and his son, Yuri, leave the comforts of home for the Siberian wilderness, where they hunt on horseback for sable and other valuable fur animals. Frontline examines life in the taiga and follows the hunt of father and son.

Comrades III: All that Jazz

S04 E22 • Tuesday, Jul 15, 1986 • Jul 15

Sergei Kuryokhin is a popular Russian jazz and rock musician who is disapproved of by the state because his music is difficult to control. Made without the permission of Soviet authorities on a home video camera, Frontline takes a look at the Soviet music subculture and this one talented musician.

Comrades IV: The Trial of Tamara Russo

S04 E23 • Tuesday, Jul 22, 1986 • Jul 22

Frontline examines the differences in Soviet and Western justice systems as it contrasts the lives of Tamara Russo, a 50-year-old hospital orderly on trial for theft in Soviet Moldavia, and Lyubov Bubulic, the female judge presiding over Russo's case.

Comrades V: Master of Samarkand

S04 E24 • Tuesday, Jul 29, 1986 • Jul 29

Abdugaffar Khakkulov is a master craftsman of Uzbek heritage who for 35 years has been restoring the great Islamic mosques in Samarkand. Frontline examines daily life in a Muslim community and explores the uneasy relationship between Islamic faith and Soviet power.

Comrades VI: Pacific Outpost

S04 E25 • Tuesday, Aug 5, 1986 • Aug 5

Frontline gained unique access in filming the inner workings of the local government system in Nakhodka, a town six thousand miles and seven time zones from Moscow. Here, Frontline profiles the workaholic lifestyle of Tatyana Naumova, a communist zealot and town official in Nakhodka, and the tensions it creates with her husband, who cares for their two daughters.

Comrades VII: Steel Mill Soccer

S04 E26 • Tuesday, Aug 12, 1986 • Aug 12

Frontline profiles the lives of players on a factory soccer team in the southern Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan as they fight for the town championship.

Comrades VIII: Doctor in Moscow

S04 E27 • Tuesday, Aug 19, 1986 • Aug 19

Svyatoslav Nilolaevich Fyodorov is an outspoken and provocative eye surgeon whose surgical technique for correcting nearsightedness has made him famous. He lives like a superstar with a chauffeur, a sumptuous apartment in Moscow, and a house in the country. Frontline follows Fyodorov through his day and reveals what life is really like for privileged Soviet Citizens.

Comrades IX: Baltic Chic

S04 E28 • Tuesday, Aug 26, 1986 • Aug 26

Comrades X: Soldier Boy

S04 E29 • Tuesday, Aug 26, 1986 • Aug 26

For the first time on Western television, Frontline details a recruit's life inside a Soviet Army barracks. Frontline cameras follow Valera Krylov, 18, through the exertion and boredom of basic training in the military and focuses on his parents, who worry that in the next two years he may be fighting in Afghanistan.

Comrades XI: October Harvest

S04 E30 • Tuesday, Sep 2, 1986 • Sep 2

The Kulinich family lives and works on a collective farm in southern Russia. Frontline follows the Kulinichs through their daily lives during harvest time and takes a close look at the workings of the collective farm system to find that they, like many other Russian peasants, have discovered their own version of the Communist way of life-Leninism with loopholes.

Comrades XII: Leningrad Movie

S04 E31 • Tuesday, Sep 9, 1986 • Sep 9

Soviet film directors have one advantage over Westerners: the state takes care of the budget. But in return, the state expects firm control over all productions. Dinara Asanova, one of the few female directors of Soviet features, knows how to bend the rules-departing from approved scripts and changing characters and locations, with controversial results.