DOCUMENTARY FEATURES ORIGINAL FEMALE WASHINGTON POWER PLAYER
 

"Dolley Madison: America's First Lady" tells the story of the woman who inspired the title "First Lady"

ORANGE, VA-Dolley Madison, wife of President James Madison, was one of the first female power players in our nation's capital. Her famous "squeeze parties" brought together political adversaries to broker compromises in a civil manner.

When the British invaded Washington in 1814, she rescued George Washington's portrait, with the help of her slave Paul Jennings. Mrs. Madison held the first inaugural ball, where she was dubbed "The Presidentess." She also founded the White House Easter Egg Roll. The House of Representatives awarded Dolley Madison an honorary seat. Upon her death, she received the largest state funeral Washington had seen to date.

In honor of Women's History Month, a new documentary that highlights the life and legacy of the woman who inspired the title "First Lady" will debut. "Dolley Madison: America's First Lady" will air on PBS' "American Experience" on Monday, March 1, 2010. The documentary features scenes shot at Montpelier, James and Dolley Madison's estate, where visitors can watch as furnishings and décor are returned to their recently restored Virginia home.

AMERICAN EXPERIENCE “Dolley Madison,” a portrait of the woman who transformed the previously undefined role of the president’s wife and became America’s “first” First Lady, airs Monday, March 1, 2010, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET on PBS.  (Will be rebroadcast on Saturday, March 6 @ 1:30AM). 

“Dolley Madison” features interviews with NPR senior news analyst and best-selling author Cokie Roberts (Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation), historian Catherine Allgor (A Perfect Union: Dolley Madison and the Creation of the American Nation), presidential historian Richard Norton Smith and others. The distinguished cast of actors includes Tony Award-nominee Eve Best (“Nurse Jackie”) as Dolley Madison and Tony Award-winner Jefferson Mays (I Am My Own Wife) as James Madison.