Anyone seen Finding My Roots?

As the first episode of Who Do You Think You Are is getting closer, we are still wondering when Finding Your Roots will be back on the air. As you must know by now it you are a fan, the show has been on hold due to a conflict involving Ben Affleck. 

Affleck asserted improper influence on the PBS show when he asked that his ancestor be withheld from his family's episode. The ancestor was a slaveholder and apparently this was an embarrassment. Well, all of us can find embarrassing family members if we look long enough.

Mr. Affleck has since apologized but it didn't get the popular show back on the air any sooner. I came across one article by the Huffington Post that gave a January 2016 date for the show to return. However, I have not seen anything on the show's website or Facebook page that would confirm that fact. 

So until we hear a confirmation from the network, I will assume they are still investigating the problem. So that is the bad news, but the good new is that WDYTYA is almost ready for prime time!!

WDYTYA One More Time

Another season of Who Do You Think You Are will begin on Sunday, July 26, 2015, at 9/8c. This is the 7th season of this program. Wow. I must say there must be a lot of people out there who want to know who they are. Sometimes I think that the genealogists on the program make it all look too easy, but if they showed all the behind the scenes work it takes to produce this program, prospective family researchers might give up before they even get started. So it is good to see the end results. 

The executive producers, Lisa Kudrow and Dan Bucatinskey had a great idea and they had the courage to go with it. For that, all of us who have been doing this research for years should thank them for inspiring more people to look for more records. The more research, the more genealogists, the more connections we make. I think we have seen this on the websites that rely completely on volunteer work. We need to share our research both online and in person.

So this is the lineup for the next few weeks: (I would recommend that you view each episode, but if you are looking for research in a specific area that has been noted.)

Bryan Cranston. Breaking Bad. Civil War research.

Gennifer Goodwin. Once  Upon a Time. Mystery ancestors.

Tom Bergeron. Dancing With the Stars. French Canadians.

Alfre Woodard. Desperate Housewives. Origin of her surname.

And finally, J. K. Rowlings.  Harry Potter. French Roots. 

Enjoy!!
 

 

Fourth of July Freebies!

Ancestry and Fold3 are both offering free acess to some of their records in honor of the 4th of July. 

At Ancestry you will be able to search colonial records for the 13 colonies. This includes birth marriage, and death records. In addition to this visitors will also be able to search all census records from 1790 - 1940. This offer will last until July 6.  ancestry.com/cs/julyfourth2015

At Fold3 there will be free access to their Revolutionary War Collection til July 16, These records include war pensions, service records, and the war rolls, in addition to many others.  go.fold3.com/revolutionary-war/?xid=1858&utm_source=content&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=odp-wwii-may2015

So today when the family is not grilling or watching fireworks, find time to gather around the computer and see what roll your ancestors played in forming this great country. Happy hunting!