Plot:
Alfred Blalock (1899-1964), a cardiologist (therefore, self-confident to the point of arrogance), leaves Vanderbilt for Johns Hopkins taking with him his lab technician, Vivien Thomas (1910-1985). Thomas, an African-American without a college degree, is a gifted mechanic and tool-maker with hands splendidly adept at surgery. In 1941, Blalock and Thomas take on the challenge of blue babies and invent bypass surgery. After trials on dogs, their first patient is baby Eileen, sure to die without the surgery. In defiance of custom and Jim Crow, Blalock brings Thomas into the surgery to advise him, but when Life Magazine and kudos come, Thomas is excluded. Will he receive his due?
Parental Rating:
[12+] TV-PG - Parental Guidance Suggested
This program contains material that parents mau find unsuitable for younger children. The theme itself may call for parental guidance and/or the program contains one or more of the following: moderate violance, some sexual sitatuion, infrequent course language, or some suggestive dialogue.