American Short Story

American Short Story (1980)

Genres - Visual Arts, Drama  |   Sub-Genres - Family Drama  |   Run Time - 38 min.  |   Countries - United States  |  
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Synopsis by Hal Erickson

This 40-minute TV dramatization of William Faulkner's Barn Burning stars Tommy Lee Jones as the truculent head of the Snopes family. Jones has a tendency to burn down the barns of local landowners who've incurred his displeasure. His son Shawn Willington wants no part of this vengeful practice, but is bound by loyalty to his family. Adapted for television by Horton Foote, Barn Burning was originally presented in tandem with a TV version of Mark Twain's The Man Who Corrupted Hadleyburg. Both dramas debuted on March 17, 1980, as part of PBS's American Short Story anthology.

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Keywords

barn, farmer, farmer's-son, father, revenge, pyromaniac