Benjamin Franklin – America’s Original Renaissance Man

Scientist, writer, publisher, diplomat, inventor, businessman – in his 84 years Franklin did it all. He contributed to the Declaration of Independence and played the key role convincing France to join the United States in the Revolutionary War. When the Articles of Confederation proved too weak, he helped craft the compromise that spurred the Constitutional Convention to success in producing the Constitution. Blaine Davies examines the life of the witty, brilliant and at times irascible Benjamin Franklin who as much as any Founding Father shaped our national identity.