James Thurber: The Life and Hard Times, a portrait of the humorist and author features an interview with writer John Updike (pictured).

James Thurber: The Life and Hard Times , the first major documentary about James Thurber (1894-1961), chronicles his varied accomplishments as writer, journalist, playwright, cartoonist and social critic--all despite the blindness that handicapped him for the last 20 years of his life. Considered one of the greatest American humorists since Mark Twain, Thurber is known throughout the world for his classic short story "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty." His comic drawings--made famous in the New Yorker magazine, for which he worked for many years--were admired by many, including Henri Matisse and George Grosz.

Narrated by George Plimpton, James Thurber: The Life and Hard Times , airs Friday, Jan. 21 at 10/9 p.m. CT on KET and Saturday, Jan. 15 at 8/7 p.m. CT on KET2. The one-hour documentary features interviews with John Updike, Edward Albee, Fran Lebowitz, Roy Blount Jr., Rosemary Thurber, Roger Angell and Alistair Cooke, among others.

Combining filmed excerpts with the comments of literary critics, humorists and biographers, James Thurber: The Life and Hard Times illuminates Thurber's life and his place in American letters, with a special emphasis on his influence on American humor and on contemporary authors such as Garrison Keillor, John Updike, Roy Blount Jr. and Russell Baker.

Several of Thurber's works were adapted for the screen. A remake of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, starring Jim Carrey as the daydreaming hero originally played by Danny Kaye, is scheduled for release this winter.

James Thurber: The Life and Hard Times , produced by Van Doren Productions, Inc. is closed-captioned for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. To find out more about programming on KET, visit the KET Web site at www.ket.org http://www.ket.org , a Kentucky.com affiliate.