Fame in the 20th Century Fame in the 20th Century Fame in the 20th Century is a 1993 BBC documentary television series and book by Clive James. The book and series examined the phenomenon of fame and how it expanded to international mass media proportions throughout the 20th century. The 8 episodes were divided in roughly 8 decades, from the 1900s to the 1980s. Each episode highlighted world-famous people during that part of the century. James delivered interesting and amusing comments about the portrayed celebrities and the various ways they became famous. In the United States, the series were broadcast on PBS, though some footage
Death rates in the 20th century so. Fertility rates and consequently live birth rates declined over the century, while age-adjusted death rates fell more dramatically. Children in 1999 were 10 times less likely to die than children in 1900. For adults 24–65, death rates have been halved. The death rate for Americans aged 65 to 74 fell from nearly 7% per year to fewer than 2% per year. The introduction of vaccines for several diseases led to reduced mortality from them. Again developed countries felt the greatest benefit. In the 20th century, vaccines became available for many diseases which caused deaths: diphtheria, pertussis, tuberculosis, tetanus, yellow