During the New York City blackout of 1977, there was widespread looting, arson and a general sense of chaos and anarchy. Tonight’s American Experience revisits that event – caused by a cascading electrical failure during a severe storm – and puts it in a sociological and economic context. The best perspective comes from those who were there: “It was like something out of a world war,” says one person. It’s a sobering documentary – but not as disturbing as 1978’s Connections, in which science TV host James Burke approached the then-fresh blackout not only by explaining how and why it happened, but asking viewers what they would do if the lights, and the power, never returned. That’s scared me ever since – and that Connections episode also inspired the 1996 movie The Trigger Effect. Check local listings.