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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready....
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Since 1996 |
Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready....
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Paving the Way (DVD) Narrator: Bill Painter Director: Brandon Wade Scriptwriter: Kendra Willey Composer: James Hersch Visuals: Terry Coolidge Depth and Field Productions Documentary For General Audiences Running Length: 114 minutes What better way to preserve American heritage than to establish a national park honoring a wonder of nature. From the 19th century on, national parks are throughout the U.S., but did you know that in 1920, a group of people decided to begin a Park-to-Park Highway trek? This at a time when roads to the parks were sometimes gravel and ruts and in one western park, Lassen Volcanic Park, there were no roads at all? Lead by adventurer and entrepreneur Anton Westgard, an over 70-day trip to twelve of the western parks was devised. This would be a way to introduce tourists to natural wonders, especially since trains and automobiles were providing transportation. The Park-to-Park Highway trek began on August 26, 1920 in Denver, Colo. continuing through the twelve western national parks of Mt. Rainier, Crater Lake, Lassen Volcanic, General Grant, Sequoia, Grand Canyon, Zion, Mesa Verde, Glacier, Rocky Mountain, Yosemite and Yellowstone. This DVD is in two parts, with a bonus section, and details the journey through the parks. Scenes of that time are photos from the book, “The Playground Trail” by Lee Whiteley and Jane Whiteley. The first part deals in putting this production together with interviews from director Brandon Wade, producer Jennifer Wade and scriptwriter Kendra Willey. Each one faces the camera with little or no expression, and though Part One could be a lesson in filmmaking, it moves slowly. Part Two has spectacular photographs from the book and narration by Bill Painter which adds depth to the story. No gasoline stations at convenient intervals, all types of weather conditions and generally fried chicken at each evening’s stop. Composer James Hersch’s music is an added touch. The DVD comes together in the bonus section, that ties Parts I and II together. This section could have been a program by itself to avoid so much time in front of a camera. All in all, the Park-to-Park Highway was a wonderful idea at the time, and as indicated in the film, only lasted about ten years because roads were being constantly improved, more parks added and more families had automobiles for travel. This is a view of the past and adventures of people who were determined to try something new. Their ages ranged from twenties to mid-seventies and are a slice of Americana. Two favorite shots from the DVD feature a car mired in the mud with the front end facing the camera, and a rear view of a car merrily slip-sliding down a muddy road. America, indeed, has moved forward on wheels. Copyright 2009 Marie Asner
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