From Edit to Air
by Barrett Golding
Below are three versions of a radio script for Savvy Traveler, the fifth part of a series about bicycling the Lewis & Clark Trail. The left-hand column is the first draft. The middle is the revision based on the comments of the SavTrav Editor, Celeste Wesson. On the right is the final broadcast version, revised after one more editing session. AX stands for actualities (field recording of interviews, sounds, musics); TRAX are my narration tracks. All AX times are actual; times for TRAX are guessed in the first two drafts, and actual for in the final. {My comments are italicized in curly-brackets.}
{This column is the first draft (version 5a) of the script. AX are cut rough and long. The TRAX script will be improved later, once we know what AX will stay. This draft is about 14 minutes; the finished piece will be closer to 10:00...}
{This column (5b) is the result of the edit of 5a with the SavTrav Editor. Editor was fine with the first section, but all others needed radical reduction. She also wanted more narration to set the story and history. At this point, I did some research to find ideas, in literature/history/etc. that would help the TRAX tell a story. The AX are tightened (but not as tight as they'll be for the final). Piece is now down to 11:30...}
{This column is the result of the editing 5b. Writing for TRAX gets more finely honed, as does the editing on AX -- all extra "um"'s and pauses removed (without upsetting speaker's rhythm), etc.. Piece is 10:35. This is what aired...}
Lewis&Clark Part5A - War
Lewis&Clark Part5B - War
Lewis&Clark Part5C - War
0:00-0:33 AX- FARRELL ADKINS [sings "Home on Range" w/ guitar]:
Oh, give me a home, where the buffalo roam...
And the sky is not clouded all day.
0:00-0:33 AX- FARRELL ADKINS [sings "Home on Range" w/ guitar]:
Oh, give me a home, where the buffalo roam...
And the sky is not clouded all day.
0:00-0:33 AX- FARRELL ADKINS [sings "Home on Range" w/ guitar]:
Oh, give me a home, where the buffalo roam...
And the sky is not clouded all day.
Home, home...
0:33-1:02 BG TRAX ["Home on Range" chorus and guitar at end heard underneath]:
We pull into Missouri's Arrow Rock Campground one early evening, as Farrell Adkins, the campground host, is pulling out his guitar.
0:33-1:02 BG TRAX ["Home on Range" chorus and guitar at end heard underneath]:
Jo and I just pulled into Missouri's Arrow Rock Campground. That's Farrell Adkins, the campground host. We're bicycling from Saint Louis to North Dakota, the Lewis & Clark trail, along the Missouri River. When you follow a large continental river like the Missouri, you're following the flow of civilization, expansion and contraction, war and peace.
0:33-1:02 BG TRAX ["Home on Range" chorus and guitar at end heard underneath]:
Jo and I just pulled into Missouri's Arrow Rock Campground. That's Farrell Adkins, the campground host. We're bicycling from Saint Louis to North Dakota, the Lewis & Clark trail, along the Missouri River. When you follow a major river like the Missouri, you're following the course of civilization: trade routes, war parties, settlers.
{Unlike the other sections, this first try came out close to what aired.}
{Just a little trim here}
{Editor thought Cherokee could get confused with Osage. So I moved "grandmother" up to give the two tribes some distance. A good editor often looks out for the listener, picking up little bits that may be confusing, which the producer, now immersed in the topic, may miss.}
1:02-2:33 AX- FARRELL ADKINS:
"Home on the Range," one of my favor-rite-ist songs. Beautiful evening here in Arrow Rock. This is famous for the Lewis & Clark trail; came through here, Arrow Rock here. This whole area was Osage indians and the white man came and traded with them for their beautiful pelts. We were told the other night, anything on four legs, and some things on two legs, the Indians traded to the fur traders. And then the fur traders gave them steel, tomahawks, knives and the muskets.
And I guess the Osage then, there were several other tribes around here that wanted to cash in on this trading with the settlers but the Osage fought off I don't know how many tribes, they were pretty tough, hombres, I guess.
And my grandmother was Cherokee, so I had kind of a fond admiration for the indians.
Then the white man, of course, he got tired of trading with them, and say we kinda like this land; we'd like for you to move off of it and so they were put on, set out; they went over to Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, and continued trading over there.
1:02-2:02 AX- FARRELL ADKINS:
"Home on the Range," one of my favor-rite-ist songs. Beautiful evening here in Arrow Rock. This is famous for the Lewis & Clark trail; came through here, Arrow Rock here. This whole area was Osage Indians, and the white man came and traded with them for their beautiful pelts. We were told the other night, anything on four legs, and maybe some things on two legs, the Indians traded to the fur traders. And then the fur traders gave them steel: tomahawks, knives, and the muskets.
And, I guess, there were several other tribes around here that wanted to cash in on this trading with the settlers; but the Osage fought off I-don't-know how many tribes, They were pretty tough hombres, I guess.
And my grandmother was Cherokee. So I had kind of a fond admiration for the Indian.
So, then the white man, of course, he says, you know, we kinda like this land; we'd like for you to move off of it. And so they were put on, set out; they went over to Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, and continued trading over there.
1:02-2:02 AX- FARRELL ADKINS:
"Home on the Range," one of my favor-rite-ist songs. Beautiful evening here in Arrow Rock. This is famous for the Lewis & Clark trail; came through here, Arrow Rock here. This whole area was Osage Indians, and the white man came and traded with them for their beautiful pelts. We were told the other night, anything on four legs, and maybe some things on two legs, the Indians traded to the fur traders. And then the fur traders gave them steel: tomahawks, knives, and the muskets.
And my grandmother was Cherokee. So I had kind of a fond admiration for the Indian.
And, I guess, there were several other tribes around here that wanted to cash in on this trading with the settlers; but the Osage fought off I-don't-know how many tribes, They were pretty tough. So, then the white man, of course, he says, you know, we kinda like this land; we'd like for you to move off of it. And so they were put on, set out; they went over to Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, and continued trading over there.
2:02-2:29 AX- FARRELL ADKINS [sings 2nd verse "Home on Range"]:
The red man was pressed from this part of the West,
He's likely no more to return
To the banks of Red River where seldom if ever
Their flickering campfires burn.
2:02-2:29 AX- FARRELL ADKINS [sings 2nd verse "Home on Range"]:
The red man was pressed from this part of the West,
He's likely no more to return
To the banks of Red River where seldom if ever
Their flickering campfires burn.
2:08-2:33 AX- FARRELL ADKINS [sings 2nd verse "Home on Range"]:
The red man was pressed from this part of the West,
He's likely no more to return
To the banks of Red River where seldom if ever
Their flickering campfires burn.
{This first draft, for now, is just to move script from Arrow Rock above to Fort Leavenworth -- a placeholder of sorts, to be replaced later.}
{Now that I'm sure both above and below sections will make the final cut, I do some research and refine the concepts for the TRAX. At this point, the script is written more for the page than the ears; just to communicate the ideas to the Editor.}
{And this is just better writing -- same thing, just shorter. Some refinements just convert the script from a written to a spoken one. During recording, other problems come up, and further revisions are made. Ever since vers5a, I had missed that "Chief Joseph loop" AX that was cut. I was able to rescue it and inject it here.}
2:33-3:02 BG TRAX [over guitar instrumental]:
A couple nights later, we cross into Kansas, and camp at Fort Leavenworth. We sleep well, even though the mosquitoes are biting, and a nearby kennel full of guard dogs are baying. Most disconcerting, though, is the military prison. The Army trains people to maim and kill. But if they actually do it, they often end up here. Fort Leavenworth is also an officer's school, and a repository of American history.
2:29-3:00 BG TRAX [over guitar instrumental]:
Lewis and Clark were army captains. Theirs was a military expedition. But also a mission of peace; to befriend the Indian nations. They wintered with the Mandans. Without Shoshone horses, they couldn't have crossed the Rockies. If the Nez Perce hadn't feed them, they could've starved in those mountains. While waiting for the snow to melt on the way back, they camped near the Nez Perce. They even had a kind of Olympics, horse racing, foot races, and target shooting.
AX- MATT NOWAK:
So there's a really strong tie between the military and the Nez Perce.
BG TRAX:
Matt Nowak is Natural Resources manager for Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, the only active-duty army base on the Lewis & Clark Trail. The fort's National Cemetery is one of the original twelve established by President Lincoln. The United States Disciplinary Barracks here is the nation's first military prison. A cemetery and prison, that's the accommodations the military provided the Nez Perce here.
2:28-3:03 BG TRAX [over guitar instrumental]:
Lewis and Clark were army captains, on a military expedition, to befriend Indian nations. They wintered with the Mandans. Shoshone horses got them across the Rockies. Nez Perce food kept the expedition from starving. On the way back, the army had a good ol' time with the Nez Perce; they had contests horse races: foot races, target shooting contests.
AX- MATT NOWAK:
So there's a really strong tie between the military and the Nez Perce.
BG TRAX:
Matt Nowak is Natural Resources manager for Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, the only active-duty army base on the whole Lewis & Clark Trail.
AX- MATT NOWAK:
We're standing on Nez Perce Way, actually on Chief Joseph Loop.
BG TRAX:
One of the first National Cemeteries is here. Along with the first military prison. And somewhere on the fort, along the Missouri, there's another cemetery, and another prison.
{Several large hunks of the rough-cut below, I knew, would have to go. But I was attached to them and couldn't bear to cut them from the start. (One consolation tho: longer versions of interviews can now find a home on the Web; this one's at the Great Pains & Accuracy Tour.) MATT, at this point, is way long (3:00); but I put the best in for the Editor to hear. We'll cut later.}
{And major cuts were what the Editor wanted. But she left it up to me to pick. Wasn't too hard. The Nez Perce War and the "visiting hours" were by far the best parts. Also dug up something from an outtake about the burial grounds, and this section started to take shape. This got MATT down to a duration (1:30) we could live with.}
{The Editor wanted the multi-"band" problem fixed -- that part about the "non-treaty" and "five bands," etc. I had tried to fix it before, unsuccessfully; but gave it another shot. In an outtake, MATT had said "band leader." I found a stray "the Nez Perce" in another outtake. And so was able to cut/paste a shorter, smoother sentence.}
3:02-5:57 AX- MATT NOWAK: [guitar end crossfades into wind/birds]
Yeah, I'm Matt Nowak and I'm the Forester and Natural Resources Director for Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. We have a couple of really strong ties with Lewis and Clark here. Especially since Fort Leavenworth is the only active duty Army base on the entire trail from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
On the other side of this grove of trees that we call Chief Joseph Picnic Area you can actually walk through the main channel where Lewis and Clark pushed their boats up the river. As far as Nez Perce goes, why do we have Chief Joseph Picnic Area and Chief Joseph Loop and Nez Perce Way. The Nez Perce, their connection with Lewis and Clark, first of all, is that they helped them an awful lot, in both directions. The two of them enjoyed each other's company. We know they wrote in the journals that they raced horses, probably played card games, kind of games of chance. So theres a really strong tie between the military and the Nez Perce.
Then in 1877 there was the Nez Perce War. I'm not going to go into the reasons for that. Really sad reasons as far as I'm concerned. But when the Non-treaty Nez Perce, there were five bands, the only two that survived the war were Joseph and Yellow Wolf. because the children were starving and freezing to death up in Montana, Joseph agreed to surrender to General Miles. Originally they were supposed to be taken back to their reservation in Idaho but the Army changed it's mind and instead brought them to Fort Leavenworth.
They arrived on train just right up here in the bluff area, from there , walked out across a road over here, across the bottom lands, and there was a horse race track out there and they were incarcerated inside that horse race track.
Chief Joseph was a... the media really picked up on him, he was a very eloquent speaker. They were a very proud people. They had a very good military history and so there were a lot of visitors that came from Kansas City and Leavenworth to see the Nez Perce. So many, in fact, that the army had to set up, in order to protect the Nez Perce from being bothered 24/7, they set a visiting hours for the people to come visit the Nez Perce.
It must have been quite a hullabaloo going at that time, at that time Leavenworth had about 50,000 people. It was a far larger city than it is today. In fact, it was the largest city between St. Louis and San Francisco. This was the jumping off place for the west.
One of the things that the military tries to do is to maintain good relationships for all kinds of people. And we do, specifically, have a presidential directive to conduct government to government relations with Native American nations. One of my personal desires is to do a monument for the Nez Perce and for all the Native American tribes, actually, that were affected by Fort Leavenworth. At the location where they probably would have gotten off the train, stood watching, right there by the airfield hangar area, looking out across where the tipis and the tents would have been set up...
3:00-4:34 AX- MATT NOWAK [guitar ends crossfades into wind/birds]:
Then in 1877 there was the Nez Perce War. I'm not going to go into the reasons for that. Really sad reasons as far as I'm concerned. But when the non-treaty Nez Perce, there were five bands, the only two that survived the war were Joseph and Yellow Wolf. Because the children were starving and freezing to death up in Montana, Joseph agreed to surrender to General Miles. Originally they were supposed to be taken back to their reservation in Idaho, but the Army changed it's mind and instead brought them to Fort Leavenworth.
They arrived on train just right up here in the bluff area. Walked out across a road over here, across the bottom lands. And there was a horse race track out there. And they were incarcerated inside that horse race track.
And we also know from the numbers that came in, there were 431 that came in on the train. And there was about 21 that didn't leave. And somewhere out there, probably in the vicinity of the race track, is where they were buried.
Chief Joseph was a... the media really picked up on him; because he was a very eloquent speaker. They were a very proud people. And they had a very good military history. So there were a lot of visitors that came from Kansas City and Leavenworth to see the Nez Perce. So many, in fact, that the army had to set up visiting hours for the people to come visit the Nez Perce, in order to protect the Nez Perce from being bothered 24/7.
It must have been quite a hullabaloo going at that time. Leavenworth had about 50,000 people. It was a far larger city than it is today. In fact, it was the largest city between St. Louis and San Francisco. This was the jumping off place for the west...
[SFX: Birds/wind.]
Matt Nowak on Missouri River
3:03-4:33 AX- MATT NOWAK: [guitar end crossfades into wind/birds]
In 1877 there was the Nez Perce War. I'm not going to go into the reasons for that. Really sad reasons as far as I'm concerned. But, the Nez Perce, there were five bands leaders. The only two that survived the war were Joseph and Yellow Wolf. Because the children were starving and freezing to death up in Montana, Joseph agreed to surrender to General Miles. Originally they were supposed to be taken back to their reservation in Idaho, but the Army changed its mind, and instead brought them to Fort Leavenworth.
They arrived on train just right up here in the bluff area. Walked out across a road over here, across the bottom lands. And there was a horse race track out there. And they were incarcerated inside that horse race track.
We also know from the numbers that came in, there were 431 that came in on the train. And there was about 21 that didn't leave. And somewhere out there, probably in the vicinity of the race track, is where they were buried.
Chief Joseph was a... the media really picked up on him; because he was a very eloquent speaker. They were a very proud people. And they had a very good military history. So there were a lot of visitors that came from Kansas City and Leavenworth to see the Nez Perce. So many, in fact, that the army had to set up visiting hours for the people to come visit the Nez Perce, in order to protect the Nez Perce from being bothered 24/7.
It must have been quite a hullabaloo going at that time. Leavenworth had about 50,000 people. It was a far larger city than it is today. In fact, it was the largest city between St. Louis and San Francisco. This was the jumping off place for the west...
[SFX: Birds/wind.]
Harper's Weekly cover, 1877
[SFX: Steam engine starts and continues under:]
5:57-6:07 BG TRAX:
There's many Lewis and Clark museums and exhibitions along the way. Joe and I had avoid most of them. We prefer to spend our days biking, camping and staying along the river. That's where, in Brownsville, Texas, we see the Captain Meriwether Lewis, a boat about the size of a football field. There's a man out front, waiting to talk to strangers.
6:07-6:13 AX- CLAY KENNEDY:
Well, I'm Clay Kennedy, I am a curator, they call me. I'm just a farmer out here between here and Peru.
[SFX: Steam engine stops.]
6:13-6:18 BG TRAX:
So we take the tour.
6:18-7:24 AX- CLAY KENNEDY:
Well, we wanna welcome ya aboard the Meriwether Lewis, this is an old dredge boat that used to work out here on the river. Back in the early thirties they built four of these boats just for the express purpose of developing a channel all the way from the St. Louis area to Sioux City, Iowa and those four boats worked for about 35 to 40 years and it pretty well had the river in the shape you see it now.
In kind of a nutshell, they deepened the river, that was the job of this boat, they narrowed the river and they also shortened it by over 115 miles. They cut off a lot of the oxbows, or loops, and of course you can figure out what would happen. It spread the river out to the point now that it cleans it's own channel, it scours itself out. They no longer need to dredge. I guess we just send our silt on down to the Mississippi and let them worry about it. I'd like to give you a little demonstration here of this engine only, I always tell people that we don't want to suck up Brownville so we'll go kinda slow.
[SFX: Steam engine starts.]
{Editor said cut CLAY. She was right. CLAY's gone. The only reason he was there in the first place was I liked the sound of his boat engine, and I liked him. I also like the history of dredging the Missouri to create a channel for barge traffic. But it really doesn't fit in this show. I'm hoping to do a whole show on the river itself, possibly for Living on Earth, using tape not used for SavTrav -- so maybe it's good he can't fit here. Clay will also be going up on the web. Now, how about we fill some white-space with some more pics...}
Clay Kennedy and the
Captain Meriwether Lewis Dredge Boat
Great Pains & Accuracy's
Grandmastah Meri Lew -->
<-- MC Bill "Sac's Man" Clark
7:24-7:44 BG TRAX: [over steam engine]:
Lewis & Clark boats, Lewis & Clark highway signs, and historical markers, and Lewis & Clark Hotel and Restaurant and laundromat. By the time we get to Omaha, we're about sick of the two Captains. So we're happy to be amongst folk who've never even heard of 'em...
[SFX: Engine crossfades w/ birds.]
4:34-5:06 BG TRAX: [over wind/birds]:
The Lewis & Clark Trail is amply marked by Lewis & Clark highway signs and historical markers. There's Lewis & Clark Inn, Lewis & Clark Insurance, Lewis & Clark Estates. By the time we get to Omaha, we're about sick of the two Captains, and happy to be amongst folk who've never heard of 'em...
4:36-5:06 BG TRAX: [over wind/birds]:
The Lewis & Clark Trail is well marked by Lewis & Clark highway signs and historical markers. And flanked by Lewis & Clark Inns, Lewis & Clark Insurance, Lewis & Clark Estates. By the time we get to Omaha, we're about sick of Lewis & Clark, and glad to be amongst folk who've never heard of 'em...
[SFX: Birds outside.]
{Again, the first rough-cut is hopelessly long. I love when the interviewee starts questioning the interviewer. It often brings out the essence of a story.}
{Again, Editor left it to me to chose cuts. She preferred the parts most easily understood (interviewee spoke with a think accent). This is another case where the editor, being new to the tape, may find hard-to-hear parts that the producer misses, being accustomed to the sound.}
{A little more phrase-whittling and pause-reductions knocked another :15 out for the final version.}
7:44-10:22 AX- INDIA GUY & ME:
SHEDHI [strong accent.]: I'm Shedhi from Madras, India. I came here to see my children. They are working here.
BG: And what are you doing here?
SHEDHI: I'm manager, bank. You're from which place?
BG: I'm from Montana which is way north of here.
SHEDHI: Montana. What are you doing?
BG: I am following the Missouri River, a trail called the Lewis and Clark Trail. Lewis and Clark were two explorers that came through in the 1800's.
SHEDHI: Hmmm.
BG: Never heard of them?
SHEDHI: Explorer, I know.
BG: It has meaning to people in the United States but wouldn't really mean anything to people outside. In India, do you have some famous explorers? Who are they?
SHEDHI: The saints, saints. They wrote about the Hindu religion.
BG: And did they travel?
SHEDHI: Yeah, they travel.
BG: Where would they go, what would they do?
SHEDHI: They go to forest and you heard about Buddha?
BG: Yes, I have.
SHEDHI: Siddhartha. He was a king's son but he didn't like that worldly life. He renounced everything, went to big forest and meditated and got enlightened. And he start Buddhism. Not kill anybody, not hurt anybody, not offend anybody and all people are like brothers and sisters.
BG: Do you practice Buddhism?
SHEDHI: No, we are Hindus.
BG: How is Buddhism and Hinduism different?
SHEDHI: We worship Buddha. Buddhism is now mostly spread in Burma, Thailand. Where in Hinduism, we have our own temples. Where Lord Krishna, Rama, Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma. They have so many gods, we worship. Marta, goddess...
BG: Do the Hindus and the Buddhists get along?
SHEDHI: Get along, no problem. No harm at all. They are just like brothers and sisters. Christianity also there in India, Muslims are also there. We live just like brothers, no quarrel at all. Thank you much.
5:06-6:46 AX- INDIA GUY & ME:
SHEDHI [strong accent.]: I'm Shedhi from Madras, India. I came here to see my children. They are working here. You are from which place?
BG: I'm from Montana, which is way north of here. Montana.
SHEDHI: Montana. What are you doing?
BG: I am following the Missouri River, a trail called the Lewis and Clark Trail. Lewis and Clark were two explorers that came through in the 1800s.
SHEDHI: Hmmm.
BG: Never heard of them?
SHEDHI: Explorer, I know.
BG: It has meaning to people in the United States but wouldn't really mean anything to people outside. Now, tell me, do you in India, did you have some famous explorers? Who are they?
SHEDHI: Not explorers. They're all, what is it called: saints, saints. They wrote about the Hindu religion.
BG: Did they travel, these people?
SHEDHI: Yeah, they travel.
BG: Where would they go, what would they do?
SHEDHI: They go to forest and you heard about Buddha?
BG: Yes, I have.
SHEDHI: Siddhartha. He was a king's son but he didn't like that worldly life. He renounced everything, went to big forest and meditated and got enlightened. And he start Buddhism. Not to kill anybody, not to hurt anybody, not to offend anybody, and people are like brothers and sisters.
BG: Do you practice Buddhism?
SHEDHI: No, we are Hindus. We have got our own temples. We worship Lord Krishna, Rama, Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma.
BG: Do the Hindus and the Buddhists get along?
SHEDHI: Get along, no problem. No harm at all. They are just like brothers and sisters. No quarrel, nothing.
5:06-6:30 AX- INDIA GUY & ME:
SHEDHI [strong accent.]: I'm Shedhi from Madras, India. I came here to see my children. They are working here. You are from which place?
BG: I'm from Montana, which is way north of here. Montana.
SHEDHI: Montana. What are you doing?
BG: I am following the Missouri River, a trail called the Lewis & Clark Trail. Lewis and Clark were two explorers who came through in the 1800s.
SHEDHI: Hmmm.
BG: Never heard of them?
SHEDHI: Explorer, I know.
BG: In India, did you have some famous explorers? Who are they?
SHEDHI: Not explorers. What is it called: saints, saints. They wrote about the Hindu religion.
BG: Did they travel, these people?
SHEDHI: Yeah, they travel, long.
BG: Where would they go, what would they do?
SHEDHI: They go to forest, and you heard about Buddha?
BG: Yes, I have.
SHEDHI: Siddhartha. He was a big king's son. But he renounced everything, went to big forest and meditated and got enlightened. And he start Buddhism. Not to hurt anybody, not to offend anybody, and people are like brothers and sisters.
BG: Do you practice Buddhism?
SHEDHI: No, we are Hindus. We have got our own temples. We worship Lord Krishna, Rama, Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma.
BG: Do the Hindus and the Buddhists get along?
SHEDHI: Get along, no problem. No harm at all. They are just like brothers and sisters. No quarrel, nothing.
10:22-10:41 BG TRAX [over birds]:
It's early morning. I'm walking around a park in downtown Omaha, watching the homeless start their day. Filled now with tales of brotherhood, I decide to talk to one of them, while he's singing and collecting cans...
6:46-7:11 BG TRAX [over birds]:
It's early morning. I walk around a downtown park in Omaha, and watching the homeless start their day. Filled now with tales of brotherhood, I decide to talk to one guy singing as he collects cans...
6:30-6:50 BG TRAX [over birds]:
I'm walking thru a downtown Omaha park in the early morning. The homeless are just waking up. And I've just been filled with tales of brotherhood. So I decide to talk to one guy who's singing, as he picks cans from the garbage.
10:41-10:59 AX- CAN-MAN & ME:
BG: Excuse me, mind if i ask you what you're doing?
CAN-MAN: What the hell, what does it look like I'm doing? Turn that thing off or I'm gonna stick it up your--
[SFX: Cans crashing. Traffic. Birds.]
7:11-7:23 AX- CAN-MAN & ME:
BG: Excuse me, mind if i ask you what you're doing?
CAN-MAN: What does it look like I'm doing? You either shut the son-of-a-bitch off, or I'm gonna stick it up your--
[SFX: Cans crashing. Traffic. Birds.]
6:50-7:06 AX- CAN-MAN & ME:
CAN-MAN: (hums in background)
BG: Excuse me, mind if i ask you what you're doing?
CAN-MAN: What does it look like I'm doing? You either shut the son-of-a-bitch off, or I'm gonna stick it up your--
[SFX: Cans crashing. Traffic. Birds.]
10:59-11:05 BG TRAX:
--He didn't want to talk. But I meet a mechanic, named Auguster, who does...
7:23-7:30 BG TRAX:
--He doesn't want to talk. But I meet Auguster, a mechanic, who does...
7:06-7:14 BG TRAX:
--He doesn't want to talk. But I meet Auguster, a mechanic, who does...
{I loved this guy/tape. It was one of those weird little moments that happens on recording expeditions, a connection, a good conversation. As with SHEDHI above, AUGUSTER asked me what I was doing, and I left it all in this first rough-cut.}
{The Editor was not as fond of the tape as I. She thought he was a bit hard to understand. Trouble with a piece of tape like this is: it can be cut, which means in some Editor's minds it should be. Fortunately, I wasn't working with one of those Editors. So I trimmed the tape and awaited her review.}
{The Editor was still unsure about this guy. I felt she was real close to wanting him out completely. So I ruthlessly slashed it to its essentials, leaving barely the time for the intervu to develop enough so it felt natural for him to ask if I thought he was "comical;" and for it not to feel too rushed for me to end the intervu ("Well, thanks."). I got it down to 1:00, which made the Editor happy. SavTrav ended up using part of this segment to promo the show.}
11:05-13:21 AX- AUGUSTER & ME:
AUGUSTER: The name of the park is Heartland of America Park. And it's the nicest park I ever seen, since I been livin' here in Omaha. And I've been here almost forty years. Watch the waterfalls, the flower gardens, and stuff like that. People are friendly. And this is where I come on my day off work. I work six days a week. I hardly have time to myself. So, I said to myself, now, one day a week, you need entertainment. So, ah, you say one guy you interviewed from India.
BG: Yeah. I'll tell you what were doing. Me and a buddy are travelling the Lewis & Clark Trail, the Missouri River.
AUGUSTER: Yeah, Missouri River.
BG: And then we just talk to people along the way.
AUGUSTER: Well, that makes sense. Talk to people. I mean, this is what you're doing. You're interviewing people, getting their general ideas about 'em. Or otherwise you'll be lost yourself, if you don't get general ideas thru people of cities and states where you never been. Because there might come a time where you want to live here in Omaha; you need to know what's going on; what's the nightlife like, and stuff like that. Yeah, you need to know these things. (Laughs). You think I'm comical don't you. (Laughs)
BG: You're entertaining.
AUGUSTER: (Laughs) They say I say funny things, but it's just entertainment. (Laughs).
BG: So you ever hear of Lewis & Clark. Did you ever learn about them in school or anything.
AUGUSTER: Lewis and Clark? I never been to Lewis & Clark. Yeah, Lewis & Clark is a junior high school. It's a junior high school here in Omaha. Yeah, I never been to Lewis & Clark.
BG: They were explorers, you know, like 1800s, they came thru here. That's what that's named after.
AUGUSTER: Oh, no, I had never heard of them. Heard of 'em, but not that Lewis & Clark I never heard of.
BG: Well, thanks.
AUGUSTER: Well, it was nice talking to you.
BG: It was great meeting ya; thanks for talking to me. See ya.
AUGUSTER: I held a pretty good conversation. [laughs]
BG: You sure did.
AUGUSTER: [Laughs]
BG: See ya.
[SFX: outside ambience crossfades with inside a van moving in traffic, continues under below TRAX.]
7:30-9:06 AX- AUGUSTER & ME:
AUGUSTER: The name of the park is Heartland of America Park. And it's the nicest park I ever seen, since I been livin' here in Omaha. And I've been here almost forty years. Watch the waterfalls, and the people are friendly. And this is where I come on my day off work. So, ah, you say one guy you interviewed from India.
BG: Yeah. I'll tell you what were doing. Me and a buddy are travelling the Lewis & Clark Trail, the Missouri River.
AUGUSTER: Yeah, Missouri River.
BG: And then we just talk to people along the way.
AUGUSTER: Well, that makes sense. Interviewing people, getting their general ideas about different states where you never been before. You need to know what's going on; what's the nightlife like, and stuff like that. Yeah, you need to know these things. (Laughs). You think I'm comical don't you. (Laughs)
BG: You're entertaining.
AUGUSTER: (Laughs) They say I say funny things, but it's just entertainment. (Laughs).
BG: So you ever hear of Lewis & Clark. Did you ever learn about them in school or anything.
AUGUSTER: Lewis and Clark? I never been to Lewis & Clark. Yeah, Lewis & Clark is a junior high school. It's a junior high school here in Omaha.
BG: They were explorers, you know, like 1800s, they came thru here. That's what that's named after.
AUGUSTER: Oh, no, I had never heard of them. Not that Lewis & Clark I never heard of.
BG: Well, thanks.
AUGUSTER: Well, it was nice talking to you.
BG: It was great meeting ya; thanks for talking to me. See ya.
AUGUSTER: I held a pretty good conversation. [laughs]
BG: You sure did.
AUGUSTER: [Laughs]
[SFX: outside ambience crossfades with inside a van moving in traffic, continues under below TRAX.]
7:14-8:14 AX- AUGUSTER & ME:
AUGUSTER: The name of the park is Heartland of America Park. And this is where I come on my day off work.
BG: I'll tell you what were doing. Me and a buddy are travelling the Lewis & Clark Trail, the Missouri River.
AUGUSTER: Yeah, Missouri River.
BG: And then we just talk to people along the way.
AUGUSTER: Well, that makes sense. Interviewing people, getting their general ideas about different states where you never been before, and what's going on, what the nightlife's like, and stuff like that. Yeah, you need to know these things. (Laughs). You think I'm comical don't you. (Laughs)
BG: You're entertaining.
AUGUSTER: (Laughs)
BG: So you ever hear of Lewis & Clark, in school or anything.
AUGUSTER: Lewis and Clark? I never been to Lewis & Clark. Yeah, Lewis & Clark is a junior high school here in Omaha.
BG: They were explorers, you know.
AUGUSTER: Oh, no, I had never heard of them. Not that Lewis & Clark I never heard of.
BG: Well, thanks.
AUGUSTER: Well, it was nice talking to you.
BG: See ya.
AUGUSTER: I held a pretty good conversation. [laughs]
BG: You sure did.
[SFX: outside ambience crossfades with inside a van moving in traffic, continues under below TRAX.]
13:21-13:30 BG TRAX:
Joe and I have taken to telling people, not that we're following the Lewis & Clark trail. But that we're following the Missouri River. That seems older, maybe nobler. Lewis & Clark took a long walk. So what. It's not that uncommon. Lots of people do it. I mean, take the guy who drives the hotel shuttle where we're staying in Omaha, he walked 2000 miles through the highest mountains on earth.
9:06-9:16 BG TRAX:
Joe and I have taken to telling people, not that we're following the Lewis & Clark trail, but we're following the Missouri River. That seems older, maybe nobler. Lewis & Clark took a long walk. So what. Lots of people do that. I mean, the guy who drives the shuttle at out hotel, he walked 2000 miles.
8:14-8:25 BG TRAX:
Joe and I have taken to telling people that we're following, not the Lewis & Clark trail, but the Missouri River. That seems nobler somehow. I mean, Lewis & Clark took a long walk. So what. Lots of people do. The guy driving our hotel shuttle, he walked 2000 miles.
13:30-15:46 AX- SULTAN RASHIDI & ME [driving in van]:
SULTAN RASHIDI: Back to 1985, we took a train to Kashmir, from Kashmir we rent horses and we went to ?, Katmandu, Nepal, Tibet. All these places that are in Himalayas mountains. Those places they don't belong any countries, they are between Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tibet, China and India.
Villages, they don't have any currency because they are independent. They don't belong any countries. So you have to give them something, they give you something, for to eat. The nature was... the beautiful nature I ever saw was Himalayas mountains.
BG: So there's not like a hotel?
SULTAN: No, it was all mountain. We sleep in the mountain, eat, we caught fish so it was always you and mountain and your horse, that's it. If you survive it's nature whatever he provide for you. that time was easy today it is not possible.
Because the situation between Pakistan and India and Kashmir fight, at war, it was just starting that time, 1985. So the tourist decide to not go because all the mountains covered by military. In my country is still war going on.
When I decide to left my country that time, Russia invaded the country. If you are working in the government, you have a choice, stay with the government or go to be a freedom fighter. My choice was not stay with either side because to work with the communist party also was not my choice and go to be a freedom fighter because I know them and they are not well educated . I see myself in danger and I decide to leave the country. I left in 1984, I went to India. Originally I'm from Afghanistan.
BG: Oh, freedom fighters, yeah, I remember them..
9:16-11:07 AX- SULTAN RASHIDI & ME [driving in van]:
SULTAN RASHIDI: Back to 1985, we took a train to Kashmir, from Kashmir we walked, ah, we rent horses. We went to Katmandu, Nepal, Tibet. All these places are Himalayas mountain. Those places, they don't belong any countries, they are between Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tibet, China and India.
Villages, they don't have any currency because they are independent. They don't belong any countries. So you have to give them something, they give you something, so for to eat. The nature was, the beautiful nature I ever saw was Himalayas mountains.
BG: So there's not like a hotel?
SULTAN: No, it was all mountain. Sleep in the mountain, eat, we caught fish. You survive, it's just nature, whatever she provide for you.
At that time was easy today it is not possible. Because the situation between Pakistan and India and Kashmir is fight, at war. It was just starting that time, 1985. So the tourist decide to not go because all the mountains covered by military.
And in my country is still war going on. When I decide to left my country, Russia was invaded the country. And if you are working in the government, you have a choice, stay with the government or go to that Freedom Fighter.
My choice was not stay with either side, because to work with the Communist Party also was not my choice, and go to be a Freedom Fighter because I know them, and they are not well educated. And I might, I see myself in danger and I decide to leave the country. I left in 1984, I went to India. Originally I'm from Afghanistan.
BG: Oh, Freedom Fighter, right. I remember that, sure.
SULTAN: Yeah.
8:25-10:01 AX- SULTAN RASHIDI & ME [driving in van]:
SULTAN RASHIDI: Back to 1985, we took a train to Kashmir, from Kashmir we walked, ah, we rent horses. We went to Katmandu, Nepal, Tibet. All these places are Himalayas mountain. Those places, they don't belong any countries, they are between Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tibet, China and India.
Villagers, they don't have any currency because they are independent. So you have to give them something, they give you something, to eat. The nature was, the beautiful nature I ever saw was Himalayas mountains.
BG: So there's not like a hotel?
SULTAN: No, it was all mountain. Sleep in the mountain, eat, we caught fish. You survive, it's just nature, whatever she provide for you.
At that time was easy today it is not possible. Because the situation between Pakistan and India and Kashmir is fight, at war. It was just starting that time, 1985. So the tourist decide to not go because all the mountains was covered by military.
And in my country is still war going on. And when I decide to left my country, Russia was invaded the country. And if you are working in the government, you have a choice, to work with the Communist Party, or go to that Freedom Fighter.
My choice was not stay with either side, because Freedom Fighter, I know them, and they are not well educated. And I see myself in danger, and decide to leave the country. I went to India. Originally I'm from Afghanistan.
BG: Oh.
SULTAN: Yeah.
{This is the germ of the idea for the end.}
{The Editor thought the idea would work, so I fleshed it out, with a little research and writing.}
{By this time I had sent the script to some other producers. They felt the end needed work. Larry Massett (a Transom- Special Guest) didn't think the Bowden quote would read well, so that was out. I thought it was long, that maybe I should cut the "Clark's son" part. But the Editor liked that (so did I). Here's how it turned out...}
15:46-16:12 BG TRAX [over traffic w/in van]:
It's almost quaint to think back on a time when someone mentions Afghanistan and we don't immediately think: Trade Towers, terrorists. About as quaint as, say, a Nez Perce thinking about the time before Lewis & Clark. One way we shape our culture is by meeting new people. Another way is by killing them. The Missouri River has seen plenty of both. Heading north towards the Dakotas, I'm Barrett Golding for Savvy Traveler.
11:07-11:35 BG TRAX [over traffic w/in van]:
How quaint; a time when someone mentions Afghanistan and we don't think: Trade Towers, terrorists. About as quaint as, say, a Nez Perce thinking about the time before Lewis & Clark. Charles Bowden, in his book Blood Orchid, wrote: "Lewis and Clark's journey marks one of the few happy moments in this place we call the West. After them, it will be all downhill, a spiral of killing and looting and displacement and disease."
When Lewis & Clark spent the spring of 1806 camped with the Nez perce, they engaged in all kinds of social interaction, sport and sex. Later, when the Nez Perce were captured, one of the prisoners was an elderly blue-eyed, sandy haired man. He said he was Captain Clark's son.
We shape our civilization by meeting new people; also, by killing them. The Missouri River has seen plenty of both. Heading north towards the Dakotas, this is Barrett Golding, for Savvy Traveller.
10:01-10:35 BG TRAX [over traffic w/in van]:
How quaint; to think of a time when Afghanistan doesn't mean Trade Towers and terrorists. Or a time on the Missouri when people had never heard of Lewis & Clark. Before the attacks, before the wars.
When Lewis & Clark camped with the Nez Perce, there was all kinds of social interaction, sports and sex. Sixty years later, when Chief Joseph surrendered, one of the prisoners was an old blue-eyed, sandy-haired man. The Nez Perce said he was Captain Clark's son.
We shape our civilization by meeting new people; also, by killing them. The Missouri River has seen plenty of both. Heading north towards the Dakotas, this is Barrett Golding, for Savvy Traveller.
Show 5: The Wars (audio of final version)
(10:50) Part Five: No Home on the Range, Chief Joseph's Race Track, Brothers Buddha and Brahma, and 2000 miles thru the Himalayas. Premiered on PRI/MPR Savvy Traveler November 2001.