Ken Burns on how democracy saved the best places for all
Filmmaker Ken Burns discusses his latest project: a series on the National Parks System.
By Gregory M. Lamb | Staff writer for The Christian Science Monitor/ September 29, 2009 edition
“What would we be like without the national parks?” Ken Burns calls that the “It’s a Wonderful Life” question, the one raised in the classic Christmas movie. What if Americans hadn’t stepped up to save their special places?
“If there were no national parks, the Grand Canyon would be lined with mansions inaccessible to us mere mortals,” Mr. Burns says. “If there were no national parks, Zion and Yosemite – two of the most beautiful places on earth – would be gated communities. If there were no national parks, Yellowstone would be an amusement park. If there were no national parks, the Everglades would be drained and filled with subdivisions and tract housing.”
As Americans moved westward, many saw resources to be exploited, says the documentary filmmaker, whose achievements include “The Civil War,” “Baseball,” and “Jazz.” “We look at a river and think ‘dam.’ We look at a beautiful stand of trees and think ‘board feet.’ We look at a canyon and think what minerals can be extracted from it.”
But another strain also wound through the American mind, he says, one that saw in nature “cathedrals of God’s handiwork” and surmised that “we could do no better than to return to nature for some sense of touching something larger than ourselves.”
Those impulses finally resulted in the formation of the National Park Service in 1916. But that event, Burns points out in an interview with the Monitor at the WGBH studios in Boston, isn’t covered until midway into the third of the six, two-hour episodes of his latest project, “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea,” which began airing on PBS Sept. 27.
While some might argue that Jefferson’s “all men are created equal” is America’s best idea, the nation’s founding principles lie beneath the idea of creating parks. “Only a democracy could have thought that land could have been set aside, not for the rich and nobility, but for everybody for all time,” Burns says.
The effort began by saving the obvious: the greatest waterfall (Yosemite), the greatest canyon (the Grand Canyon), the greatest geysers (Yellowstone).
But the idea has expanded to include sites of historical and cultural importance, from hallowed Civil War battlefields to places of national shame (Indian massacres) or tragedy (the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum, honoring the victims of the 1995 terrorist bombing).
While “National Parks” dazzles with spectacular cinematography shot over six years, in typical Burns fashion it’s also the intimate story of individuals. You meet the “famous white guys,” such as Teddy Roosevelt and John Muir, he says. But it’s also a “bottom up” story “that’s black and brown and red and yellow and female and unknown.” That diversity wasn’t the result of being politically correct, he says. Rather, it naturally occurred “by lifting up the rock at any given park and looking at its story.”
The concern that Americans may be “loving their parks to death” by crowding into them has been tempered by flat attendance figures (275 million visitors in 2008) in recent years, though Yellowstone reported record crowds this summer.
Burns argues that encouraging more Americans to visit their national parks is the best way to protect them. As a result of the PBS series, “I hope that every superintendent of every national park … [will] be angry with us because they have so many people, and they don’t know what to do with them,” he says.
Americans are “co-owners of some of the most spectacular scenery on earth,” Burns says. “And all you’ve got to do is go out and visit your property now and then, and make sure it’s being taken care of. And put it in your will for the next generation.”
Editor’s note: If you’d like to read more about the state of the national parks, click here to read “America’s national parks face challenges.”
For more articles about the environment, see the Monitor’s main environment page, which offers information on many environment topics. Also, check out our Bright Green blog archive and our RSS feed.
( More stories )
Comments
2. Bill Parker | 09.30.09
Dear Ken,
I love your complete history of the National Parks series. I have visited all of these parks since I was a kid. I know that there is always a place I can go and find peace, tranquility, beauty and serenity. These magnificent parks belong to the people of the United States. It is wonderful that you are able to access all of the information on those that preserved this beauty for all to enjoy. These beautiful parks could have been sold to private enterprise.
Thank You!
Bill Parker
Danville, CA
3. Scott Larsen | 10.02.09
As a lifelong resident of the Pacific Northwest where Ken Burns and his crew placed his magical cameras to capture the essence of some of our National Parks, I want to say a big thank you to you Mr.Burns and your crew. Spending summers camping in the Cascade Mountains with Mt. Rainier to the south, the equally majestic North Cascades to the north, and the Olympic National Park to the west, Burns captured the beauty as well as the contentious battles over establishment or expansions of some of these national treasures. Once again, Burns has ‘hit it out of the ballpark’ as I watched the series with tears in my eyes.
Scott Larsen
FDR in the PNW 2013
New Westminster, BC
4. Deano | 10.02.09
I am looking forward to Ken’s new series being sold to, and shown on, public service TV in the UK.
It puzzles me how citizens of the USA can take such a strong collective view of the ownership of it’s beautiful places yet have such weird non collective view about the health and well being of its citizens.
Good luck with you health service debate.
Deano
Yorkshire - England.
5. Mike | 10.04.09
The first thought that crossed my mind when I heard of this documentry was, this should be cool to see all of the places my family and I had just visited over 2 weeks in august. Well, was I ever surprised ,not only did I see so much more than I expected to see I also learned way more of the history of the national parks. If I had my way all children would see every moment of this series in history classes. Then I would also like to see all of our nations kids get a chance to experiance the splendor of our national parks in person. My only complaint is that we saw the series after returning home, had we seen it before our trip I would have realized that 2 weeks just doesn’t cut it. we spent 2 days in yellowstone, that should have been 2 weeks alone. As a family we are now planning our next several vacations to go back and spend much more time in each of the places we just visited so we can spend the time in each place as to not miss any of the glory. I would have to say I completely agree with the guy in the show that said after experiancing it with his kids that it was the most exciting days of their lives because the only thing that is better than seeing the sites is to see the looks on your kids face as they see it all for the first time. To say thank you isn’t near enough , so I’ll say we are forever indebted to Mr. Burns and his crew. See you all on our next several years of family vacations in “OUR” national parks.
6. Joan E. | 10.04.09
Just a little disappointed that we did not see most of the parks…. however the politics of the early parks really set the mark of what has to be done. I appreciate the history and the politics shared. It gives insight to what we have to do in the future to keep these places sacred.
Freeborn Minnesota
7. Ceilie Barnes | 10.05.09
Mr. Burns:
Thank you for the presentation.
I have been to almost all of the parks West of the Mississippi, well, probably all of the big ones anyway and a few national monuments. Thank you for the history stories, from John Muir to the biologists that died in the car accident. The Redwood trees/Sequoias humbled me in the same manner the bold face of El Capitan did or the smell of the salt as you gaze out over the Pacific or see the sun rise on the shore of St. Mary’s Lake in Glacier.
I grew up south of Voyager Natl in MN and have only been inspired a zillion times by trees, sunsets, paths of serenity, skipping rocks and wildlife.
I fell in love in Mesa Verde, with the man who took me there as a surprise trip after we began dating as I no doubt, bored him to tears about my interest in seeing places I could only aford to visit by book.
I felt as though I heard the voices in these places.
Made me want to go back again, only this time load all the grandchildren into an RV and force them to travel with us and learn about all the good things that make this country great. I did my trips on a motorcycle, which was great because then you could capture the scent of the trees along the way.
Thank you for your contribution and your faith in this country. Seems to be a thing of the past….loyalty to our heritage
C. Barnes
8. Rene | 10.07.09
Ken,
I was watching your “The National Parks - America’s Best Idea” documentary the other night. I loved the visuals, but I can truly say that I was utterly disgusted by the amount of “god” you put into this documentary. It would have been GREAT, had it been from a REAL and scientific point of view. Instead, we got a distorted point of view that this world should no longer have to deal with. How can you throw in something as inane as god and religion into something so beautiful?
I had to turn it off after a while, since I couldn’t stomach it.
It’s your documentary, and I suppose you can do as you please since it is your creation. However, my family friends and I believe you should be more responsible in what you teach. Right now, you are no better than those film makers that get away with a pg-13 rating and somehow manage to throw in a sex scene and extensive drug use into their film.
I a National Parks lover and supporter. I hope that in your future films, or if this is ever played again on TV, that there is a disclaimer or a rating stating that along with your images, and dialogue you will include harmful religious material.
Sincerely,
Rene
Trackbacks/Pingbacks
Leave a Comment
We do not publish all comments, and we do not publish comments immediately. The comments feature is a forum to discuss the ideas in our stories. Constructive debate - even pointed disagreement - is welcome, but personal attacks on other commenters are not, and will not be published.
Tip: Do not write a novel. Keep it short. We will not publish lengthy comments. Come up with your own statements. This is not a place to cut and paste an email you received. If we recognize it as such, we won't post it.
Please do not post any comments that are commercial in nature or that violate copyrights.
Finally, we will not publish any comments that we regard as obscene, defamatory, or intended to incite violence.
1. Kellie Pierce | 09.29.09
I love the thought that we, the owners of these properties, need to visit them. After all, isn’t that the whole point of setting aside these natural wonders - the enjoyment and use of all.