WHAT WE'RE DOING HERE TODAY WITH "THE CIVIL WAR"
IS THAT WE ARE ACTUALLY REMASTERING THE WHOLE PROJECT
ONTO A DIGITAL MEDIUM SO THAT WE CAN RELEASE IT ON DVD.
AND ALSO HAVE AN ANNIVERSARY,
12th YEAR ANNIVERSARY REBROADCAST ON PBS
IN SEPTEMBER OF 2002.
WHAT MAKES ME EXCITED ABOUT THE PROCESS
IS TECHNOLOGY HAS ADVANCED SO MUCH IN THE LAST 12 YEARS
THAT THE ORIGINAL FILM TO VIDEO TRANSFER
BACK IN 1990 --
THE TECHNOLOGY WAS NOWHERE NEAR AS GOOD AS IT IS NOW.
ALSO, BACK THEN, KEN AND I WERE NOT PARTICULARLY HAPPY
WITH THE OVERALL LOOK OF THE FILM,
BOTH IN THE FILM PRINTS AND IN THE VIDEO MASTER.
AND THIS GIVES US THE OPPORTUNITY
TO APPLY TECHNOLOGY THAT WE'VE USED ON PROJECTS RECENTLY
ALL THE WAY UP TO "JAZZ,"
WORKING HERE AT TAPE HOUSE
AND WITH ALL THESE NEW TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES
THAT HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED,
TO BE ABLE TO MAKE "THE CIVIL WAR"
AS GORGEOUS AND AS BEAUTIFUL AS, LET'S SAY, JAZZ WAS,
YOU KNOW, LAST YEAR.
SO WE'RE BOTH VERY, VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE POSSIBILITIES
THAT WE CAN REALLY MAKE THIS THING
LOOK THE WAY WE REALLY WANTED IT TO,
AS WE INTENDED TO 12 YEARS AGO.
THERE WE GO, YEAH, MAKE IT A LITTLE BRIGHTER.
LET'S INCREASE THE CONTRAST A LITTLE BIT ON THAT.
Man: I WAS PRIVILEGED TO MEET
ANSEL ADAMS IN 1971.
AND WE REMAINED FRIENDS TILL HIS DEATH IN 1984.
AND HE TAUGHT ME A GREAT DEAL.
HE ACTUALLY BECAME QUITE A MENTOR OF MINE.
AND ONE OF HIS GREAT QUOTES IS, "THE NEGATIVE IS THE SCORE
AND THE PRINT IS THE PERFORMANCE."
WELL, HERE'S THE SCORE --
THIS FILM, 12 YEARS OLD, IT'S OUR SCORE,
AND ON THIS SPIRIT DATACINE, WE ARE GOING TO
CREATE A WHOLE NEW PERFORMANCE.
WE'RE GOING TO GIVE YOU AN IMAGE THAT IS GREATER,
BETTER, MORE TEXTURED, MORE BEAUTIFUL TO YOUR HOME.
12 YEARS AGO THE TECHNOLOGY WE'RE USING
THE SPIRIT DATACINE,
WHICH IS GOING TO SCAN THIS MOVIE FILM, DID NOT EXIST.
IN THOSE DAYS,
FILM WAS TRANSFERRED ON WHAT WAS CALLED A TELECINE,
MEANING TELEVISION AND CINEMA.
SO A TELECINE WAS SCANNING THE FILM
ONLY AT TELEVISION RESOLUTION.
SO EACH FRAME, THERE'S SO MUCH INFORMATION
IN ONE SINGLE FRAME OF MOVIE FILM,
YET WE WERE COARSELY SCANNING IT,
ONLY ABOUT 480 LINES TO A SINGLE FRAME.
THE SPIRIT IS SCANNING THE FILM FIVE TO SIX TIMES GREATER
THAN THE OLD TELECINES.
WE'RE ACTUALLY SCANNING THE FILM AT ITS FILM RESOLUTION.
THIS IMAGE THAT I HAVE UP, IF I ZOOM IN,
WE'RE RIGHT DOWN ON THE ABSOLUTE GRAIN STRUCTURE
HAS BEEN CAPTURED
AT 2K RESOLUTION.
EACH FILM FRAME
IS ABOUT 14 MEGABYTES OF INFORMATION.
SO WE'RE SCANNING IT
AND THEN IN THIS 14 MEGABYTE FILE
I'M ACTUALLY CHANGING THE CONTRAST,
BLACK LEVELS, WHITE LEVELS, COLOR IMAGERY,
ON A SHOT BY SHOT BASIS.
UH, 12 YEARS AGO,
WHEN THIS FILM WAS SHOT, FILM WAS A BIT GRAINY.
IT'S IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY SINCE THEN.
WE HAVE A DEVICE ON THE SPIRIT,
BRAND-NEW, CALLED SCREAM.
WHAT I'M GOING TO DO IS ISOLATE --
LET ME ACTUALLY GIVE YOU A SPLIT SCREEN
TO SHOW YOU WHAT WE'RE DOING.
HERE, LET ME RUN THE FILM HERE.
LOOK ON THE RIGHT SIDE, THAT'S CORRECTED.
ISN'T THAT FABULOUS?
AND ON THE LEFT SIDE IS THE UNCORRECTED.
SO WE'RE ACTUALLY, YEAH, WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING ON.
WE'RE NOT LOSING ANY INFORMATION.
LET'S TRY IT, LET'S TRY IT ON THIS ONE, TOO.
Barnes: OH, THAT'S UNBELIEVABLE, LOOK AT THAT.
Dowdell: THIS IS REALLY GOING TO HELP US.
YOU CAN SEE ALL THAT ACTIVITY, THE HIGH FREQUENCY INFORMATION
OH, EXACTLY, IT'S ALL SMOOTHED OUT,
IT'S ALMOST ALL GONE.
I'M ALSO GETTING RID OF THE FLUTTER.
RIGHT.
SO, YEAH, I THINK THIS IS GOING TO REALLY IMPROVE IT.
AND NOTICE WE'RE REALLY DEALING WITH
THIS WHOLE GRAIN STRUCTURE.
OH, BOY, WHAT WAS THAT?
WHOA, THAT'S ONE HELL OF A PIECE OF DIRT THERE.
WE'LL DEAL WITH THAT UPSTAIRS.
I'VE GOT THE PERFECT GUY,
GOT TO GET GEORGE ON THIS PROJECT.
AND HE CAN DO THAT IN THE PAINT BOX,
HE'LL CLEAN THAT RIGHT UP.
Man: MY NAME'S GEORGE BUNCE.
I'M A HENRY ARTIST HERE AT THE TAPE HOUSE IN NEW YORK.
AND I WORK ON A HENRY FROM QUANTEL.
AND TODAY WE'RE GOING TO BE TAKING AWAY
SOME HAIR AND DIRT FROM EPISODE FIVE
OF "THE CIVIL WAR."
SO, FOR EXAMPLE, THIS HAIR...
WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN VERY DIFFICULT
TO GET RID OF IN THE PAST --
BY TAKING INFORMATION FROM THE FOLLOWING FRAME,
PUTTING THAT FRAME OVER THE TOP OF IT,
BRINGING IT INTO THE PAINTING SIDE,
THEN WE CAN JUST
ZOOM WAY IN ON THE PROBLEM,
AND JUST PAINT IT AWAY.
AND THEN WHEREVER I PAINT, IT'S REPLACING
THE INFORMATION FROM THE TOP FRAME
WITH THE UNDERLYING IMAGE.
SO REALLY...
PRETTY SEAMLESS.
THEN YOU JUST PUT IT BACK INTO THE CLIP
IT DISAPPEARS, NOW YOU CAN SEE
THAT HAIR'S GONE.
Barnes: "THE CIVIL WAR" WAS NOT DONE IN STEREO.
SO THAT WAS THE FIRST BIG DECISION WAS,
LET'S MAKE A NEW STEREO MIX FOR BROADCAST
OF "THE CIVIL WAR."
AND THEN, OF COURSE, THE THOUGHT CAME UP
THAT WE COULD ALSO RE-RELEASE THE FILM ON A DVD.
AND WITH DVD, WE HAVE
THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO A RICHER MIX
WITH A 5.1 STEREO SURROUND SOUND.
AND WE DECIDED THAT WE WOULD GO AHEAD WITH THAT AS WELL.
Man: SO THAT'S BASICALLY WHAT WE'VE DONE,
WE'VE TAKEN THE ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK, WHICH WAS MONO,
KEPT ALL THE DIALOGUE NOW IN THE CENTER SPEAKER
AND WE HAVE A LEFT, RIGHT CENTER TO PLAY WITH
SO WE COULD HAVE MORE EFFECTS SURROUNDING THE VOICE
TO GIVE YOU A MORE POWERFUL FEELING OF THE BATTLE SCENES.
AND, OF COURSE, THE MUSIC NOW IS TOTAL SURROUND.
IT'S FIVE MUSIC -- POINTS OF MUSIC.
AND IT'S A MUCH MORE INTERESTING EXPERIENCE
ON THE SOUND LEVEL.
IN THE CROWD, JUST A FEW --
REPLACE IT IN THE SURROUNDS, THIS MUSIC, A LITTLE BIT.
Man: THIS IS LIKE PLAYING A FINE GAME OF CHESS
GOING BACK OVER THE SAME MATERIAL,
SEEING IT ON A DIGITAL SCREEN.
YOU KNOW, COMPUTERS NOW HAVE A VISUAL QUALITY,
YOU CAN SEE SOUND,
LOOKING AT A WAVEFORM.
IN THE OLD DAYS, YOU COULDN'T SEE IT,
AND YOU COULD ONLY LISTEN TO ONE AT A TIME.
YOU KNOW, IN THE PRO TOOLS
AND ANY OF THESE OTHER EDITING SYSTEMS,
YOU CAN LISTEN TO 20 OR 30 TRACKS AT ONCE.
THAT WAS JUST UNIMAGINABLE IN '88, '89.
Barnes: I THINK WE SHOULD PULL THE APPLAUSE AWAY, ACTUALLY,
NOT SWELL IT.
LET IT DRIFT OFF.
Barnes: BUT AS WELL AS DOING A REMIX,
WE ALSO WANTED TO MAINTAIN THE INTEGRITY OF THE TRACK
THAT WAS ALREADY THERE.
AND KEN AND I DISCUSSED THAT
THAT WAS VERY IMPORTANT TO DO THAT.
WHEN PEOPLE FIRST SAW THE FILM BROADCAST,
THEY COMMENTED HOW MUCH THEY LIKED THE MUSIC,
THEY COMMENTED ON HOW EFFECTIVE THE SOUND EFFECTS WERE --
SO THAT WE DIDN'T REALLY WANT TO CHANGE A LOT IN THE TRACK.
IT WAS REALLY A MATTER OF PUTTING EVERYTHING
INTO STEREO AS MUCH AS WE COULD.
AND TO ENHANCE IT,
AND TO MAKE IT A RICHER EXPERIENCE SOUNDWISE.
AND SOME OF THE HIGH NOTES ARE GETTING IN THE WAY.
SO LET'S GO BACK AND REDO THIS CUE.
Barnes: AND WHEN WE FIRST FINISHED THE FILM,
BACK IN '89, '90,
YOU KNOW, WE WERE STRUGGLING WITH MONEY AND TIME.
WE WERE NEVER COMPLETELY HAPPY WITH THE WAY IT LOOKED,
AND EVEN MADE CERTAIN COMPROMISES IN THE MIXING,
JUST IN ORDER TO KEEP THINGS WITHIN BUDGET
AND TIME SCHEDULES.
AND THIS HAS ALLOWED US A LITTLE MORE FREEDOM TO GO BACK
AND IMPROVE THE COLOR ACROSS THE BOARD,
AND TO ENHANCE THE SOUND OR MAKE THE SOUND BETTER
ACROSS THE BOARD.
SO I THINK THAT WHAT WE'RE ABLE TO ACHIEVE HERE,
AND WHY THE TWO OF US ARE SO HAPPY ABOUT DOING THIS IS THAT
IT'S GOING TO FEEL LIKE A TOTALLY NEW FILM.
I MEAN, FOR THOSE WHO HAVE SEEN IT BEFORE,
THE EXPERIENCE WILL BE THE SAME, I'M SURE.
BUT IT'S GOING TO BE,
I JUST THINK, VISUALLY AND AURALLY,
IT'S GOING TO BE A RICHER EXPERIENCE FOR FOLKS
TO TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT THIS.
ROLLING.
OKAY, THAT WAS A TILT, MEDIUM TILT TO DOORWAY.
WE APPROACH OUR PROJECTS
WITH IGNORANCE AND CURIOSITY.
THIS ALLOWS US TO HAVE A PROCESS OF DISCOVERY.
WE DON'T KNOW UNTIL IT'S OVER.
WE HAVE CERTAIN BIASES AND SYMPATHIES
WHICH WE TRY TO EXPOSE TO OURSELVES
AND WE ALLOW THE CONSULTANTS, MOSTLY ACADEMIC HISTORIANS,
TO HELP US ROOT THEM OUT.
AT THE SAME TIME, WE HAVE A KIND OF JOYFUL RELATIONSHIP
TO THE PROCESS OF LEARNING SOMETHING NEW.
THAT'S WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THIS JOB.
CAN YOU IMAGINE IF EVERY FILMING LOCATION YOU WENT TO
YOU KNEW EXACTLY WHAT YOU WANTED TO GET,
INSTEAD OF BEING OPEN TO THE POSSIBILITIES?
WELL, WE ACTUALLY PICK UP THE REFLECTION
ON THE OTHER SIDE.
THE POSSIBILITIES, IN THE CASE OF LIVE CINEMATOGRAPHY,
TO LIGHT.
IN THE CASE OF STILL PHOTOGRAPHS,
TO A NEW ONE THAT'S NOT ON YOUR LIST
OF WHAT YOU WANT TO COLLECT, BUT A NEW ONE NONETHELESS
THAT IS GOING TO TAKE YOU IN A DIFFERENT DIRECTION.
WE SHOOT, NOT WORRIED ABOUT
WHETHER THERE'S A PLACE IN OUR SCRIPT
TO ILLUSTRATE THIS,
AND WE WORK ON A SCRIPT,
UNAFRAID OF WHETHER THERE'S PICTURES OR NOT.
AND THAT MAKES IT HELL IN THE EDITING ROOM.
YOU HAVE HUGE BATTLES.
Woman: BUT THE FACT IS, HE'S INVESTED
IN A CERTAIN INTERPRETATION OF THE HISTORY.
I MEAN, THAT'S WHAT HIS CAREER IS.
EVERYONE WE INTERVIEW
IS INVESTED IN A CERTAIN INTERPRETATION.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHY YOU HAVE TO GO BACK TO...
Burns: AND QUITE OFTEN,
A GOOD DEAL OF WHAT YOU DID SHOOT
GETS SET ASIDE, AND SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO CUT OUT
SOMETHING FROM YOUR SCRIPT
BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING TO SHOW.
BUT MORE OFTEN THAN NOT,
BECAUSE YOU'VE FILMED WITH THIS OPEN MANNER,
YOU FIND NEW WAYS TO TELL STORIES.
THE SCRIPT AND THE FILMING
ARE TWO PARALLEL TRACKS UNTIL WE BEGIN EDITING.
AND SO WE'RE CONSTANTLY DEVELOPING
THE SCRIPT FROM THE VERY BEGINNING,
AND WE'RE CONSTANTLY SHOOTING FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.
AND RESEARCH GOES ON FROM DAY ONE
AND ENDS
AFTER WE FINISH THE FILM.
RESEARCH ISN'T A PERIOD,
AND WE DON'T HAVE LEGIONS OF RESEARCHERS.
WE DO THAT HEAVY LIFTING.
WHAT WE NEED TO DO, THESE ARE DEFINITELY ORIGINALS,
SO WE'LL TAKE THAT.
I CAN'T IMAGINE SENDING ANYONE ELSE,
OTHER THAN THE INNER CIRCLE, TO GO TO AN ARCHIVE
AND CHOOSE PHOTOGRAPHS.
THAT'S TERRIFYING TO ME.
THAT IS A GREAT SHOT, I WANT TO STILL STAY WITH THIS GUY.
I THINK THERE'S GOING TO BE A FEW MORE THINGS TO DO.
AS I'M LOOKING AT THIS PHOTOGRAPH,
I'M NOT BOUND FROM THE REQUIREMENT OF WHAT TO FILM,
BUT I'M FREE TO EXPLORE.
AND I THINK THAT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE.
I HAVE AN IDEA.
IT'S NOT GOOD TO HAVE AN IDEA IN THE MIDDLE OF A SHOT.
HONORED PARENTS,
I AM NOW ON AN EXPEDITION TO THE WESTWARD,
THROUGH THE INTERIOR PARTS OF NORTH AMERICA.
GREAT IS BASEBALL, THE NATIONAL TONIC,
THE REVIVAL OF HOPE,
THE RESTORER OF CONFIDENCE.
IN SOME CASES YOU KNOW, IN THE VOICES THAT YOU CHOOSE,
EXACTLY WHO IS GOING TO PLAY WHAT PART.
I KNEW SAM WATERSTON WAS GOING TO PLAY ABRAHAM LINCOLN,
AND I KNEW THAT I WANTED TO GIVE HIM A CHANCE
AT THOMAS JEFFERSON,
AND HE HIT HOME RUNS IN BOTH CASES.
ASSURE ALL YOUR PARTY
THAT WE HAVE OUR EYES TURNED ON THEM
WITH ANXIETY FOR THEIR SAFETY.
IN OTHERS, YOU DON'T KNOW, AND IN MANY CASES,
YOU BRING IN A VOICE THAT YOU'VE WORKED WITH
OR A NEW VOICE THAT YOU'RE ATTRACTED TO
AND HAVE THEM READ A VARIETY OF VOICES.
WHEN THINGS LOOK DARK, VOID, AND ALL TOGETHER HOPELESS
TO THE COLORED YOUTH OF AMERICA,
THEY WILL ONLY NEED TO READ AND REFLECT
UPON THE REMARKABLE CAREER OF JACKIE ROBINSON.
Burns: WHAT PEOPLE DON'T REMEMBER
IS HOW MUCH OF AN ICEBERG THIS PRODUCTION IS.
FOR EVERY SHOT THEY SEE ON THE SCREEN,
THERE'S 20 OR 30 OTHER SHOTS.
FOR EVERY VOICE THEY'VE HEARD, THAT'S BEEN READ
FIVE DIFFERENT WAYS
BY FIVE DIFFERENT READERS,
AND THAT WE'RE CHOOSING SUBTLE CHARACTERIZATIONS
AND, SORT OF, MODALITIES.
ALL OF THESE HAVE TO BE LISTENED TO, RECORDED,
PUT TOGETHER, SPACED OUT,
ADDED TO A PARTICULAR PHOTOGRAPH,
WHICH WE'RE CONSTANTLY CHANGING WITHIN A SEQUENCE,
WHICH IS ALWAYS EVOLVING, ALL DURING EDITING.
Woman: LET US SEEK THEIR DEEPEST RECESSES,
WHERE, UNKNOWN TO OUR DESTROYERS,
WE MAY HUNT DEER IN THE BIG HORN
AND BRING GLADNESS BACK TO THE HEARTS OF OUR WIVES
AND CHILDREN.
THAT'S GREAT.
FILM SCORING IS TRADITIONALLY A MATHEMATICAL APPLICATION
OF MUSIC WRITTEN
AFTER THE FILM IS EDITED.
WE RECORD 90% OF OUR MUSIC BEFORE WE EVEN START EDITING.
AND THEN WE GO IN,
AND FROM THE VERY BEGINNING OF EDITING,
START TO ENGAGE MUSIC,
SO THAT MUSIC BECOMES,
NOT SOMETHING THAT YOU ADD TO AMPLIFY THE NOTION,
BUT SOMETHING THAT'S ORGANIC TO THE ORIGINAL EMOTION.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHY MUSIC IS ALWAYS ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS
THAT PEOPLE SPEAK ABOUT
WHEN THEY REACT POSITIVELY TO THE FILMS,
BECAUSE IT WAS THERE FROM THE BEGINNING,
AND SEEMS TO BELONG.
IT'S NOT SO MUCH THAT I'VE CHOSEN PBS,
BUT PBS HAS CHOSEN ME.
THERE'S NO OTHER PLACE ON THE DIAL
THAN PUBLIC TELEVISION,
WHERE YOU CAN DEVELOP YOUR ATTENTION.
AND AT THE END OF THE DAY,
OUR ATTENTION IS ALL THAT WE HAVE.
I HAVE NOT MADE A FILM IN THE LAST 15 YEARS
THAT WASN'T FIRST BROADCAST ON PUBLIC TELEVISION.
AND I HOPE THAT THAT'S TRUE FOR THE NEXT 15 YEARS.
IN THE OPENING OF THE "BASEBALL" FILM
WHERE GERALD EARLY,
ONE OF OUR GREAT ESSAYISTS AND WRITERS RIGHT NOW,
SAYS, "THERE'S ONLY THREE THINGS
AMERICA IS GOING TO BE KNOWN FOR --"
THE CONSTITUTION, JAZZ MUSIC, AND BASEBALL,
THEY'RE THE THREE MOST BEAUTIFULLY DESIGNED THINGS
THIS CULTURE HAS EVER PRODUCED.
AND YOU SORT OF LAUGH AND GO,
YEAH, THOSE ARE THREE GREAT AMERICAN THINGS,
AND YOU SORT OF GO ON.
BUT THEN, I DEFY YOU TO TRY TO FIND OTHERS
THAT ARE EQUAL TO THAT
IN THEIR TRUE, UTTER INNER SIGNIFICANCE.
AND THINK ABOUT THEM -- FOUR PIECES OF PARCHMENT PAPER
WRITTEN AT THE END OF THE 18TH CENTURY,
ABLE TO ADJUDICATE
THE MOST COMPLICATED AND THORNY PROBLEMS
OF THE LATE 20th CENTURY.
YOU GOT A SIMPLE CHILDREN'S STICK-AND-BALL GAME
THAT HAS INFINITE BALLET-LIKE COMBINATIONS,
AND YOU'VE GOT THIS MUSIC,
THE ONLY ART FORM EVER INVENTED BY AMERICANS,
AT WHOSE HEART IS IMPROVISATION.
THAT IS THE AMERICAN GENIUS -- WE DO THINGS ON THE FLY.
THOMAS JEFFERSON SAID "THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS,"
HE DIDN'T SAY "HAPPINESS," HE SAID THE PURSUIT OF IT.
IT MEANT WE WERE ALWAYS IN THE PROCESS OF BECOMING.
THAT'S OUR GENIUS AS A PEOPLE.
TO ME, I THINK THAT THE REASON WHY THESE
ARE THE VALUABLE MILESTONES IN HUMAN EXISTENCE
IS BECAUSE THERE IS SOME LARGER EMOTIONAL COMPONENT TO THEM,
THEY AREN'T JUST THE SUM OF THEIR PARTS.
AND THIS OTHER EMOTIONAL PART IS WHAT WE'RE AFTER.
WHY NOT HAVE A HISTORY THAT'S LIKE THAT?
WHY NOT HAVE A VISUAL HISTORY THAT'S LIKE THAT?
WHY NOT BE ABLE TO HEAR THE WORDS
AS WELL AS READ THEM?
WHY NOT BE ABLE TO SEE THE MINCING STEPS
IS THE HISTORY YOU DON'T KNOW."
THESE TINY LEGS ON TOP OF THIS BARREL-CHESTED BODY?
WHY NOT LOOK INTO JACKIE ROBINSON'S FACE
AND SEE WHAT HE HAD TO EXPERIENCE?
WHY NOT TALK ABOUT WHAT HE HAD TO DO,
THAN JUST READ THE STATISTICS
ON HIS PLAQUE IN THE HALL OF FAME?
THIS IS A DIFFERENT KIND OF HISTORY,
BUT I THINK IT'S ONE THAT GOES BENEATH THE SKIN
AND GETS INTO PEOPLE, AND THAT'S THE ONLY ONE FOR ME.
DESCRIBE FOR US, IF YOU WILL,
WHAT THAT ALCHEMY IS THAT YOU USE.
WELL, YOU KNOW, THERE'S NOT A PRIMER,
AND I'VE GOT LOTS OF SECRETS THAT I'M WILLING TO SHARE.
I MEAN, HOW YOU SHOOT ARCHIVES,
WHERE YOU JUST DON'T HOLD THEM AT ARM'S LENGTH,
YOU SORT OF GO IN
AND YOU LISTEN TO THE OLD PHOTOGRAPH.
WHAT'S THE SOUND OF THE CANNON?
OR THE BIRDS CHIRPING?
THE LEAVES IN THE TREES
OF THAT PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN IN 1863 HAVE A SOUND.
DO THEY RUSTLE?
WHAT'S THE DUST SOUND LIKE?
AND THAT'S THE WAY I LOOK, AND I DO IT,
I SIMPLY LOOK THROUGH MY CAMERA AND SHOOT AND FIND THE CLOSE-UP
AND THE NEW STORIES.
MY WORK IS NOT JUST INTERESTED
IN THE DRY DATES AND FACTS AND EVENTS OF THE PAST,
BUT IN THE EMOTIONAL ARCHAEOLOGY,
AND I HAVE CALLED MYSELF AN EMOTIONAL ARCHAEOLOGIST
BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THAT'S THE GLUE
THAT MAKES THESE COMPLEX PAST EVENTS STICK
IN OUR MINDS AND IN OUR HEARTS
AND PERMANENTLY A PART OF WHO WE ARE NOW.
THE BIG MISTAKE IS THAT HISTORY IS BACK THEN,
THE PAST IS GONE.
HISTORY IS RIGHT NOW.
"HISTORY IS 'IS,' NOT 'WAS,'" WILLIAM FAULKNER SAID.
AND WHAT HE'S SAYING IS THAT WE'RE NEVER GOING TO CHANGE
WHAT HAPPENED ON THE THIRD DAY OF GETTYSBURG
WHEN PICKETT LAUNCHED HIS ILL-FATED CHARGE,
BUT THE WAY WE ENGAGE OUR QUESTIONS NOW ABOUT IT
TELLS WHO WE ARE RIGHT NOW, AND THAT'S A GREAT THING.
YOU'RE VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT THIS, AREN'T YOU?
YEAH, WELL, I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS.
HARRY TRUMAN SAID, "THE ONLY THING THAT'S REALLY NEW
AND YOU JUST SORT OF SLOUGH IT OFF.
I MEAN, FOR MOST PEOPLE,
HISTORY IS JUST ANOTHER SUBJECT IN THE CURRICULUM
AND YOU FORGET THAT IT IS THE PAGEANT
OF EVERYTHING THAT HAS GONE BEFORE THIS MOMENT.
THIS MOMENT.
EVERYTHING BEFORE THAT IS HISTORY,
AND THAT CHANGES IT A BIT.
YOUR PIECES CAN RUN LONG.
THEY TAKE THEIR TIME.
THIS IS THE AGE OF FAST CUTS.
HOW DO YOU DO THAT?
WELL, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE --
WE'RE NOT TRAINED FOR THAT.
NO, WE'RE NOT, AND I GET INTO A LOT OF PROBLEMS
AND SOMETIMES YOU GET CRITICS WHO YOU CAN JUST TELL
HAVE SAT DOWN WITH 18 1/2 HOURS OF "BASEBALL"
AND ARE PISSED OFF, YOU KNOW?
18 1/2 HOURS?
I'M GOING TO WRITE THE SAME LENGTH COLUMN
FOR 18 1/2 HOURS AS I AM FOR THE SITUATION COMEDY
THAT'S 1/2 AN HOUR MINUS THE AD BREAKS.
BUT WE REALIZE, I THINK, IN THE END,
THAT ALL MEANING ACCRUES IN DURATION.
THE THINGS THAT WE ARE ALL PROUDEST OF,
THE WORK WE'VE DONE, THE RELATIONSHIPS WE HAVE,
OCCUR IN DURATION.
IT'S THE THING THAT WE'VE GIVEN OUR BEST ATTENTION TO,
AND WE REALIZE, IN THE END,
THE ONLY THING WE HAVE IS OUR ATTENTION.
SO I'M LOOKING TO TRY TO CREATE SOMETHING
THAT REMINDS PEOPLE OF THAT.
WE KNOW THAT THE HUMAN EYE, THE HUMAN BODY,
PHYSIOLOGICALLY CAN RECEIVE AN IMAGE AND READ IT
IN A FRACTION OF A SECOND --
MTV TELLS US THAT ALL THE TIME, BUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
DOES IT HAVE MEANING AT ALL?
AND I'M SUGGESTING THAT IT DOESN'T,
AND THE FOOTFALLS. THE DOOR SLAMS.
THAT SOMETIMES, IF YOU SAY,
LOOK AT THIS -- NO, NO, NO, DON'T CUT,
LOOK, HOLD, HOLD --
THAT MEANING ACCRUES IN SOME SORT OF DURATION.
YOU HAVE STATED THAT YOUR MOTHER'S DEATH
HAD A PROFOUND EFFECT ON YOU.
WHAT WAS THAT EFFECT? IF YOU COULD SHARE THAT.
MY MOTHER HAD CANCER, I MEAN, IT'S A STORY THAT'S REPLAYED
IN MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF AMERICAN FAMILIES.
THERE WASN'T A MOMENT WHEN I WASN'T AWARE, AS A CHILD,
THAT MY MOTHER WAS SICK AND POSSIBLY DYING.
SO THAT IF YOU CAN UNDERSTAND, A CHILDHOOD
THAT IS COLORED BY THAT OVERHANGING, IMMINENT TRAGEDY.
SO FROM 3 ON, TILL 11, ALMOST 12, WHEN SHE DIED,
THIS WAS THE OPERATING VIBE OF MY FAMILY.
AND A SOCIOLOGIST WAS INTERVIEWING ME RECENTLY
FOR A BOOK ABOUT PEOPLE
WHO HAD LOST THEIR PARENTS AS CHILDREN,
AND AT THE END OF IT, SHE ASKED ME THIS QUESTION,
AND IT SURPRISED ME, MY ANSWER.
SHE SAID, "WHAT IS YOUR MOTHER'S GREATEST GIFT TO YOU?"
AND I INSTANTANEOUSLY SAID, "DYING," AND STARTED TO CRY.
AND I REALIZED THAT THAT WAS THE TRUTH,
THAT IT WAS, FOR THE FIRST TIME,
ALMOST 35 YEARS AFTER SHE HAD DIED,
I HAD COME TO THE VERY PAINFUL BUT OBVIOUS FACT
THAT HAVING DIED MADE ME WHO I AM
IN NOT JUST BAD WAYS, AS ONE WOULD SAY,
BUT IN GOOD WAYS, TOO.
SO IN SOME WAYS, AMIDST ALL THE TRAGEDY,
AND I DON'T MEAN TO SAY I'M GLAD SHE DIED, OBVIOUSLY,
THAT THAT EVENT WAS A GIFT, A KIND OF CHALLENGE
TO HAVE A LIFE THAT WOULD NOW BE INEXORABLY CHANGED,
BY DISEASE AND THEN DEATH,
BUT ONE NEVERTHELESS,
FROM WHICH CERTAIN POSSIBILITIES WOULD THEN EXIST,
AND HOW WOULD I TAKE THOSE POSSIBILITIES
AND MAKE SOMETHING OF IT?
WERE YOU ABLE TO EXPRESS YOUR EMOTIONS?
WAS IT AN EMOTIONAL HOME LIFE?
I THINK YES AND NO.
I CERTAINLY FIND THAT THERE IS
SOME EXTRAORDINARILY THERAPEUTIC RELEASE
IN THE EMOTIONALISM OF MY FILMS.
I LOVE THE CATHARTIC CLEANSING THAT DEALING WITH SADNESS IS.
I REMEMBER THAT I USED TO WEEP
EVERY TIME WE GOT TO OUR NINTH EPISODE OF "BASEBALL"
IN THE EDITING ROOM,
EVEN WHEN IT WAS UNFORMED AND PRETTY BAD,
AT JACKIE ROBINSON'S FUNERAL.
AND I REALIZED, FINALLY, AFTER A WHILE -- I MISSED HIM.
I MISSED HIM, A MAN I NEVER KNEW.
I HAD GOTTEN TO KNOW HIM, IT WAS JUST LIKE LINCOLN.
THERE WAS A MOMENT,
THE MOST POWERFUL MOMENT OF WORKING ON "THE CIVIL WAR."
IT WASN'T DONE, IT WAS IN THE MIX
OF THE LAST EPISODE OF THE FILM,
AND WE WERE DOING THE ASSASSINATION SCENE
AT FORD'S THEATRE
AND WE HAD A VERY COMPLICATED
AND LAYERED, TEXTURED SOUND EFFECTS TRACK.
25 SEPARATE TRACKS THAT NOW HAD TO BE MELDED INTO ONE
IN A VERY COMPLICATED AND EXPENSIVE PROCESS FOR US
AND IT HAD BEEN GOING ON FOR WEEKS AND WEEKS AND WEEKS.
AND FINALLY, WE WERE IN THIS LAST EPISODE
AND IT WAS ALMOST CHRISTMAS --
WE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE DONE WEEKS BEFORE.
AND WE LAID IN THE TINNY SOUND OF THE PLAY THAT WAS GOING ON,
"OUR AMERICAN COUSIN."
WELL, YOU'VE ALWAYS SEEMED SURE OF HITTING YOUR MARK.
THE AUDIENCE LAUGHTER THAT WE ADDED IN,
WE HAD OUR OWN MUSIC GOING ON,
WE HAD THE NARRATOR DESCRIBING THE INEXORABLE MOVEMENT
TOWARDS THE PRESIDENTIAL BOX.
BOOTH SWALLOWED TWO BRANDIES AT A NEARBY BAR,
THEN RETURNED TO THE THEATER.
HE WAITED FOR THE LAUGHTER TO RISE,
THEN SLIPPED SILENTLY INTO THE PRESIDENT'S BOX.
AUGUSTA, DEAR.
HE HELD A DAGGER IN HIS LEFT HAND,
A DERRINGER PISTOL IN HIS RIGHT.
THE NASTY BEAST.
SIR, YOUR VULGARITY RENDERS YOU INTOLERABLE
IN POLITE SOCIETY.
WE LAID EVERYTHING DOWN,
NOW IT WAS TIME TO GO BACK AND ADD THE GUNSHOTS.
SO THE MIXER WENT BACK AND WE'RE MOVING TOWARDS,
AND I REMEMBER ONE OF MY CO-WORKERS LOOKED AT ME
AND HER EYES WERE BRIGHT
AND I SUDDENLY JUST REALIZED WHAT WAS GOING ON.
I YELLED, "STOP!"
AND THE MIXER HIT THE BUTTON AND THIS THING JUST SLOWED DOWN,
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM,
JUST TO THE MOMENT BEFORE THE GUNSHOTS CAME.
AND WITH $500 OR $600 OR $700 BUCKS AN HOUR
GOING THROUGH THE METER, WE JUST LOOKED AT EACH OTHER,
WE JUST STOPPED.
AND FOR A MOMENT, WITH TEARS STREAMING DOWN OUR FACES
IN RECOGNITION OF ALL THE EFFORT OVER 5 1/2 YEARS WE HAD PUT OUT
BUT ALSO FOR THE POWER WE HAD AS FILMMAKERS --
WE KEPT ABRAHAM LINCOLN ALIVE, ALIVE.
AND WE JUST LOOKED AT EACH OTHER
AND THEN EVERYBODY LOOKED AT ME AND I NODDED.
HE BACKED UP, WE KILLED LINCOLN,
AND THEN FINISHED THE FILM
AND WENT HOME FOR CHRISTMAS.
AND I WILL NEVER FORGET THE POWER OF THAT MOMENT,
WHEN, FOR JUST A BRIEF SECOND, WE ALL KEPT HIM ALIVE.
AND THAT'S WHY I'M DOING THIS JOB.
THERE IS, I GUESS, IN MY OWN LIFE,
BEFORE "THE CIVIL WAR" AND AFTER "THE CIVIL WAR."
WHEN YOU BECOME A DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER
YOU TAKE A VOW OF ANONYMITY AND POVERTY.
AND THOUGH THE EARLIER FILMS
HAD ACHIEVED A MEASURE OF SUCCESS AND AWARDS
AND NICE REVIEWS THAT SURPRISED ME AND STARTLED ME,
NOTHING COMPARED TO THE RESPONSE TO "THE CIVIL WAR."
AND IT CHANGED EVERYTHING.
IF YOU GO TO GETTYSBURG,
THEY'LL TELL YOU THAT ATTENDANCE IS UP 200%, 300%
SINCE THAT FILM CAME OUT, AND OTHER THINGS,
MOVIES AND BOOKS ABOUT THE CIVIL WAR.
SO WE'VE, AS A COUNTRY, REKINDLED AN INTEREST.
I HAVE A HARD TIME DOING AN INTERVIEW NOW
WITHOUT SOMEONE HAVING IN THE BACK OF THEIR MINDS,
EITHER PLAINLY ADMITTED OR AS A CLOUD,
WHETHER THEY'RE THE NEXT SHELBY FOOTE.
AS WE GO TO AN ARCHIVE NOW,
PEOPLE START COMING TO THAT ARCHIVE IN A SMALL TOWN
WITH MORE MATERIAL.
THEY WANT TO SHARE THIS.
I THINK WHAT HAPPENED
IS THAT FOR TOO LONG THE DOCUMENTARY ENJOYED
A KIND OF SECOND CLASS STATUS.
IT WASN'T SUPPOSED TO BE
AN ENTERTAINING OR AS EMOTIONAL AS A FEATURE FILM.
IT WAS CASTOR OIL, YOU KNOW, IT WAS BROCCOLI.
SOMETHING THAT WAS GOOD FOR YOU
BUT MOST PEOPLE DIDN'T THINK GOOD-TASTING.
AND IT WAS SOMETHING YOU TOOK BY HOLDING YOUR NOSE.
AND OTHER DOCUMENTARIES REMIND US
IS THAT THERE IS THE POSSIBILITY THAT WE HAVE NOT USED
THE FULL BRAIN OF THE DOCUMENTARY,
WE HAVEN'T ENGAGED ALL ITS PARTS,
AND THAT EMBEDDED IN IT IS THE POSSIBILITY
OF SOMETHING AS ENTERTAINING,
AS MOVING AS THE SO-CALLED FEATURE FILM,
THE INVENTED FILM, THE FICTION FILM,
THAT IN THE END, AS SHELBY ONCE TOLD TO ME,
GOD IS THE GREATEST DRAMATIST.
AND NOTHING COULD BE MORE DRAMATIC
THAN TELLING THINGS AS THEY HAPPENED.
NOT JUST IN BIOGRAPHICAL WAYS,
NOT JUST WITH, YOU KNOW, THE GREAT MEN OF HISTORY,
BUT AS THE CIVIL WAR SHOWED US, FROM THE BOTTOM UP --
THE GRUNTS WHO ACTUALLY DID THE FIGHTING AND THE DYING,
THE TOWNS THAT DID THE LOSING AND THE SUFFERING,
THE WIVES AND THE CHILDREN WHO WERE FOREVER TRANSFORMED
IN WAYS THAT WOULD ALTER AMERICA'S SOCIAL HISTORY.
AND OF COURSE, IN THE STORY, THE ON-GOING STORY,
OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN STRUGGLES AS THIS WAR CHANGED WHO WE ARE.
THERE IS NOT A DAY THAT GOES BY WHEN I DO NOT GET A LETTER
FROM SOMEONE ABOUT "THE CIVIL WAR" SERIES.
IT'S NOW 12 YEARS OUT,
AND PEOPLE ARE WRITING ABOUT THE SULLIVAN BALLOU LETTER,
FROM AUSTRALIA AND FROM ENGLAND
AS WELL AS FROM THE UNITED STATES,
FROM CANADA, AND MEXICO.
PEOPLE ARE SENDING ME PHOTOGRAPHS OF THEIR RELATIVES
AND THEY'RE ASKING IF WE CAN HELP THEM
IN CERTAIN GENEALOGICAL QUESTIONS.
PEOPLE ARE CURIOUS ABOUT WHETHER A PICTURE IN THE FILM
IS THEIR GREAT-GREAT GRANDFATHER,
OR DID I KNOW ABOUT THE REGIMENTAL HISTORY?
OR SCOLDING ME ABOUT LEAVING A BATTLE OUT,
WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN.
JUST AS IN "JAZZ" AND "BASEBALL" AND "CIVIL WAR,"
I NEED TO BE SCOLDED
FOR ALL THE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF EVENTS
THAT INEVITABLY FALL BY THE WAYSIDE.
BUT WHAT IT SAID IS THAT
WE WERE STARVED FOR A KIND OF NATIONAL SELF DEFINITION,
THAT THE CIVIL WAR WAS NO LONGER GOING TO BE THE PROVINCE
OF THE "BIRTH OF A NATION" CROWD
OR THE "GONE WITH THE WIND" CROWD,
IT WAS NOT GOING TO BE APPROPRIATED
ONLY FROM JUST A SOUTHERN POINT OF VIEW,
BUT WE COULD SEE IT AS THE TRULY SYMBOLIC EVENT
THAT RE-REUNITED OUR COUNTRY,
THAT MADE US TRULY THE UNITED STATES.
YOU KNOW, BEFORE THE WAR WHEN SPEAKING ABOUT OUR COUNTRY,
PEOPLE WOULD SAY "THE UNITED STATES ARE" --
PLURAL, THEY SAW US AS A UNION, A COLLECTION OF THE STATES.
BUT AFTER THE CIVIL WAR WE BEGAN TO SPEAK OF A NATION,
SOMETHING, A WORD THAT ABRAHAM LINCOLN USED,
A ONE THING.
AND AFTER THE CIVIL WAR,
WHETHER WE SOLVED THE QUESTION OF RACE OR NOT,
WHICH WE CLEARLY DIDN'T DO --
WHETHER WE TRULY UNITED PEOPLE
BASED ON THE CULTURAL DIFFERENCES,
NORTH AND SOUTH --
WHETHER THE UNFINISHED BUSINESS OF THE CIVIL WAR
IS STILL GOING ON,
WE NOW SAY "THE UNITED STATES IS,"
WHICH IN UNGRAMMATICAL.
AND WHAT THAT WAR DID WAS MAKE US A ONE THING,
MAKE US AN "IS" FOR BETTER AND FOR WORSE.
AND I THINK THE FILM, THE SERIES,
TOUCHED A CHORD ABOUT THAT,
AND IT REVERBERATES STILL,
AND IT WILL REVERBERATE AS LONG AS THERE'S A REPUBLIC.
AND IT HAS NOTHING REALLY TO DO WITH OUR SKILL AS FILMMAKERS
AS MUCH AS IT DOES TO THE POWER OF DOCUMENTARY
TO REMIND US OF WHERE WE'VE BEEN
AND THE KIND OF STRANGE ALCHEMY THAT TAKES PLACE IN THIS COUNTRY
WHERE MANY THINGS CAN BECOME ONE.
WE'RE PRETTY MUCH STILL A FAMILY.
FAMILIES HAVE PEOPLE GROW UP AND MOVE ON
AND START THEIR OWN FILM COMPANIES.
MY BROTHER WHO WAS THE CO-PRODUCER OF THIS FILM
HAS GONE ON TO MAKE SOME EXTRAORDINARY FILMS ON HIS OWN.
MANY OF THE EDITORS ARE STILL AROUND, WORKING WITH US.
BUT THEN WE'VE HOME GROWN A LOT OF OTHER EDITORS
WHO'VE GROWN UP ON "BASEBALL" AND "JAZZ" AND OTHER FILMS
AND MOVED ON.
THE NUCLEUS IS STILL THE SAME.
LYNN NOVICK IS STILL A CO-PRODUCER.
GEOFF WARD, STILL WRITING THE SCRIPTS.
BUDDY SQUIRES
AND ALAN MOORE ARE STILL DOING EXQUISITE CINEMATOGRAPHY.
SUSANNA STEISEL STILL FINDING THOSE STILL PHOTOGRAPHS.
PAM BAUCOM AND BRENDA HEATH AND PATTY LAWLOR
ARE STILL RUNNING THE OFFICE.
PAUL BARNES IS STILL EDITING.
WE'RE PRETTY MUCH
STILL A FAMILY.
AND EVERYBODY WHO'S WORKED AND MOVED ON IS STILL A FRIEND
AND WE'RE STILL CONSULTING.
AND SOME MAY COME BACK AND WORK FOR A FILM OR TWO
AND THEN MOVE ON TO SOMETHING ELSE.
IN SOME WAYS WE HAVE OUR OWN REUNIONS WITH EACH NEW FILM,
THAT REMIND US OF "THE CIVIL WAR"
AND EVEN PROJECTS BEFORE THAT.
BUT THE KIND OF EFFORT THAT WENT INTO "THE CIVIL WAR,"
I DON'T THINK WE'VE EVER EQUALED THE KIND OF PASSION
AND THE KIND OF LOVE.
OR WE'VE EQUALED IT -- WE'VE NEVER SURPASSED IT.
THE SENSE OF BEING TOGETHER AND WORKING ON A STORY
AND FIGURING OUT SOMETHING SO ABSOLUTELY COMPLEX
WHERE YOU JUST BANG YOUR HEAD AGAINST THE WALL
FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS,
HOW AM I GOING TO TELL THIS STORY?
HOW DO WE REDUCE IT?
HOW CAN WE DO JUSTICE TO IT?
AND IF YOU WORK WITH THESE
EXTRAORDINARY WRITERS AND MUSICIANS,
LET'S NOT FORGET THAT JAY UNGAR
AND MOLLY MASON AND MATT GLASER
ARE STILL PLAYING ON OUR SOUNDTRACKS
AS THEY WERE 20 YEARS AGO.
WHEN YOU WORK WITH THESE CRAFTSMEN, CRAFTS PEOPLE,
THE FILMS LAST.
THE HIGHEST COMPLIMENT I'VE EVER HAD
IS WHEN I GAVE A SPEECH
AT BOWDOIN COLLEGE IN BRUNSWICK, MAINE.
THAT WAS THE ALMA MATER OF JOSHUA LAWRENCE CHAMBERLAIN,
ON OF THE HEROES OF "THE CIVIL WAR" FILM.
AND THE PRESIDENT OF BOWDOIN COLLEGE,
AS CHAMBERLAIN LATER BECAME,
BUT THE CONTEMPORARY SAID "WE'RE HERE TONIGHT,"
ON A COLD, COLD NIGHT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE GULF WAR
WHEN NO ONE SHOULD HAVE BEEN OUT IN THEIR RIGHT MIND,
THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN GLUED TO THE T.V. SET,
FINDING OUT WHAT WAS GOING ON,
SEVERAL THOUSAND PEOPLE WERE THERE TO TALK
AND THINK ABOUT THE CIVIL WAR.
HE SAID WE'RE THERE, "WE'RE HERE BECAUSE WE WISH
"TO CONTINUE A CONVERSATION WITH KEN
THAT WE ALREADY THINK WE'VE BEEN HAVING."
AND SO MY FILE CABINETS ARE FILLED
WITH THE THREADS OF THE CONVERSATIONS.
YOU KNOW, THEY WANT TO TALK
ABOUT DAVID McCULLOUGH'S VOICE AS THE NARRATOR,
THEY WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE SUPERB NARRATION WRITTEN BY,
PRINCIPALLY WRITTEN BY GEOFF WARD.
THEY WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE CHOICE OF PICTURES
AND THE MAGNIFICENT JOB THAT THE EDITORS DID
OR THE MUSICIANS WHO PLAYED THAT.
AND YOU BUMP INTO PEOPLE.
I WAS AT KATHARINE GRAHAM'S HOUSE
FOR ONE OF THE FIRST PARTIES
WELCOMING THEN GOVERNOR OF ARKANSAS,
WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON, TO WASHINGTON,
AND I HAPPENED TO BE STANDING NEAR THE DOOR
WHEN THE PRESIDENT, OR THE PRESIDENT-ELECT CAME IN,
AND MRS. GRAHAM INTRODUCED ME.
AND BILL CLINTON SAID TO ME, "I KNOW WHO THIS IS."
AND HE GRABBED ME BY BOTH HANDS,
THE WAY AN AUNT WOULD TALK TO YOU,
AND HE BEGAN TO SPEAK TO ME ABOUT HOW WE USE
ARCHIVAL PHOTOGRAPHS, FIRST PERSON VOICES, AND MUSIC.
AND I HAVE GOTTEN THOUSANDS OF REVIEWS ABOUT THIS FILM,
AND NO ONE HAD SPOKEN WITH THE SAME SENSE OF CLARITY
ABOUT WHAT OUR ART WAS.
AND WE'D GOTTEN LOTS
OF INTERESTING DISSECTIONS OF THE FILM.
AND HERE WAS THE MAN WHO WAS ABOUT TO BE PRESIDENT
TELLING ME, QUITE ACCURATELY,
HOW I USED OLD PHOTOGRAPHS AND MUSIC AND SOUND EFFECTS
AND FIRST PERSON VOICES TOGETHER.
AND THEN AS HE WAS LEAVING THAT PARTY HE SAID TO ME,
AND YOU KNOW, ALL DURING THE CAMPAIGN
WE LISTENED TO THE SOUNDTRACK, INCLUDING "ASHOKAN FAREWELL."
AND I SORT OF SMILED WITH THAT SENSE OF I'M SURE
A LITTLE BIT OF SMUG SATISFACTION
OF THE EFFECT OF THE FILM,
AND AT THAT MOMENT THE SECRET SERVICE GUY CAME OVER
AND SAID, YUP, WE DID, WE LISTENED TO IT EVERY DAY.
AND YOU JUST REALIZE THAT IT'S NOT ABOUT US,
THERE'S SOME EVENTS
THAT JUST THROUGH SOME STRANGE STROKES OF LUCK,
PERMEATE THEMSELVES INTO CULTURE
AND BECOME A KIND OF COMMON BOND THAT WE SHARE.
AND RICH PEOPLE, FAMOUS PEOPLE, POOR PEOPLE,
BLACK PEOPLE, WHITE PEOPLE,
WOMEN AS WELL AS MEN,
WRITE, STOP ME IN AN AIRPORT OR ON THE STREET,
AND WANT TO TALK ABOUT SOME ASPECT OF THIS FILM
THAT HAS SOME RELEVANCE TO THEIR LIFE NOW.
WHICH REMINDS US, AS FAULKNER SAID,
THAT "HISTORY IS NOT WAS, BUT IS."
KEN HAS TOLD ME THAT IT WAS A RESULT
OF HIS HAVING MADE THE FILM ON HUEY LONG,
AND ROBERT PENN WARREN, OF COURSE, WAS PART OF THAT.
AND WARREN ASKED HIM WHAT HE WAS GOING TO BE DOING NEX
AND HE SAID HE THOUGHT HE'D GO INTO THE CIVIL WAR.
AND WARREN THOUGHT THAT WAS AN IDEA, A GOOD ONE,
AND CALLED HIM ON THE TELEPHONE AFTERWARDS,
AND TOLD HIM THAT HE SHOULD SEE ME AND TALK TO ME ABOUT IT.
AND KEN LATER SAW WALKER PERCY DOWN IN LOUISIANA,
AND WALKER CALLED ME TO SAY THAT KEN WAS THERE
AND WANTED TO COME UP, WOULD IT BE ALL RIGHT?
I SAID, "YEAH," AND THAT'S HOW I MET HIM.
I WAS SURPRISED THAT ANYBODY THAT YOUNG
COULD BE MAKING A FILM.
I THOUGHT HE WAS ABOUT 22.
AND I MAY HAVE SEEN "BROOKLYN BRIDGE,"
I THINK I HAD.
AND I ADMIRED HIS WORK ON THAT,
AND THAT WAS ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT MADE ME WILLING TO SEE HIM, TALK WITH HIM.
THEY WERE, I THINK THERE WERE
PROBABLY TWO OR THREE OF THEM HERE AT THE HOUSE.
AND WE ALSO WENT TO THE BATTLEFIELD AT SHILOH.
AND WE WENT DOWN TO VICKSBURG,
AND THERE WAS A LITTLE FILMING IN BOTH OF THOSE,
BUT MOST OF IT WAS DONE RIGHT HERE.
AND IT WAS PERHA, I'M GUESSING,
A COUPLE OF HOURS ON FILM, MAYBE THREE HOURS, AS MUCH,
THERE WAS A LOT OF IT, SHORT SEGMENTS, .
NONE OF IT WAS REHEARSED.
WHAT HE WAS GOING TO ASK ME,
AND I DIDN'T MAKE ANY SUGGESTIONS
ABOUT WHAT HE MIGHT ASK ME, OR WHAT MY ANSWERS MIGHT BE.
AND I THINK A CERTAIN INFORMALITY
RESULTED FROM THAT IN A GOOD WAY.
IT WAS UP TO HIM AFTER HAVING ALL THESE SNIPPETS
AND DISCUSSIONS AND THINGS TO PUT THEM TOGETHER
IN THE ORDER IN WHICH HE FINALLY WOUND UP WITH.
HE MIGHT BE TALKING ABOUT STONEWALL JACKSON AT ONE MINUTE
AND BEDFORD FORREST THE NEXT.
AND THEY WERE NOT NECESSARILY TOGETHER,
HE PUT THEM WHERE THEY BELONGED IN THE FILM.
THAT WAS THE BEST THING ABOUT THE FILM, TO MY MIND,
FROM THE VERY START.
WHAT KEN DID WAS SEND, OH, MAYBE 12 HISTORIANS
A PROSPECTIVE NARRATION SCRIPT,
TO SEE WHAT WE THOUGHT OF IT.
AND THEN HE ASKED US TO MEET IN WASHINGTON.
WE ALL SAT AROUND A LARGE TABLE IN SOME HOTEL THERE,
AND WENT THROUGH THE SCRIPT.
AND THERE WAS SCARCELY A THING THAT COULD COME UP ABOUT THE WAR
THAT THERE WOULDN'T BE TWO OR THRAE MEN
AROUND THAT TABLE WHO KNEW A GREAT DEAL ABOUT IT.
AND THE MOST ENCOURAGING THING, I THINK TO ALL OF US,
WAS THE MINUTE THAT KEN SAW THERE WAS SOME DOUBT,
HISTORICALLY, ABOUT A SCENE, HE WAS WILLING TO DROP IT,
NO MATTER HOW MUCH DRAMATIC VALUE IT HAD.
HE REALIZED THAT THE CLOSER HE GOT TO THE TRUTH,
THE BETTER THE FILM WOULD BE.
YOU CAN'T EVER REALLY GET TO THE TRUTH,
BUT THE CLOSER YOU COME, THE BETTER IT'LL BE.
I THOUGHT THAT IT CAME OFF IN A GOOD DRAMATIC WAY.
IT SEEMED TO ME TO PERHAPS LEAN A LITTLE HEAVILY
ON SLAVERY AS THE BIGGEST PROBLEM OF THE WAR,
WHICH I DON'T THINK IT WAS,
ESPECIALLY TO THE PEOPLE WHO FOUGHT IT.
THE DRAMATIC VALUE OF PICTURES HAD SO MUCH TO DO
WITH THE WAY HE TOLD THE STORY.
IT HAD THE VIRTUE
OF NOT NEGLECTING THE WESTERN CAMPAIGNS.
BUT HE HAD SO MUCH MORE PICTURES OF THE EASTERN CAMPAIGNS
THAT HE STILL LEANED IN THAT WAY A GOOD DEAL MORE
THAN I THINK IT SHOULD
FOR A TRUE HISTORY OF THE CIVIL WAR.
I THINK THE MAIN REASON IT WAS SO SUCCESSFUL
IS A COMBINATION OF KEN'S SKILL IN MAKING IT
AND THE SUBJECT ITSELF.
THE CIVIL WAR IS A SUBJECT THAT WOULD BE
ABSOLUTELY FASCINATING TO ANY AMERICAN.
WHETHER HIS FOREBEARS FOUGHT IN IT OR NOT,
IT IS A TREMENDOUSLY DRAMATIC THING,
AND THEREFORE, THAT PART OF IT CARRIES IT OVER TO THE PUBLIC.
WE EXPECTED THAT IT WOULD BE WELL RECEIVED,
BUT NO ONE, INCLUDING KEN HIMSELF,
HAD NO IDEA THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE THE BIG THING IT WAS ON PBS.
AND CERTAINLY, I DON'T THINK HE COULD HAVE MADE IT
ANYWHERE BUT ON PBS.
I DON'T THINK ANYONE ELSE WOULD HAVE GIVEN HIM THE TIME.
IT AFFECTED ME ENORMOUSLY.
I'D ALWAYS STAYED OUT OF ANY KIND OF SPOTLIGHT,
I NEVER WENT TO NEW YORK
WHEN ANY OF MY NOVELS WERE PUBLISHED
OR WHEN "THE WAR" ITSELF WAS PUBLISHED.
I NEVER HIT THE ROAD ADVERTISING IT THE WAY WRITERS DO.
I'VE ALWAYS BEEN A PRIVATE SORT OF PERSON.
AND THEN THIS THING BURST ON TELEVISION.
AND ON ONE OF THE SEQUENCES,
I HAPPENED TO MENTION "HERE IN MEMPHIS."
I NEVER WOULD TAKE MY NAME OUT OF THE PHONE BOOK,
AND THE PHONE STARTED RINGING.
AND FOR THE NEXT FOUR OR FIVE YEARS, ESPECIALLY,
IT KEPT RINGING.
AND THEY REVISED THIS THING --
REVIVE THIS THING EVERY NOW AND THEN,
AND WHEN IT DOES, IN VARIOUS PARTS OF THE COUNTRY,
THE PHONE STARTS RINGING AGAIN --
IT'S A -- IT'S DISTRACTING AND DAMNABLE AT TIMES,
AND YET IT HAS A PLEASANT ASPECT TO IT
OF KNOWING THAT PEOPLE LIKE WHAT YOU'RE DOING.
SO IT'S DIFFICULT TO SAY WHETHER I'M AGAINST IT OR FOR IT.
PEOPLE HAVE A FUNNY REACTION TO SEEING SOMEONE
THAT THEY'VE SEEN ON TELEVISION.
I HAD IT MYSELF.
I WAS WALKING ON 44th STREET, WALKING WEST,
FROM FIFTH AVENUE OVER TO MADISON.
AND I SAW THIS MAN COMING TOWARD ME,
AND I WAS THOROUGHLY FAMILIAR WITH HIM,
I THOUGHT EVEN, I MIGHT HAVE ROOMED WITH HIM
IN COLLEGE OR SOMETHING, HE WAS SO FAMILIAR, VERY FAMILIAR.
BUT I COULDN'T THINK OF HIS NAME
AND I COULDN'T THINK OF HIS NAME.
AND HERE WE ARE, FIXING TO MEET.
AND I FIGURE HE'S GOING TO RECOGNIZE ME
SINCE I KNOW HIM SO WELL.
AND AS WE GOT CLOSER, I WAS PREPARED TO SHAKE HANDS,
AND TRY TO REMEMBER HIS NAME, STILL, NEVER COULD.
AND AS WE GOT CLOSER, I WAS LOOKING AT HIM,
AND HE LOOKED AT ME IN SORT OF AN ANNOYED WAY
AND WENT ON PAST.
THAT WAS WHEN I REALIZED IT WAS CHET HUNTLEY.
BUT HE'S NOT SUPPOSED TO BE ON THE STREET,
HE'S SUPPOSED TO BE IN THIS LITTLE BOX.
AND I GET SOME OF THAT, SOME OF THAT SAME TYPE.
I THINK THAT IT REALLY DID COMMUNICATE A FEELING
BECAUSE OF ITS USE OF THE OLD PICTURES.
IT REALLY DID COMMUNICATE A FEELING
OF WHAT THE PEOPLE AT THAT TIME WENT THROUGH
IN THAT HORRENDOUS STRUGGLE.
YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER, IN THE CONFEDERATE ARMY,
AT LEAST ONE OUT OF FOUR MEN WAS A CASUALTY.
IN THE NORTHERN ARMY, ONE OUT OF TEN WAS A CASUALTY.
I REMEMBER THINGS LIKE A CAMERA LOOKING AT
THE DEAD ON THE FIELD AT COLD HARBOR
AND VARIOUS PLACES.
OR AT SHARPSBURG.
THERE WAS SOMETHING VERY DRAMATIC AND POWERFUL
ABOUT THE DEAD.
DEAD HORSES AS WELL AS MEN --
SOMETHING ABOUT SEEING THE COST OF WAR DEMONSTRATED
BY THE OBVIOUS AGONY IN WHICH THOSE PEOPLE DIED...
AND THE USELESSNESS OF IT.
THERE WERE 1,095,000 CASUALTIES IN THAT WAR.
AND IT BRINGS IT HOME TO YOU WHEN YOU SEE
THE MANGLED DEAD ON THE FIELD.
KEN KNEW THE VALUE OF SMALL THINGS,
BRINGING YOU CLOSE TO THE BONE ON WHAT'S HAPPENING.
IT COULD BE ALMOST NOTHING.
BUT IF HAD A CERTAIN POIGNANCY TO IT,
IT BROUGHT IT HOME TO YOU.
AND KEN HAS AN EAR AND AN EYE FOR THAT KIND OF THING.
HIS PICKING OF THE TWO PLACES, ONE UP IN MAINE,
THE OTHER IN MIDDLE TENNESSEE,
AS BEING TYPICAL OF THE TWO SIDES,
WAS A GOOD CHOICE, FOR EXAMPLE.
IT BROUGHT OUT A STRONG SENSE OF THE DIVISION
AND YET THE KINSHIP.
IT WAS A GOOD THING TO USE THOSE TWO PLACES.
HE QUOTED FREQUENTLY FROM ONE OF MY FAVORITE BOOKS
OF THE CIVIL WAR.
IT'S COMPANY H, "THE SIDE SHOW,"
OR "THE BIG SHOW," BY SAM WATKINS.
THAT'S A PRIVATE SOLDIER
IN THE CONFEDERATE ARMY.
HIS REMINISCENCES OF THE WAR.
THEY -- LITTLE THINGS FROM THAT ARE VERY LIVELY.
THEY LIVE VERY CLOSE TO, VERY CLOSE TO LIFE
IN THE SENSE OF KNOWING WHAT WAS HAPPENING.
IF YOU WERE ONE OF A GROUP OF SAY, 12 MEN IN A SQUAD,
AND YOU WENT THROUGH FOUR YEARS OF WAR
IN WHICH YOU PROBABLY LOST SEVEN OF THEM,
IT BROUGHT IT HOME TO YOU IN A VERY STRONG WAY.
AND WHEN YOU GOT BACK HOME AGAIN,
THOSE OF YOU WHO SURVIVED HAD BEEN THROUGH THINGS TOGETHER
THAT MEANT A GREAT DEAL TO YOU.
THERE WAS ALSO, WHETHER NORTHERN OR SOUTHERN,
THERE WAS A SENSE OF HAVING TAKEN PART
IN SOMETHING THAT DEFINED THIS COUNTRY.
I'VE OFTEN SAID THAT
THE CIVIL WAR IS WHAT DEFINED US.
THE REVOLUTION SET US FREE,
BUT THE CIVIL WAR DECIDED WHAT KIND OF COUNTRY
WE WERE GOING TO BE.
AND THESE MEN WERE VERY MUCH AWARE OF THE FACT
THAT THEY HAD BEEN INVOLVED IN THAT DECISION,
WHETHER THEY WON OR LOST.
AND IT WAS EVOCATIVE FOR THEM.
I THINK THAT THE FILM WILL REMAIN A DOCUMENT
OF CONSIDERABLE VALUE AFTER WE'RE ALL GONE.
I THINK THAT IT WAS CLOSE ENOUGH TO THE WAR
TO PARTAKE OF THE AUTHENTICITY,
AND FAR ENOUGH FROM THE WAR
TO ALLOW A LEVEL JUDGMENT OF WHAT WENT ON.
SO THAT IT WAS, 1990 WAS PROBABLY
A GOOD TIME TO SHOW THAT.
AND FROM, AS HE DID FROM '85 TO '90
WAS A GOOD TIME TO MAKE IT.
AND I DON'T THINK THAT TIME WILL COME AGAIN.
I DON'T THINK WE CAN GET AS CLOSE TO IT
AS HE WAS THEN,
AND I'M NOT SURE WE'RE GOING TO BE ANY MORE DISPASSIONATE
WITH MORE PASSING OF TIME.
MY INITIAL REACTION WHEN I SAW KEN BURNS' "CIVIL WAR"
WAS THAT OUR "ILIAD" HAD FOUND ITS HOMER.
THAT THIS IS THE GREAT MONSOON OF OUR HISTORY.
AND INDEED, THE CIVIL WAR IS, I THINK,
THE GREATEST EVENT IN WORLD HISTORY.
IT'S THE GREATEST EVENT IN AMERICAN HISTORY,
AND AMERICA IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING, I THINK,
TO HAVE HAPPENED IN HUMAN EXPERIENCE.
IT INVOLVES THE CONSTITUTION, IT INVOLVES SLAVERY,
IT INVOLVES SELF-GOVERNMENT,
AND ALL THE ISSUES OF MODERN STRIVING
ARE WRAPPED UP IN THIS ONE GREAT PANORAMA OF JUSTICE
AND ITS DENIAL AND ITS ESTABLISHMENT.
"THE CIVIL WAR," LIKE A MASTERPIECE OF LITERATURE,
TALKS ABOUT UNIVERSAL HUMAN THEMES --
LEAVING HOME, GETTING BACK TO HOME,
DANGER, COURAGE,
LOSS, LOVE.
FIND ME A HUMAN THEME THAT ISN'T IN THIS GREAT NOVEL
CALLED THE CIVIL WAR.
BROTHER AGAINST BROTHER.
FAMILIES DIVIDED, FAMILIES UNITED.
A SENSE OF REGRET AND LOSS.
DUTY AGAINST OTHER IMPULSES.
I CAN'T THINK OF A THEME OF LITERATURE
THAT ISN'T WRITTEN LARGE,
NOT JUST IN THE HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR,
BUT IN THE LETTERS OF THE FOOT SOLDIERS.
I THINK KEN BURNS' SERIES
HAD A TREMENDOUS IMPACT FOR SEVERAL REASONS.
FIRST THE SUBJECT.
SOMEONE ONCE SAID
IF YOU'RE WRITING A BOOK IN THE UNITED STATES,
AMERICANS LIKE TO READ ABOUT THE CIVIL WAR OR ANIMALS,
AND THEREFORE THE IDEAL BOOK WOULD BE
"I WAS LINCOLN'S VET."
WELL, THE CIVIL WAR IS OUR GREAT SUBJECT.
AND THEN IT WAS THE WAY KEN DID IT.
IT WAS A QUITE ASTONISHING MARRIAGE OF PICTURES AND WORDS.
USUALLY ON TELEVISION
WORDS AROVERWHELMED BY PICTURES.
FORTUNATELY,
FORTUNATELY -- THAT SOUNDS PARADOXICAL TO SAY SO --
KEN BURNS DID NOT HAVE MOTION PICTURES,
DID NOT HAVE VIDEOTAPE,
DID NOT HAVE FILM OF COLD HARBOR.
THAT WOULD HAVE SPOILED EVERYTHING, FRANKLY.
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN JUST ANOTHER NEWSREEL.
THIS WAS USING THE EVOCATION
OF THE BLACK AND WHITE PICTURES FROM THE TIME
AND THE BATTLEFIELDS AS THEY LOOK
A CENTURY AND SO ON,
WITH THE WORDS, THE MAGNIFICENT USE OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
HOW THE PEOPLE,
THE COMMON MEN AND WOMEN OF THAT TIME,
USED THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE SO WELL IS WORTH PONDERING.
BUT IT WAS THIS SYMPHONY OF WORDS AND STILL PICTURES
THAT GAVE IT ITS SPECIAL FORCE.
I THINK
THE NORMALLY LITERATE 19th CENTURY AMERICAN
HAD AS HIS ENTERTAINMENT POPULAR NOVELS.
BALZAC, DICKENS, GEORGE ELIOT.
THEY DIDN'T TURN ON THE TELEVISION,
THEY WEREN'T IN THAT PASSIVE, RECEIVING MODE.
THEY WERE IN THE ACTIVE MODE, WHICH READING IS.
AND WHAT WAS POPULAR ENTERTAINMENT THEN
WAS POPULAR NOVELS, DICKENS, NOT BAD.
AND I THINK IT TRANSLATED INTO WHAT THEY DID.
ALSO, THEY DIDN'T PICK UP THE PHONE
WHEN THEY WANTED TO COMMUNICATE, THEY WROTE LETTERS.
THEY HAD THE DISCIPLINE OF EXPRESSING THEMSELVES
IN COMPLETE SENTENCES AND ROUNDED PARAGRAPHS.
SOMETHING WE'VE LOST.
AMERICA WAS READY TO SEE THIS.
THIS MONSOON OF OUR HISTORY,
THIS CIVIL WAR HAS WINDS THAT KEEP BLOWING THROUGH US.
WE'RE STILL TRYING TO SETTLE SOME OF THE ISSUES THEN.
RACE, POPULAR GOVERNMENT,
EQUALITY, OUR OBLIGATIONS TO ONE ANOTHER,
OUR READINESS TO PAY THE LAST FULL MEASURE OF DEVOTION,
ALL THE REST.
THEY WERE ALSO READY FOR WHAT KEN BURNS BROUGHT TO THIS,
WHICH IS A PECULIAR UNDERSTATEMENT.
WE'RE BOMBARDED CONSTANTLY
WITH EXCESS AND SHRILLNESS AND HYPERBOLE.
THERE'S A MOMENT IN KEN'S SERIES WHERE THERE'S A PICTURE,
A BLACK AND WHITE PICTURE OF THE BACK OF A SLAVE,
THE BACK SCARRED, TERRIBLY SCARRED BY A LASH.
THE CAMERA PASSES BY, IT DOESN'T DWELL ON IT,
AND THE NARRATIVE DOESN'T MENTION IT.
DWELLING ON IT OR MENTIONING IT WOULD HAVE SPOILED IT,
WOULD HAVE SOMEHOW DIMINISHED IT.
IT'S THIS ABILITY TO GET MAXIMUM IMPACT FROM UNDERSTATEMENT
THAT SETS, I THINK, THE WHOLE TONE,
AND MAKES IT A QUITE DISTINCTIVE TONE IN CACOPHONOUS AMERICA.
I THINK PERHAPS THE MOST MOVING SCENE IN IT
WAS SHELBY FOOTE
BEING ASKED TO CITE A PARTICULAR EPISODE OF BRAVERY,
AND TALKING ABOUT THE STUPENDOUS BRAVERY OF THE UNION SOLDIERS
ASSAULTING THE HEIGHTS AT FREDERICKSBURG.
BECAUSE THERE YOU HAD ASTONISHING BRAVERY IN THE RANKS
AND IMBECILIC, CRIMINALLY IRRESPONSIBLE LEADERSHIP
ON THE PART OF THE OFFICERS.
AND THE DUTY DONE BY THOSE
ON BEHALF OF OFFICERS WHO DIDN'T DESERVE IT,
AND PAYING A HIDEOUS PRICE FOR A VIRTUE,
WHICH IS OBEDIENCE AND LOYALTY AND MILITARY DISCIPLINE.
MORE CREDIT FOR VALOR IS GIVEN TO CONFEDERATE SOLDIERS,
THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO HAVE HAD MORE ELAN AND DASH.
ACTUALLY I KNOW OF NO BRAVER MEN IN EITHER ARMY
THAN THE UNION TROOPS AT FREDERICKSBURG,
WHICH IS A SERIOUS DEFEAT.
BUT TO KEEP CHARGING THAT WALL AT THE FOOT OF MARYE'S HEIGHTS
AFTER ALL THE FAILURES THEY'D BEEN,
AND THEY WERE ALL FAILURES, IS A SINGULAR INSTANCE OF VALOR.
THE CIVIL WAR NOT ONLY WAS THE CULMINATION
OF TENSIONS THAT DEFINED THE COUNTRY
FROM THE FOUNDING PERIOD TO THE MIDDLE OF THE 19th CENTURY.
THE CIVIL WAR, THE WAR ITSELF,
PREFIGURED MUCH OF WHAT WAS TO COME
AND DEFINE THE 20th CENTURY.
IN THE TRENCHES AROUND PETERSBURG
WE SAW THE FIRST WORLD WAR PREFIGURED.
IN THE SLAUGHTER AT COLD HARBOR,
SOMETHING LIKE 7,000 PEOPLE DIED IN 20 MINUTES,
IT'S NOT WAR, IT'S MURDER, AS WAS SAID.
WE SAW THE SOMME.
WE SAW, IN OTHER WORDS, THE NEXT GREAT CATACLYSM.
IF THE CIVIL WAR WAS NOT THE FIRST MODERN WAR,
IT WAS AWFULLY CLOSE.
THEN THE FIRST MODERN WAR WOULD HAVE BEEN THE FIRST WORLD WAR,
WHICH REALLY JUST CLEARED THE GROUND
OF A GOOD BIT OF CIVILIZATION,
AND WE PAID A HIDEOUS PRICE FOR IT.
AND AS I SAY, IN PETERSBURG AND COLD HARBOR WE SAW,
HAD WE BEEN ALERT TO IT,
THE HORRIBLE FUTURE OF THE 20th CENTURY.
WHAT KEN BURNS' GREAT WORK -- "JAZZ," "BASEBALL,"
"LEWIS AND CLARK," "THE CIVIL WAR,"
THE FIRST THING THEY SAY
IS WHAT A TREMENDOUSLY INTERESTING THING AMERICA IS.
AMERICANS AREN'T SELF-ABSORBED IN ANY BAD WAY,
BUT THEY CERTAINLY DO KNOW THAT THEY'RE LIVING
AND THEY WANT TO LIVE,
AND IT IS GOOD TO LIVE
WITH A CRICK IN THEIR NECK
FROM LOOKING BACKWARDS TO SEE WHERE THEY CAME FROM.
THEY KNOW THAT WE ARE THE SUM OF THE PAST,
THEY KNOW THAT THE NATION,
THIS GENERATION STANDS ON THE SHOULDERS OF GREAT PEOPLE,
SOME ANONYMOUS, SOME FAMOUS --
AND THEY HAVE A FORTUNATELY INSATIABLE CURIOSITY ABOUT IT.
I WAS IN NEW YORK WHEN I FIRST SAW "THE CIVIL WAR."
I DIDN'T SEE IT ALL THE WAY THROUGH, STRAIGHT.
I SAW IT, I SAW PIECES OF IT, EPISODES HERE AND THERE,
BECAUSE I DIDN'T ACTUALLY TAKE IT SERIOUSLY,
QUITE FRANKLY.
BUT, UM...
I BECAME...
MESMERIZED BY IT,
AND I WAS ACTUALLY SHOCKED AT THE WAY
IN WHICH THE HUMAN EVENTS, THE PHOTOGRAPHS,
AND THE TALKING HEADS WERE WOVEN TOGETHER SO WELL.
BECAUSE PEOPLE WERE ABLE TO SIT THERE,
YOU KNOW, HOUR AFTER HOUR AND LOOK AT THAT,
AND WAIT FOR THE NEXT EPISODE
AND TALK ABOUT THE EPISODE THAT THEY HAD ALREADY SEEN.
AND WHEN THEY TALKED ABOUT IT, THEY TENDED TO TALK ABOUT
SHELBY FOOTE, MOSTLY --
THAT'S WHAT I RECALL.
BECAUSE HE HAD
SUCH AN ABILITY TO BRING A THREE-DIMENSIONALITY
TO THESE FIGURES.
BECAUSE WE ALWAYS HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT ROBERT E. LEE,
ABRAHAM LINCOLN, ULYSSES GRANT, ALL OF THEM --
ARE JUST TWO-DIMENSIONAL FIGURES ON PIECES OF PAPER NOW.
OR THEY'RE A STRING OF WORDS.
SO, WHENEVER ANYBODY CAN START TO TALK
AND YOU ACTUALLY FEEL THAT YOU GET THE CIRCUMFERENCE
OF GRANT OR OF LEE, THE SMELL OF THE BATTLEFIELD,
THE FEELING OF THE DAY THAT MEN ARE GETTING READY
TO GO OUT THERE AND KILL OTHER MEN
AND HOPE THAT FEWER OF THEIR TROOPS WILL BE KILLED
THAN THOSE ON THE OTHER SIDE,
THEN YOU'VE GOTTEN TO SOMETHING.
AND FOOTE WAS ALWAYS ABLE TO BRING THAT,
THAT HUMAN QUALITY TO WHATEVER HE HAD TO SAY.
OF COURSE, LINCOLN IS THE GREATEST FIGURE
IN THE CIVIL WAR.
ALWAYS --
BECAUSE HE WAS THE GREATEST MIND,
PROBABLY, IN AMERICA AT THAT TIME.
AND SO HIS BECOMING BIGGER THAN THE CONFLICT
IS THE MOST EXTRAORDINARY THING ABOUT THE CIVIL WAR, PROBABLY.
BUT YOU HAVE THIS GUY WHO WAS ALREADY
THE MOST BRILLIANT GUY IN AMERICAN POLITICS
SINCE PROBABLY JEFFERSON,
IN TERMS OF JUST SHEER BRILLIANCE.
THEN YOU HAVE THIS GUY WHO'S CONFRONTED WITH SOMETHING
THAT NOBODY BEFORE HIM HAD EVER BEEN CONFRONTED WITH.
THEN YOU HAVE THIS ISSUE
OVER WHICH THE WAR IS BEING FOUGHT.
THEN YOU HAVE BY 1863,
IT ALL CRYSTALLIZES IN HIS MIND,
WHAT ALL THIS SLAUGHTER IS ABOUT, REALLY.
SO THAT YOU COME TO SEE THIS WAR
AS A LEARNING EXPERIENCE,
BUT ON A DIFFERENT SCALE THAN WHAT PEOPLE TEND TO MEAN
WHEN THEY SAY PEOPLE LEARN FROM WAR.
USUALLY WHEN PEOPLE SAY PEOPLE LEARN FROM WAR,
THEY MEAN THAT YOU LEARN ABOUT COURAGE,
YOU LEARN ABOUT COWARDICE, YOU LEARN ABOUT ENDURANCE,
YOU LEARN ABOUT WILL, YOU LEARN ABOUT
A LOT OF THESE PARTICULAR THINGS THAT PEOPLE MUST EXHIBIT
OR FAIL TO EXHIBIT, IF A WAR IS TO BE WHAT IT IS,
WHICH IS THIS ULTIMATE TEST OF A CERTAIN KIND OF ENGAGEMENT.
BUT THEY DON'T NECESSARILY LEARN DURING A WAR
THE THINGS THAT LINCOLN LEARNED.
IN FACT, I DON'T KNOW THAT ANYBODY ELSE
IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD
EVER LEARNED WHAT LINCOLN LEARNED.
BECAUSE THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS IS SUCH A MONUMENTAL SUMMING UP
OF WHAT THE WAR HAD COME TO MEAN,
AND I DON'T KNOW THAT ANYBODY -- CHURCHILL DIDN'T LEARN
ANYTHING LIKE THAT DURING WORLD WAR II,
NOR DID FDR.
AND DURING WORLD WAR I,
I DON'T KNOW IF ANYBODY LEARNED ANYTHING.
AND SO I'M NOT SURE THAT THERE'S ANYTHING LIKE THAT
ANYWHERE ELSE,
AND I THINK THAT THAT COMES THROUGH VERY, VERY CLEARLY.
THEN, THE CHARACTER OF GRANT, YOU KNOW, THIS GUY'S A BUM.
ESSENTIALLY, HE'S A FAILURE,
UNTIL THE TIME TO NOT BE A FAILURE COMES ALONG.
AND THEN HE COMMENCES TO SHOW SOMETHING.
SO THAT'S THAT OTHER THING THAT'S IN THERE, TOO,
IS THAT THESE PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN UNDERESTIMATED,
WHOM YOU DIDN'T EXPECT MUCH OF,
IN THESE SURPRISING WAYS, TURN OUT TO BE WHAT THEY ARE.
SEE, BECAUSE THE THING IS, IS THAT WHEN YOU ACTUALLY SEE
A TRUE RENDITION OF THE CIVIL WAR,
ROBERT E. LEE'S STATURE ALWAYS FALLS.
NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU MAY FEEL THAT HE'S A GUY
CAUGHT IN A TRAGEDY,
HE ALWAYS TURNS OUT TO BE OVERRATED IF THE REAL...
STORY OF THE CIVIL WAR IS TOLD.
EVERY TIME YOU GET THE RIGHT THINGS,
LIKE, YEAH, HE WAS THERE...
YOU KNOW, I'M GLAD HE WAS RUNNING THE OTHER SIDE.
I THINK AMERICANS WERE READY FOR "THE CIVIL WAR" BECAUSE
IT SUMMED A LOT OF THINGS UP.
AND IT MADE IT POSSIBLE FOR YOU
TO FIND THE SOUTH'S PHILOSOPHY ABSOLUTELY DESPICABLE,
WHILE RESPECTING THE DIFFICULTY OF BEING A SOLDIER,
AND BEING CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF...
OF THIS CARNAGE ON A SCALE THAT NOBODY IN AMERICA
HAD EVER KNOWN.
AND THE WAYS IN WHICH BRADY PHOTOGRAPHS
AND REPORTS AND SO MANY OTHER THINGS WERE USED,
YOU GOT THE REAL FEELING
OF THE WEIGHT THAT FELL ON SOCIETY AFTER SHILOH
OR ANTIETAM, GETTYSBURG --
THESE MEAT GRINDERS IN WHICH THESE PEOPLE
WERE JUST MOWED DOWN.
I THINK HE LEARNED THAT GREAT THINGS
CAN COME FROM GREAT SLAUGHTER.
'CAUSE GREAT THINGS DON'T ALWAYS COME FROM GREAT SLAUGHTER.
USUALLY THE ONLY THING THAT COMES FROM GREAT SLAUGHTER
IS THE RAGE THAT PREPARES PEOPLE TO COMMIT GREAT SLAUGHTER AGAIN,
OR TO PASS ON A CERTAIN KIND OF BITTER VISION OF LIFE --
OR A SENSE OF DISILLUSIONMENT ABOUT THE SPECIES.
BUT THE CIVIL WAR IS UNIQUE IN THAT SOMETHING
EXTRAORDINARILY IMPORTANT TOOK PLACE AS A RESULT OF THAT,
WHICH WAS THE END OF CHATTEL SLAVERY IN THE UNITED STATES.
THE THINGS THAT WERE MOST INTERESTING TO ME
ABOUT "THE CIVIL WAR"
WERE ALL OF THE HUMAN ELEMENTS TO ME,
THAT ARE ALWAYS THE MOST IMPORTANT --
THE THINGS LIKE HOW THOSE WOMEN,
IN ONE OF THOSE STATES, MISSISSIPPI OR SOMETHING,
HAD THIS HOSPITAL, IT WAS FOUR OR FIVE OF THEM,
AND THEY ESSENTIALLY TOOK CARE OF ALL OF THESE GUYS.
NOW, BEING A GUY WHO WAS NEVER BOTHERED
BY THE IDEA OF THE DEATH OF MEN IN THE CONFEDERATE ARMY,
I WAS NOT NECESSARILY SYMPATHETIC AT THE BEGINNING
TO WHAT THEY WERE DOING.
BUT JUST THE SHEER HUMAN ACHIEVEMENT
OF BEING ABLE TO TAKE CARE OF THAT MANY SOLDIERS
AND BRING SO MANY GUYS THROUGH,
WAS OF GREAT MOMENT IN AMERICAN HISTORY.
I MEAN, YOU HAVE TO, AT THAT POINT,
SINCE THEY LOST, YOU CAN AFFORD NOW
TO BE GENEROUS AND SAY, WELL, THOSE WOMEN WERE REMARKABLE.
YOU KNOW, SEE, WHEREAS, IF THEY HAD WON,
WE WOULD SAY IT'S BITCHES LIKE THEM
THAT ARE THE REASON WHY THE NORTH LOST THE WAR.
AND I THINK THAT THAT'S ALWAYS THE THING
THAT THE MOST SERIOUS
HISTORIANS HOPE TO DO,
IS TO GET PEOPLE TO REALIZE THAT
THESE PEOPLE WERE LIKE THE PEOPLE YOU KNOW.
I MEAN, THAT THEY --
AND YOU KNOW, THERE WAS ONLY ONE DIFFERENCE,
THAT THEY FOUGHT IN THE CIVIL WAR
AND THE PEOPLE YOU KNOW DIDN'T.
I THINK THAT THERE ARE CERTAIN PARTNERSHIPS
THAT TAKE PLACE IN AMERICAN ART,
WHICH IS WHAT BURNS IS AFTER.
I DON'T THINK HE'S A DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER
IN THE MOST PEDESTRIAN SENSE.
AND I WOULD SAY THAT, THAT THE...
RELATIONSHIP THAT BURNS AND GEOFFREY WARD HAVE
IS SOMETHING THAT WILL BE RECOGNIZED AT SOME POINT
AS A MAJOR RELATIONSHIP.
I MEAN, YOU HAVE THAT
THERE WERE CERTAIN GUYS WHO WROTE THE BEST SCRIPTS
FOR JOHN FORD --
THERE WAS A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BILLY STRAYHORN
AND DUKE ELLINGTON THAT WAS VERY, VERY UNIQUE.
THERE WAS A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHARLIE PARKER
AND DIZZY GILLESPIE THAT WAS UNIQUE.
THOSE RELATIONSHIPS, THOSE KINDS OF RELATIONSHIPS
IN WHICH TWO EQUALS, ONE PLUS ONE EQUALS MORE THAN TWO.
SEE, WHEN YOU HAVE ONE PLUS ONE EQUALS AN EPIC,
THAT'S MORE THAN TWO.
AND THE FACT THAT THEY CAN WORK TOGETHER REPEATEDLY
AND KEEP PERFECTING THE THING THAT THEY GO AFTER,
BECAUSE NONE OF THE THINGS ARE ABOUT ONE THING.
SEE, IT'S ALWAYS A DAGWOOD SANDWICH
THAT THEY'RE TRYING TO MAKE THAT TASTES GOOD.
SO THAT NOTHING, SO THAT ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT ELEMENTS,
THAT ARE PUT IN LAYER AFTER LAYER AFTER LAYER,
WHEN YOU ACTUALLY MANAGE TO BITE INTO IT,
THEN YOU SAY, MY, THAT TASTES GOOD.
SO I THINK THAT THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE AFTER.
AND I THINK THAT WE WILL SOMEDAY SEE THIS RECOGNIZED
AS A MAJOR -- AS A MAJOR PARTNERSHIP
IN THE ARENA OF DOCUMENTARY AS ART --
I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE RECOGNIZED.
I THINK BURNS IS AFTER SOMETHING IN THE CIVIL WAR
THAT HE'S ALSO AFTER IN OTHER THINGS,
AND THAT IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT
HOW ALIENATED PEOPLE ARE ON THE BASIS OF SKIN COLOR,
AND WHY, AND HOW OFTEN THERE'S A REAL TRANSFER OF INFORMATION
FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER.
AND HOW OFTEN PEOPLE ACTUALLY COME TO --
TO HAVE THEIR IDENTITIES CHANGED
MORE BY COMING IN CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER
THAN STAYING APART FROM EACH OTHER.
SO THAT I THINK THE SENSE THAT HE HAS OF LIFE
IS VERY SIMILAR TO RALPH ELLISON'S --
THAT IS, THAT EVERYBODY'S PART SOMETHING ELSE.
AND AFTER ALL OF THE TALK IS OVER,
BLACK PEOPLE AND WHITE PEOPLE ARE MORE ALIKE
THAN THEY ARE LIKE ANYBODY ELSE ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH.
WHICH DOESN'T MEAN THAT THERE AREN'T MANY,
MANY VARIATIONS ON THE FUNDAMENTAL
AMERICAN ETHOS --
BUT NO ONE OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES
EVER MISTAKES A WHITE GUY FROM BOSTON FOR,
WHO'S GOT AN IRISH LAST NAME FOR BEING IRISH.
EXCEPT OTHER WHITE GUYS IN BOSTON.
BUT WHEN THEY GO TO IRELAND, THE IRISH GO,
OH, YEAH, RIGHT -- AN AMERICAN.
AND NO BLACK AMERICAN
IS MISTAKEN FOR AN AFRICAN IN AFRICA BY ANY MEANS.
SO WHATEVER IT IS THAT STOPS YOU FROM BEING MISTAKEN
DUE TO THE SKIN COLOR OR LAST NAME OR SOMETHING
FOR ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE, WHEN YOU GO BACK TO THE LAND
OF AT LEAST PART OF YOUR ORIGIN, SAY,
IS WHAT IT SEEMS TO BE BURNS IS LOOKING FOR,
IS WHY THAT IS.
AND SEE, THE MORE OFTEN WE ASK THAT QUESTION,
THE MORE WE INVESTIGATE IT,
THE CLOSER WE'LL COME TO BEING ABLE TO DEAL WITH
WHO WE ACTUALLY ARE.
JAY AND I HAVE BEEN PLAYING MUSIC TOGETHER SINCE 1978.
AND WE HAD A BAND TOGETHER IN THE '80s CALLED "FIDDLE FEVER."
SOME FRIENDS OF OURS, MATT GLASER AND RUSS BARENBERG,
HAD PLAYED ON "THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE,"
ONE OF KEN'S, PROBABLY HIS SECOND FILM,
AND WE GOT INVOLVED, THEY BROUGHT US IN,
YOUAND OUR BAND,K ON SOMEFIDDLE FEVER, ONES.
HAD RECORDED THE TUNE "ASHOKAN FAREWELL,"
AND I THINK IT WAS RUSS
WHO GAVE KEN BURNS A COPY OF THAT RECORDING.
AND WHEN KEN HEARD THE TUNE "ASHOKAN FAREWELL"
I GUESS HE WAS DEEPLY MOVED BY IT
AND HE WANTED TO USE IT IN A FILM.
AND THEN LATER OF COURSE
WE PLAYED MANY VERSIONS OF IT FOR "THE CIVIL WAR."
[ "ASHOKAN FAREWELL PLAYS" ]
"ASHOKAN FAREWELL" IS A TUNE
THAT I WROTE, UNINTENTIONALLY REALLY.
IT WAS A MOMENT OF DEEP EMOTION
AFTER THE SUMMER CAMPS AT ASHOKAN
THAT WE RUN EACH SUMMER HAD ENDED.
IT WAS THE THIRD SUMMER,
AND IT WAS AN EXPERIMENT EVERY SUMMER, YOU KNOW,
PULLING THIS TOGETHER.
AND IT HAD BEEN SUCH A DEEPLY MOVING EXPERIENCE,
AND THE COMMUNITY OF PEOPLE, AND THE FEELING OF UNITY
THAT WE HAD HAD THROUGH MUSIC,
AND BEING AWAY FROM THE REGULAR WORLD
WAS SO IMPORTANT TO ME THAT WHEN I'D GOTTEN HOME
I HAD A SENSE OF LOSS AND LONGING.
AND I WAS LOOKING FOR A SCOTTISH LAMENT
THAT WOULD EXPRESS HOW I FELT,
AND I COULDN'T THINK OF ONE
SO I JUST STARTED PLAYING AND THIS TUNE CAME OUT.
AND IT BROUGHT ME TO TEARS.
AND EVERY TIME I PLAYED THE BEGINNING OF IT,
FOR MONTHS AFTERWARD I WAS BROUGHT TO TEARS.
SO IT WAS DIFFICULT TO PLAY IT FOR ANYONE.
BUT AFTER A WHILE OUR BAND, FIDDLE FEVER,
STARTED PERFORMING IT AND WE EVENTUALLY RECORDED IT.
I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE SURPRISED
THAT JAY WROTE THE TUNE, BECAUSE THEY'RE OF THE MIND SET
THAT IT MUST HAVE COME FROM THE 19th CENTURY.
AND THEN THERE HAVE BEEN SOME SURPRISING AND FUNNY REACTIONS.
WE WERE AT A LARGE EVENT IN CINCINNATI,
THERE WERE SEVERAL HUNDRED PEOPLE THERE,
AND THERE WAS A STRING QUARTET PLAYING FOR THE PEOPLE.
AND WE EDGED OUR WAY RIGHT UP TO THE STRING QUARTET
AND THEY PLAYED "ASHOKAN FAREWELL."
IT WAS AN EVENT HAVING TO DO WITH HISTORY,
SO THEY PLAYED "ASHOKAN FAREWELL."
AND WHEN THEY FINISHED, THEY TOOK A BREAK,
AND JAY WENT UP TO THE FIRST VIOLINIST,
AND WE ALL HAD NAME TAGS
BECAUSE OF THIS PARTICULAR EVENT,
AND HE WAS ABOUT TO SPEAK TO HER,
AND SHE LOOKED AT HIS NAME TAG
AND SHE STARTED GETTING VERY NERVOUS AND SORT OF --
SHE TURNED WHITE AS A SHEET.
YEAH, HAVING A HARD TIME BREATHING IT SEEMED.
SO, THAT WAS HUMOROUS.
WE WERE ASKED BY KEN TO COME TO BRATTLEBORO, VERMONT
AND RECORD MUSIC FOR "THE CIVIL WAR" SERIES.
AND THIS WOULD BE A LOT OF THE TRADITIONAL PERIOD MUSIC.
AND AS IT TURNS OUT A LOT OF THAT MUSIC
IS MUSIC THAT WAS IN OUR REPERTOIRE
AS SQUARE DANCE MUSICIANS AND STRING BAND MUSICIANS.
AND WE SPENT A DAY,
PIECES OF SHEET MUSIC WERE PUT IN FRONT OF US,
THESE WOULD BE THE ORIGINAL ARRANGEMENTS,
AND THEN TOGETHER WITH KEN WE CREATED NEW ARRANGEMENTS
TO FIT THE VARIOUS SCENES THAT HE DESCRIBED.
THE WAY HE WORKED AT THAT POINT WAS HE WOULD SIT
IN THE MIDDLE OF A GROUP OF MUSICIANS
AND DESCRIBE A MOMENT
FROM AN EMOTIONAL POINT OF VIEW IN THE FILM.
AND WE WOULD TRY TO EXPRESS THAT
THROUGH THE TUNE THAT WE WERE BEING ASKED TO PLAY.
SO WE WOULD REINTERPRET THESE TUNES.
AND IT WAS REALLY FUN
AND AN EXCITING DAY OF MUSIC.
AND WE JUST SAT AND WE WENT THROUGH TUNE AFTER TUNE
PLAYING IN ALL DIFFERENT ENSEMBLES, YOU KNOW,
MORE INSTRUMENTS, LESS INSTRUMENTS,
DIFFERENT FEELS, DIFFERENT MOODS,
DIFFERENT EMOTIONS.
AND IT WAS ALL JUST TRYING TO GET IDEAS.
BUT THAT ACTUALLY BECAME THE FINAL SOUNDTRACK.
SO, IT WAS SPONTANEOUS AND HEARTFELT IN THE MOMENT.
WE DIDN'T HAVE A CHANCE
TO SIT DOWN AND TRY TO REFINE IT,
MAKE IT PERFECT.
YOU KNOW, CREATE A GLOSSED-OVER VERSION OF IT.
IT'S A LITTLE RAW AND VERY HONEST.
AND I THINK THAT'S PART OF WHY IT WORKS.
I REMEMBER ONE SCENE HE WANTED JACQUELINE SCHWAB
TO DO A SOLO PIANO VERSION
OF "BATTLE CRY OF FREEDOM."
AND SO HE DESCRIBED SOME OF THE PHOTOS
THAT WERE GOING TO BE IN THIS SCENE,
AND SAID THIS BATTLE HAS JUST FINISHED
AND THERE ARE SEVERAL PHOTOS OF THE DEAD,
JUST LYING, YOU KNOW,
AS FAR AS YOU CAN SEE, BOTH SIDES.
AND HE WENT ON AND DESCRIBED A LITTLE MORE.
SO JACQUELINE NODDED AND THEN SHE PLAYED
"BATTLE CRY OF FREEDOM,"
ABOUT 60-SECONDS WORTH,
ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE TUNE, VERY SLOWLY
AND SIMPLY AND SADLY,
AND WERE ALL SITTING IN THE ROOM BEING QUIET,
YOU KNOW, WITH OUR INSTRUMENTS.
SHE GOT DONE AND WE COULDN'T SPEAK.
I MEAN, WE WERE ALL ALMOST IN TEARS,
BECAUSE WITH THAT EXPLANATION BY KEN
FOLLOWED BY THAT MUSICAL VERSION BY JACQUELINE,
WE WERE JUST DEVASTATED, IT WAS REALLY POWERFUL.
THE FIRST SCENES THAT WE SAW
WERE AT THE END OF OUR DAY OF RECORDING IN BRATTLEBORO.
WE WENT BACK TO KEN'S HOUSE IN WALPOLE, NEW HAMPSHIRE,
AND SHE SHOWED US A TRAILER THAT USED "ASHOKAN FAREWELL"
AND WAS THE FIDDLE FEVER RECORDING,
AND IT WAS BASICALLY THE OPENING 10 OR 15 MINUTES OF THE FILM.
AND IT WAS SO POWERFUL.
WE WERE DEEPLY AFFECTED BY IT,
AND WE ALL KNEW THIS FILM WAS GOING TO AFFECT AMERICA
IN A LOT OF IMPORTANT WAYS.
I'VE GUESS I'VE PLAYED "ASHOKAN FAREWELL"
HUNDREDS OR THOUSAND OF TIMES.
PEOPLE WONDER, YOU KNOW, HOW CAN YOU
NOT TIRE OF IT,
OR STILL PLAY IT WITH FEELING?
AND I FEEL LUCKY THAT THIS IS A TUNE
THAT I'VE BECOME KNOWN FOR,
BECAUSE I LOVE IT SO MUCH.
AND I RECEIVE LETTERS EVERY WEEK STILL FROM PEOPLE
WHO HAVE PERS OF HOW IT'S AFFECTED THEM.
SO FOR ME, I MIGHT NOT PLAY IT FOR MYSELF NOW,
BUT I KNOW I'M PLAYING IT
FOR SOMEBODY WHO CARES ABOUT IT OUT THERE,
AND THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT POSSIBLE TO CONTINUE PLAYING IT,
AND PLAYING IT LIKE I MEAN IT.
ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL MOMENTS
IN "THE CIVIL WAR" SERIES FOR MANY PEOPLE
IS THE READING OF SULLIVAN BALLOU'S LETTER
WITH "ASHOKAN FAREWELL" BEHIND IT.
AND WHEN I FIRST HEARD THAT I WAS JUST HIT RIGHT INSIDE.
KEN SAW THE CONNECTION AND PUT THOSE TOGETHER
AND IT'S COSMIC, I GUESS.
YOU KNOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE VERY DEEPLY MOVED BY THAT.
I REMEMBER KEN SHOWING US THE LYRICS,
OR THE WORDS TO SULLIVAN BALLOU'S LETTER.
IT WAS A TATTERED PIECE OF PAPER,
OF COURSE NOT FROM 150 YEARS AGO --
IT WAS ONE THAT KEN HAD TYPED OUT HIMSELF
AND BEEN CARRYING IN HIS WALLET
FOR PROBABLY 10 OR 15 YEARS.
SO IT WAS A LETTER THAT ALWAYS MEANT A LOT TO HIM,
AND IT MEANS A LOT TO MILLIONS OF PEOPLE NOW.
WE JUST GOT AN E-MAIL
FROM SOMEONE WHO TAKES THE LETTER --
THEY LIVE A FEW MILES FROM SULLIVAN BALLOU'S GRAVE,
THIS IS WHAT THEY WROTE TO US,
AND THEY TAKE THE LETTER
AND READ IT PERIODICALLY OVER THE GRAVE.
YEAH.
THE TUNE "ASHOKAN FAREWELL" IS OUT THERE IN THE WORLD NOW
AND IT HAS ITS OWN LIFE ALMOST.
AND WE HEAR STORIES ABOUT IT EVERY NOW AND THEN.
SOMEBODY WILL COME BACK FROM IRELAND AND SAY,
OH, I HEARD IT IN A PUB
IN THIS LITTLE TOWN IN WESTERN IRELAND,
OR, YOU KNOW, IT JUST POPS UP.
BUT IT'S GOT A LIFE OF ITS OWN NOW.