Across Indiana

Wrong. Indiana it's. Made. Possible by viewers like me and like me like me. Like. You. Love. Me too. Because I think. I'm pretty good. Now. There were a few different things we had batted around and one was called blue highways because the blue highways on the map were those little highways. I think we sort of came back to across Indiana just because it was more of a general title that would reflect the entire state. I think we want to see ourselves on TV now and we want to see our neighbors and we want our neighbors to be interesting people doing interesting things. And I think that just delights the heck out of us. You don't really know what you're going to get but you get some of the most beautiful things out of them.

To make the world a friendly place. One must show what a friendly face. Welcome to the 20th anniversary of the program that took this quote from Hoosier poet James Whitcomb Riley and put it on your television week after week. After week. After week. I think you get the picture now. Gas cost an arm and a leg these days so let's not keep the motor idling. Hop aboard and we'll take a journey. Twenty years into the past. Back in time to that primordial cowpat first cross Indiana. First her legs and lungs began to breathe on its Farea. But first. An apology is in order. Yes I really wound up with egg on my face this time folks. As. Much as I would just love to take all the credit the original idea for across Indiana came from a former executive producer at WFYI. I had been doing reports called the rural route for Indiana tonight and my boss saw the

potential for a series devoted to tales of the people I had met along in the back row. I would make out. The challenge was how to tell those stories. We thought well let's set let's not try to be the news let's be the anti News. Good evening and welcome to across Indiana new and as yet unexplored adventure in public broadcasting. We dealt with what I called Little Known Facts About little known facts. Maybe you can say little known facts about teeny tiny things. Titus Rush was with our little show from day one offering this ditty about faultlines in our debut. I see three women did you know Mommy knows when to just tell me about the earthquake earthquake today. Titus's station manager at WUFT in Gainesville Florida where or so he claims the fishing is much better.

They might sort of put it best one time on my cat when he said you know that Art of Storytelling started a long time ago. Around the fire. It was mailed in stories told. Why. I guess working on that Elvis story telling. We were heavily influenced at that time by a show that came out of Chicago called Wild Chicago. If you watch those early shows then you probably had your eye on Tim swards and didn't even realize that. Tim was our chief videographer. Today Tim is a freelance writer and video editor living in Jasper with his wife Melissa who we met on the show. Daughter Laura live in their trusty dog so we didn't want it to be different. Another you know a talking head you know with some unusual type of food say we were doing a story about antique cars I would position the person so that I could shoot them I shoot the reflection through say like the chrome on the bumper. You.

Know. We would never sell them you know save like that on a couch or a chair in front of a bookcase or something. With a group of people at the time that we're you know very used to this news bang bang bang and everything and all at one time and. And and Michael had to kind of come in and teach people really to take their foot off the throttle. Things started happening on a crossing that hadn't happened on a regular basis on Indiana TV before. It was a chance to relax introduce the viewing public to somebody doing something neat and spend a little time with them instead of. Rushing off to the next thing right away. Mike knew that that would work and it kind of kept sticking to his guns until everybody sort of got it and then and then the lightbulb started going off. I don't know when and I just don't know where it began to resonate with our viewers. And then it began to resonate with us and a

very real sense I think. I think we begin to serve it across Indiana sponsored by Plumtree. Oh sure the town's a little dried up but that doesn't mean you can refer to us as Prunedale. We hate that. It seems like if you're a Hoosier and you discover something that makes you unique them shouted words welcome to line. Gosh aren't we a funny bunch to see them. Here is pie shaped and you have to straddle it to enjoy it. You will like this person you like their collection. You think that looks like George Bush. Read my lips. But at the same time you're going. Isn't that kind of a funny thing. I have four horses and two dogs two cats and three skunks. We found ourselves taking idiosyncrasies and turning them into instant stardom. Some are calling Jeremy what. About my truck now. But there will always be a special place in our hearts for this man who appeared

twice in our first three seasons and became our first bona fide celebrity. Those of you who didn't blink when a certain rock legend drove a bus or sold ice cream. Probably won't bat an eye if this is the key. Fixing computers. Oh soon. But even though he's dwindling wires and installing chips after 19 years Paul Butler is still first and foremost forever Elvis. I love you very much. My career really took off after across India. Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday even Sunday. So it was a lot of work all forces in the city already and everything and it was just the coffee on the go. If you're known by the company you keep in Paul's living room wall shows that he travels in some pretty elite circles. In 2000 I saw on TV that the

person of a prime minister of Tokyo Japan was an Elvis impersonator. I asked if I could send him a copy of my album and he said sure so I sent him a copy of mine and in return he sent me a copy of his really is a really great guy and he loves Elvis. I met the Cherokee Nation they actually made me a Cherokee name. The meaning behind it was the man of many voices. Now lest you people at home think we are across Indiana fool around when we pick our Elvis tribute artist will have you know that Paul is the best on the planet officially and 99. I won the champion of the world the true spirit of Elvis Lord. Now here's something we didn't know our show played a bit of. Cupid But for Paul. We taped at the home of a girl he had started dating and I had these people in my half Take a look now. Don't call Paul an Elvis impersonator what he does is a tribute to the life and music of became something he's done.

No kidding since he was only 12 years old I'm not going to question him I'm just going to keep on till he tell me it's too long told me to quit. And who knows maybe someday he'll leave the pompadour and sunglasses for good. Giving rise to a whole new generation of Dare we say it. Paul Butler tribute to artists but not all our stories turn out the way we might have expected them to. In fact some are downright nuts like this one. The mystery of the man who drove the only cab in Portland. In the end. We were able to track down Lew Ransom's last known location to a diesel repair shop near Portland. We was in a shop and the. Lawnmower alar more come through the parking lot. We had no idea who it was until he got up to the door. And. There's Lou Lou he's a good guy but he's kind of all said he was. Making one big ride.

On a Dixie chopper headed across country. So where is he now. Some reports say he was stopped in Montpelier by police and told that he couldn't drive his lawn more on the road. As to whether that's Montpelier Indiana or Vermont. We may never know. If it was me I'd have a good time. We also found out that some Hoosiers are compulsive accumulators which is a fancy way of saying that not only do they not throw anything away. They travel miles to seek out things they usually don't see in everyday life and arrange them in collections of all shapes and sizes pencils lawn sprinklers pumpkins welcome mats. If you could touch it you could collect. What do you think of my nails. Oh I think they're lovely. But the master of the minute medley was Jeff Ochs who could tell the difference between thousands and thousands of plain old nails. Well not any all males date males still have about

15000 dating most mainly sitting in boxes somewhere. I have my display nails they were on the wall during the filming but my wife made me take them down during renovation. So I have some in my office here I show people when they show up or if I want to get rid of someone I say here let me show you my nails. Jeff's left the nails behind but not before leaving a collectible for all of you out there fascinated by his collection of nails and maritime preservation that sold like 650 copies. Move over Stephen King. Professor Ochs is nothing if not a man of passion but the object of his new affections would terrify even those who might have stared down an oncoming freight train in pursuit of his last hobby medieval Arabic Elizabethan and who you might ask might be the audience for such indigenous integers. My son in fifth grade was taught how to multiply numbers using what's known as the loudest method which I've seen in a lot of medieval texts which went out of fashion about 16 or so and so he started multiplying by the Ladysmith. I said Where did you learn that. He said Isn't my textbook.

Turns out that some educators had gone back to medieval arithmetic books probably in medieval Hellene books and they'd found this method there is and hey that's easier than the way we do it. I studied medieval math. This is high tech where people basically are in the grammar of mathematics when they're in school and it really doesn't get interesting until you get beyond that. It's like literature isn't interesting if you're just learning grammar. If you're learning how to conjugate verb how to put sentences together that's not fun. Reading Tolstoy can be fun. Well look at for some people but you have to get beyond the grammar before you get to the interesting stuff. Jeff will be headed to Tunisia later this year to regale an international audience with his new discoveries. In the meantime his appearance on our little show is the gift that keeps on giving. Yes I do walking across campus and someone say Hey folks I saw you on TV again. But for his spouse well not so much. My wife describes across Indiana as the weirdos in the show. I'm one of the weirdos. One thing those of us who toil more often behind the

scenes than in the forefront now is that hosier's are not shy about expressing themselves. And we've learned which of our stories are your favorites by the emails comments on our Web site and just plain stopping us on the street to let us know. So which is the most popular feature ever on across Indiana. We'll start with number three. They are full play and they're full of life. The patient commitment at the rescue center employees amounts to a safe and caring environment that allows the animals the healing room pace. We need one small animals and when an animal comes here we make a commitment. Why do you go home for the rest of his life. You know a recent opinion poll revealed that 40 percent of you out there believe in ghosts. No data however on what goes think about us humans. One of our favorite haunts is just that hauntings and Goldstein's and things that go bump in the night. This is very strange. Why is it that here. Gravity will. Let things roll

uphill. That was the puzzle. But the creepiest gremlins of all the ones that can turn your hair white. And leave you quivering in awe at their capriciousness are the ones you encounter when faced with on air deadlines we are shooting in cemetery and all of a sudden the viewfinder on my camera just suddenly started filling up with smoke. And whoa whoa whoa what's what's going on here. And then pretty soon along the edges and here you start to see it started glow red. It was probably a day that was about 35 or 40 degrees below zero and my videographer came in and said now Titus I just got back from the shoe and and the heater in the truck is not working. Why remember this. I don't know I guess it was just painful. We went to somewhere out past Terre Haute and almost over in Illinois and the place was called junky Joe. And when we got there this guy's place had no heat.

And I mean I'm stomping my feet trying to move around I'm trying to keep myself warm and we got caught in a blizzard coming back. And remember it was terrible. And Frank Dreux I don't know how you get home. I don't think that you know Tom Brokaw or Wolf Blitzer ever you know had those kinds of situations. We were going to a cave down outside of Paoli Indiana or park the station vehicle and we heard a big bang. I mean like an explosion. And what was the battery that exploded in the vehicle. We went up to meet this beekeeper ask Does this make you nervous is like oh now I get stung several times a day. I don't feel it. I'm thinking if I get stung I'm going to feel it. Next thing I know a bee of course gets underneath my neck. It's crawling all over my face. I'm freaked out. He reaches and takes the bee just smashes into his hand stings him he thinks nothing of it. I'm like OK I'm trying to get back to the editing room.

One of the shots involved two guys two hired actors on horses that were going to come up Rob the train car and then ride away. We're still rolling in 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 0 1 horse starts to follow the other horse tomorrow to the side of me. And at the last second he sees on there and has to kind of veer this way. He kicks. Up. And. Apparently I mean I could feel it above my head but apparently just missed my. Head by. Maybe an inch or two. There was a designer beneficiary. The one thing that we we always worked with was having a very limited amount of funds. We are not a WGBH we're not running with a thousand people were able to create much more with much less but yet we're not sacrificing quality. And you know I I just think that it is one of the best gifts.

I see these stories and I wonder how in the heck did we do this. I often said that at the end of the day with an across Indiana's story I would be the most tired but I'd also be the most most pleased. OK Dave forgive me adorably aggravating. There you go. It feels great. If I have clothes on it I'm. Naked. I'm not trying to analyze Dave Stolk because guys that get paid a lot more money than I have on an hourly basis. I've tried and they failed miserably. Well in Berkeley California on another assignment I realized I was just minutes away from San Francisco. The new home of former Indiana producer Dave Stolk. And with this being across Indiana's 20th season I couldn't pass up the chance to finally meet this living Indian legend. The. Same day. From CBS. We're still getting. To see a guy named

Dave still. Here with you. You know Dave stole from CBS ever arises. A. Guy named Dave still. You know him. You know he is. A. Finely word must have spread through the streets. Because he found me. To go. Good for you. You look great. Thank you. Thank you A.J. a lot for someone I haven't met yet. Really good. Thank you so much. Sure. I'm back on CROSSFIRE right now. Nowadays Dave is working for a show called Eye on the bet. It's kind of like across Indiana except that it's totally different. You're right I was thinking when I was on the show it was too much about. So you know what I want to do. Kind of. Across India let's call this a crossover. Frances OK so a theme here I hope.

Yeah. Now. We immediately began touring the area. We talked beatniks the Maggio Marilyn Monroe earthquakes the very first television broadcast Strip. But you name it. I heard about it. Dave was determined to share everything he knew about his new home. You ever heard of the phrase to be shanghaied. I have heard of of Shanghai trigona come back OK. I just that a cable car. No no no no no no no. There's not a cable box. Hi. Hi. Hello. What's. Your report. 1980. Make sure make sure. The. City Lights provide. You don't seem too interested. I'm interested in Shanghai. I just. No no no that's. I know I'm not for. You know what my motto was when

doing a race. I. Never let the facts get in the way of a great story. OK. I would encourage you to say OK buddy. Yeah. We got these hills. This kind of reminds you of the highest point one thousand two hundred and fifty seven feet that highest point. Yes yes it does. Just when I thought our time was over. Dave had one more surprise. Next thing I know. We're right outside the doors of the Levi-Strauss headquarters. My second lifelong dream came true by Eric Hartig from small town Bryant Indiana holding the oldest pair of jeans in the world. It's a pleasure seeing you. I. Get. A little flattered by the shirt. I take that off when you get on a plane. Let us how it all the folks back in the air. For me. I like. The whole gay. Channel 20. That's. One man's comedy. Oh yeah that's right. All right. I guess there's no turning back now. This may or may not be my last across Indiana story

but otherwise good working with all of you. I received a fellowship to go to New York City and work with the Today show. And the reason that I ended up coming back was instead of doing the superficial stories that we're working on every morning for the Today show whether there were four murders or the stock market you know all these negative stories I found that all the stories that were on across Indiana were very positive. Not multiplied. You tilt your head down toward the bowl a little bit. Oh. God. This whole story is much more interesting. When you experience the story yourself. And you can let your audience know. That you know this is something that they need to experience whether it's eating a bug which I didn't do. I tried. One of my favorite stories was actually getting into a hot air balloon and experiencing what flight was like an

absolute you know. Floating above. How is it I'm reliving that experience right now. I always joke about the show be forget the humor or forget the drama forget the story how can I get my pants on. But eventually something clicked and I began to feel better. A weight was lifted. I had become one with the dog in every way. The everyday chores just didn't seem like stress. Treatment is not so bad. I think I'll put this in the living room of Jim. Can I help you. No Mike I'm just trying to be prepared in case something whatever happened to you just. Something that happens to me. Yeah just step right on in. The Ring. Thanks. Jim. My pleasure. My pleasure. It's about those men. I first met Mike at work when he started working

at 20. He also did weather reports. The most famous of words was to tell people the storm front was coming through that he was walking down the street and ran into a man wearing a trench coat. And when I asked him how the weather was the man opened the trench coat and clouds of water poured out on to Mike's face. So you can see he was always a pretty esoteric guy who was pretty young Jim. Nothing to worry about. Look. I was up in Indianapolis at a concert. Actually all my sweaters are at the cleaners and I look around and Michael is right behind me. And somebody comes up to him and says looks at him and says hey doesn't your little brother do across Indiana your you're. No that's just some cheesy special effect our producer caught up to help us on the show. Oh. OK Michael. All right.

Have you heard of across Indiana. I don't think so. On Eyrecourt big piece I guess would be one that you know shamelessly put myself on camera. I'll tell you what that is. The Fellini film. I do think up some skits sometimes with the brain sandwich piece. I did have it in my mind that it would be funny to bring me. Back to Indianapolis. And have a group of people. Do the Thriller dance behind me came up with a heart esque way to do things and because it went over. I just stuck with. Many of our producers who left the show have continued quite illustrious careers. Todd Gould had turned his four golden glory segment on our show into an hour long documentary for PBS featuring the voices of Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee and an original score by

jazz great David Baker. The show garnered seven regional Emmys. Dan Nelson left for the sunnier climes of Florida before landing a job with the motherload of all PBS. Flagship station WGBH in Boston. He's since returned to Bloomington Indiana where he's still with PBS our PBS network station WTU. And we had our share of producers who discovered that music was their true love and went on to fame and fortune that way. As a member of Margot and the nuclear so and so's Chris spry journey has taken him all over. The band made it to the top or most of the pop or most NBC Late Night with Conan O'Brien. We're back. My next guest from Indianapolis Indiana. They are here tonight with a song from their brand new album Animal. Please welcome Margot and the nuclear sounds. Well. For us I mean that was like I think all of our we can

take any show we would have ever wanted to play. That would be the one you know. For that to actually happen it was. It was huge. And. Being a band and touring a lot and. Sleeping in rest stops truck stops. Is really hard. It's a lot of fun. It's also really really hard to do that and so I remember having to drive forty. Four hours. From Indianapolis to San Francisco street because we're running behind. After trying to fix the bus up. Although his love of music has taken him far. Chris still holds telling Indianness stories close to his heart. I didn't think that my experience with. The media was was definitely the best experience I had in television. Now Chris is working on a new project right here in Indiana with his new band the academy. They've just released a CD. And as a fellow traveler

across Indiana and a drummer to boot. I wish him all the best. For you. Brown County native Josh learned enough about himself during his time on across Indiana to realize his true heart wasn't in telling. Stories. My history. The cross I was a terrible producer was horrible and they would come to me when it was about music for Brown County or Brown County. And so I guess you like my songs I guess you just do it you know and Reverend Peyton's big campaign is doing what they know and love full time this summer. They have 60 dates across the country on Vans Warped Tour which has proved to be an unexpected perfect fit for this unique band.

We stick out like a sore thumb and when it's good it's pretty foot stomping and the kids get it. There's me on guitar and vocals and sometimes a harmonica too and my wife crazy. She plays washboard the drummer and a five gallon bucket. Aaron comes Percy. He's a real distant cousin but he's a kindred spirit maybe a little different but it's you know it's at least rooted in roots music in American music. And you know I like to call it Indian music. Just trying to keep the show moving and try to have fun while we're still doing that. Having to deal with egos including Michael Michael and David get into fights

and be at it they. Want to keep you going. That's just part of that is just to be. You. Know. Also just kind of in order to make things look beautiful. You know I wanted to be. Working on this show my. Everybody came to the point that you need to be game to keep up with them. You know. What when you watch a show it's been four or five of those. People busting your tail at each show. To do a good story. How can it not be

good. We have a lot of different you know cooks in the kitchen but but somehow the soup still tastes good settled. Bill Russell I'm selfish you know the game schedule we have to be here with will win you know across Indiana has been like a family over the years and as it can be with many families we've known our share of sadness as well. Two of our friends on the show are no longer with us and we take these next moments to remember them and to share our thoughts of them. With you. This trip across Indiana was made possible by viewers like you. And by the Arts Council of Indianapolis. Mike Fenwick was an interesting contradiction. He was a homebody. Love to cook love to arrange his furniture just so in his very many apartments but he also love to travel the ways. He's very frugal. Save this pennies for his lunch every day so that he could jet off to this that or the other exotic island. His career took him through radio and television all around the country. But

he came here in 2000. Love really good art. And that's why it's kind of appropriate that his voice was that warm comforting soothing announcer voice that told you that across Indiana was coming on. He was especially tickled. When the producers allowed him to do a story about the chamber stove modern cooks adore these things and might just come in day after day with a new story of somebody who was more and more in love with the Chamber style. Dave stealth was the server which Jean-Robert cook showed a gentler side of our show. I think he was a city boy. Most in his life and he kind of got a kick out of rural music rural arts and crafts and maybe what he did is he used that kind of sensibility to produce his stories to all of those wonderful with kids. It was a big man.

And you would think that somebody as large as his was would be intimidated to chill and then pretty soon they would open up to him. And just just talk to him like he was a friend. And it was just an amazing thing to see especially considering how the Rosabelle can be you know with the dogs. And when I went to the Indiana wine festival in STARI Indiana after the wine festival we started driving through Nashville and decided you know what it is it's 8:30 I think the Nashville house is still open let's go get those up. The apple butter on the fried biscuits. And I learned all about the fried best bits. I'm the apple butter from Robert Cook. And now for your viewing pleasure. An excerpt from the second most popular across the end of story ever. And I'm. Gonna cry. I love them and I love people that love people. But people really have to take them out. You there is no one leaves without a rock with I on. If they give

up. They get wrong. I love it when I leave this world. I tell them you're a big deal don't call me I don't want a lot of moving around. I don't want three or four days of nothing. If I died right now flying put me in a hole tired from work that evening family are doing I want to say it one day. I got to interview Mia Farrow. I feel it is my moral responsibility to try to convey what I have witnessed. I remember just driving down there. INTERVIEWER And I have all these volumes of things to read about her to make sure I'm just so convinced that I'm I'm going to ask the wrong thing or do the wrong thing. I think as human beings we all feel incredibly lucky. Even if it's painful but if we find a way to be useful to get I think we all have that. That. And that moral obligation. And when we find that. Suddenly. All those existential questions are aren't we. We know the

meaning of life. Boy she was quick and she was precise and she was passionate and she was smart for a program that celebrates those who will inherit the earth. Our little show has seen some pretty notable notables talk with us on the front porch the visitor that stands out in all our minds comes from my 1991 interview with Kurt Vonnegut. I'm very proud of my state because it used to be a highly literate state and I went to the greatest high school in history high school and all that. And this time I had lots of music lots of books. Lots of the arts and I got to go to find out last night that this money state Indiana a wealthy state with a great cultural underpinning from the past is third from the bottom. It's a tease it's third from the bottom. Well that's too late. The fix is like the Williamsburg Bridge and like Brooklyn Bridge and like

Harlem Tunnel and all that. It's too late to fix it so we've got to bust people. We've got to try to fix it. Yes we've got to try to fix it. But it's it's like turning around a tanker you know. You know it's going to we have seen examples recently in history. It takes a long time to turn a ship like that. But I'm pessimistic just because the news is so awful and you catch hell for for notice. The first thing you notice that maybe something's not right and I from the bottom and this marvelous how it held it up. Take a letter to the network. Dear intertainment it's coming to my attention that you're airing a magazine program that originates from someone's living room. Well I'd like to point out that I have been hosting a show from a living room from the Midwest for nearly a decade longer than your latest venture. Of course not all our subjects were great and powerful.

In 2003 we did a story about a young man who upped Wayne's world because he was above doing a television show in his parents basement right above for the Michael SNB show beamed across the E Entertainment airwaves for Michael's folks living room. But that's old news. We wanted to know what Michael is up to now. Michael still lives in Valparaiso with his wife Krista and new baby gone. I'm used to spending a lot of plates in the air if you will. So now being a father a husband but still having multiple projects I follow to the various things I'm doing now. It's sort of really just a continuation of the grind that I've loved and have been used to since as long as I can remember. Entertainment is still a big part of Michael's life. He now runs an online entertainment program called I follow TV a show that doesn't get dirt from the paparazzi but instead of the average Joe. Someone shared a story with us and I thought recently about their encounter with

Sandra Bullock's strange husband Jesse James. She ran into Jesse right before the whole scandal broke and she said Jesse look the shovel and she can tell from her brief encounter with him that he hasn't brush his teeth and she said never trust a man who hasn't brush his teeth. As for Michael's entertainment career Well according to him there's nothing he can't do from Indiana. And we think he's proved that. I'm very proud of the fact that throughout my endeavors in the entertainment industry everything has been produced here on our soil. And if you ask him becoming a new father was more exciting than being on The Tonight Show with that Leno guy. But one of the most amazing interviews came when a producer talked about things he never had before with someone he had lived right next to all his life. Eric Hart vague usually plays the comic on our show but every so often his stories show a serious side.

I'm not as comfortable doing those. But one one story that I did do that I was very comfortable telling was a trip. That I took with my father. My dad was a Vietnam veteran who had never seen the wall. Honoring Memorial Day. Washington D.C. is flooded with leather clad veterans paying their respects each in their own way to see that. That moment and capture it and tell a story about it was was very special to our family. And as I walked up to the wall. Tears came to my eyes. And I. Emotions. Went through me as far as I know he didn't cry when his mother died. And to see him like that you know still tears me up a little bit. Of gunfire at all that it all came back to me. I wish. I was hearing it all

just like. I could it happened maybe yesterday. That one thing in me that had him stand up and everyone applauded. Standing ovation for him. I mean it was just super special. It was just so great raccoon taste like raccoon. You go. Was like chicken didn't you. We've heard a lot of chicken don't taste like chicken. A lot of times a great story would just drop in your lap because somebody would email you or call you up and say I know of something I wanted to do a story. Believe it or not an artists models and hair and I called them and the lady that answered the phone started laughing and she said oh I got a guy for you. No not at all small. I don't get it. I don't go. I don't. Want to be screwed. So there's not much left over here. I was actually going to church one one. One evening I think I was going from Indianapolis up to Kokomo and I saw what looked to be a farm or ranch right there on the highway.

But I saw was there 16 years ago. Beat Kosslyn became a very popular part of cross. And. Not just for their love of llamas but for teaching them a little dance. A square dance to be exact. These days Irv's done more than retired his dancing shoes. He's revamped his prized performers as well. And it's a whole new breed to the Suisham llamas alpacas. There's more money in them of course. They pushed high school kids 16 years you know people from all those states went to see him and. Of course one squirt into this spot which you can't do it. I think the age got away from me. I'm 81 years old and. I just can't square dance like you used to. No dance for. No problem for on the Kesselman farm there's a hidden story around every corner. I was in the business for 20 25 years and we export the deers to Taiwan for. And antlers that was the last song of the birds and we saved them all and then with these homegrown antlers from our own farm

Irving be still welcome their fans from across city. Anyone can drop by to visit the alpacas chickens or just sit in the llama lounge and have a Coke. I ended up choosing my stories again by just getting on the road and experiencing M.B.A. for myself. I remember just finding signs on the side of the road of these really. These different places that I could visit and I would go ahead and probably pull off on the side of the road walk up to the person's door sometimes to get stories you do really weird things. There was a guy that had a huge slingshot carved out of a tree in his yard. I knock on the door and there's no answer. And I thought at any moment any policeman driving on the street to see me doing this and think something is amiss here in that case in the place. But the deadline for the segment was coming up and so one day I decided to go over to the house knock on the door and hopefully you know introduce myself quickly. And before they decided to arrest me I had to tell them to get off of what their property was a guy walking out

of the door and he had a box under his arm. When I pulled up at this house and I said. Excuse me sorry you don't know me and I just had my pretty severe cut across Indiana and during this historical segment on on that guy who used to live in his house if he had any memorabilia that he happened to have any photos anything you might have seen. He says Why is this the kind of thing you're talking about and he opened it up and there's about 70 still in it just about 10 still in Yes and this guy was was going to get rid of it. There's some magic. To that. What happens when you're producing a show and across Indiana allowed us that opportunity to experience that magic. We've already said that when it comes to expressing themselves aren't really what you call a shy bunch but then we weren't wallflowers either. Especially when we tackled some of the more serious issues facing our state. Many of those tales came from a special needs we had on the show that of Indiana history

some of it told in stories of glowing achievement while other accounts revealed a darker side. Waters claimed the night civilization collapsed in Indiana. The last public lynching. In Indiana history. It was my ability to sort of be a junior and Pyles tell history stories we have to make an effort to understand and get beyond to go beyond these rather difficult times. I do think that history is incredibly personal. Any time I ever heard of a big plane crash dream everybody died. So we started to pray think. A boy. You're 40 years go and across Indiana was always to take the person pick them up and put them right there on the spot. July 6th a piece of shrapnel compass case hit are playing.

I love my dad and all. Wish I could read some of the cooking. Tell Helen I found God to. Be happy. Who are the people that were involved. What were they saying. What were they feeling and then allowing you to be sort of a fly on the wall and to watch all this to watch it all play out. In 1987 the committee on mental defectives used Sharp's data to convince the Indiana legislature to draft a law legalizing sterilization as a means to promote healthier Hoosier society. I didn't say that the thought was always pleasant or inspiring. One of the shows always had a history of looking at some some tough subjects. If you were traveling across our nation and your car broke down praying it would happen in Indiana. We'll get you fixed up and on your way and wouldn't dream of cheating you. But if you stayed here. All bets are off. Cause we can

fix. We're not so accomplished with children. I think it was a timely piece about our state's priorities in relation to education for our children and the kind of environment we create. And I not only think it was timely then I think it's even more time now. I knew every time that that thing aired because I would get letters demanding a public apology from either him or the show for saying those things about the state of the current situation is short sighted and selfish. And the piece said that clearly and I would say those words again if not stronger but the state's history also has a storybook side including a famous face from Oxford that adorned cars coffee watches knives and even washing machines. And it wasn't human at all. Although the landscape around Oxford has seen some high tech changes. Robert in Thelma Glasby passion for Dan

patches one landmark that hasn't changed what is new is this a book two years ago by Charles Lipson. One that sparked a whole new interest in Dan Patch with a little help from Robert in film my wife and I turn him loose. We have a lot of printed material. We turn him loose said we go to it. But when he left he said How much do I owe you. My wife. A copy of your book in the latter decades Dan Pancho's barn fell into disrepair but its subsequent renovation has brought forth a wealth of treasures. Right into this store. And the tech market was set against that wall and he put the light. On that tack. And on that tack box you can read Ganpat in the end. That had been there over a hundred years and nobody. Dan Panch has often been called Seabiscuit before there was a Seabiscuit

his famous name and his famous records were a cottage industry all their own. With his horsey lightness showing up on all sorts of products. Not even remotely associated with harness racing. Ganpat. Washing machine wringer. What Dan Patch breaker. For a washing machine. But Robert's most prized possession is one that came right out of the barn in his own home town. Well they started throwing out the trash and all at once the boy found fiber pail. That contained horseshoes. I came down and looked at him and from what visual age I'd seen of damp had torn. Some of those had come all the band fat. And I compared it to the Horseshoe. That I had bought. That was a copy of what Dan

Patch wore when he set the record. And it brought tears to my eyes. Dan Panch has been a lifetime labor of love for Robert and a legacy they hope to pass on. I kind of hate to admit that I'm 84. My interest should really be to put a museum in the town of Oxford that I'm not able to do it myself. I need help. It's hard to describe. I feel like the show was kind of important to him. As it were all across Indiana because all of you who sat in emails and letters asking for us to perform which is just a little weird yeah cause we didn't know that anyone came to our shows could actually read and write at all. Music's always been a big part of across Indiana and being a little visual doesn't hurt. Who can forget this amazing human pretzel by greenfields Wright sisters.

In. In. Showcasing tunes on our show we thought we'd head back to Emo to see if the whole town was still jammin the way they used to. And if the lightning fast fingers of a very quiet yet very talented girl named Savannah were faster and more talented with a little maturity. Yep on all counts for three to four years and you're that good. That's right. I sure am. Marathon's. Yeah. No. I'm like that girl. You weren't like. Even if it was Indiana I think three years later and far from. 15 year old Savannah the time is now playing several instruments and singing amongst familiar faces. Jazz.

Musicians have come from. The surrounding cities and towns and they come in. Every Tuesday night and have a jam session. Or. This mandolin player of few words his younger brother Ethan. Who is the same age now as Savannah was when crossing being a first. And where will we find these talented siblings. When we come back in another form. I'll still come and take your place. YOU LIKE. Three years I'll be out of school. I'm not sure about the music and I got into that career or read to study but it always stay with me. OK. One final. Where are they now. No. Remember this hour across Indiana video got these men from New Albany into the real Guinness

Book of World Records glad to be of help. The good news is that Craig Humphrey and crew have gone on as the Cuban wrecking balls in National Geographic specials and on many cable channels. The bad news is that their record for tearing up phone books has since been beat but they ran a controversial appeal. They claim that the new title holder tore up a passel of Yellow Pages which as you surely must know are thinner than your typical white pages. Stay tuned. Any time that we would go to a town you know crossing the Channel we would show up. People were happy to see us all across Indiana. It's a big deal. I mean we make the newspapers because I'm going to make the newspapers in the same town. If you get any news from the rural areas it's because someone shot somebody or someone's house burned down or a tornado destroyed their yard or their house. And I think we you know we get to tell the stories about the good things the smaller thing.

I would show up on a story and I would tell Frank I'd say you know I just start shooting. Don't let them even know that we're rolling. When you just get people in their natural element when you're just standing next to them and you're sharing the camera space and you're just walking through with them all of a sudden they start opening up and talking but by the end of the day they're pulling stuff out of the closet saying oh by the way I tell you this or do you know about this or hey you've just done the story but did you know that my neighbor has a really good story or are you guys getting into town. There's a real good restaurant in town that you should stop at. You have to store anything. It's just got really good food. By the way to all of you guys you guys like anything to eat. Do you like some tea. You get to meet people. You get close to people and. Some of those people I've stayed close to and it's been a good thing. Let me give you a perfect example when I was a kid and you watched Carly Myers in Harlow Hickenlooper. And the three stooges show curly Meyers didn't know me from anybody. He was a singing cowboy on Saturday Morning. And. I contacted him. I said you know what I can like to tell your

story. That was probably. Seven or eight years ago. And I was at his birthday party three weeks ago. So the 90th birthday party. So we have stayed in touch. We have stayed friends. And that's one of the things that I've thought you know across in the end has really been cool. I know this is going to sound corny but what I've learned from Indiana. Is how genuinely good a lot of people are. And you have a tendency not to think about that kind of stuff anymore. But. Again corny line number two. I have never been on the story from from people with a lot of money from people with no money. That I didn't like everyone that I did the story on. And I've met a lot of good people that way. We've come to the climax of the hour and it's a see Party and jaw dropping skivvies drying in the breeze one of the most popular across Indiana story ever the one we've gotten the most response about. And honestly enough

it comes from the very first year of the show. Our guide has taken us to the highest point in the state of Indiana. I think we're just above the corn line and I'm scared because our guy has a gun right. So. How many times have you taken a trip to the highest point. Well we lost twice here twice a year and it's killing me. I don't know why I didn't get to know nosebleed all wrong sooner. You look at the view. Thank you. Well here it is. The Indiana high point elevation one thousand two hundred and fifty seven feet today and that's it for this long and winding trip. We're out of sight or in stores. So it's time to head off into the sunset. See you at

another point you are. Either out to be really fermented by them. I am as ever your host might feel like. I've really enjoyed. The experiences I've had. With the cross. I had people come up to me all the time. And say. That show. Is wonderful. Across India and it gives. Us. The. People who work on it and people who watch it. In these adventures. And. They're not. You know great. Life and Death adventures adventures about one another about us. It sparks conversation. And.

I think that that was sort of our goal all along. Maybe we should all you know take life like that across in the story and say hey you know what. Let's talk to the weird guy with the gigantic chair in front. Let's see what he's all about. You know. I love that about the show I hope. Across Indiana keeps giving people those adventures for years. I wouldn't let this guy into your house if I were you. You have for 20

years I've had the pleasure of spending time in your living room each week while we go across India. You know such neighborliness deserves an award. So I'm inviting you to a party. It's the biggest. Where are they now with this side of profounder as we look at the neighbors we've met and the people behind the scenes who put them on TV in this 20th anniversary of that little shop.