Bold Journey was a travelogue which was produced for ABC television in the late 1950’s. This episode is about a trip by professional adventurer Romain Wilhelmson to visit the Tarahumara tribe (which the narrator calls “pagans”) in Chihuahua, Mexico. The episode features the series’ original host, John Stevenson. Wilhelmson however serves as the primary narrator. He was an adventure film producer, and also directed films for the L.A. Adventurer’s Club, which he mentions in “The Pagans” episode. Please note: this film uses offensive language regarding Native Americans. The film takes place mostly in the Barranca de Cobre Canyon, Creole, and Chihuahua, all of which are in Mexico.
Film begins with the title Bold Journey at 0:15, with John Stephenson as host. Stephenson narrates that Mr. Romain Wilhelmsen, who lived in Pasadena, sets out to explore the Barranca de Cobre (the Copper Canyon), in Mexico at 0:51. Film shows a remote tribe of Native Americans at 1:08. (The film called them Indians which could be triggering.) Wilhelmsen comes on screen at 1:25. Wilhelmsen says the canyon was “discovered” in 1588 at 1:55. Wilhelmsen starts his adventure at the city of Chihuahua in Mexico at 2:33. Wilhelmsen introduces his partner Sergio Camaleche at 2:40. Wilhelmsen describes the area as a series of canyons at 3:27. The airport 3:58. Wilhelmsen introduces his guide Julio at 4:30. The Tropics of Barranca de Cobre are shown at 4:46. They spot some ruins at 5:05. The Urique River is shown at 5:46. They walk over boulders in the river at 6:37. Ruins were a British mining camp at 6:57. The film shows the explorers walking across a very narrow wooden bridge at 7:36. Miners are swimming in the river at 8:22. Wilhelmsen was offered gold for $400 a pound, when he got back to the states, he found out it was $600 per pound at 8:40. Wilhelmsen presents the Los Angeles’s Advernturer’s Club flag at 9:00. Father Tramp or Trampas (in Spanish) is shown at 9:37. “He tramps all around Mexico looking for [Native Americans] to civilize” at 9:44. Tarahumara tribal members are shown at 10:47 performing a ritual ceremony. The women are allowed to divorce their husbands in this tribe, but the husbands are never allowed to divorce their wives (11:59). The film shows a Native American performing a ritual at 12:44. Wilhelmsen is very offensive towards the Native Americans while describing what seems to be a ritual or a ceremony. Wilhelmsen takes a picture with two of the Tarahumara at 15:03. The film shows a lumber camp that was supposedly attacked by the Native Americans at 15:55. There is a mission of San Jose de Cabo that is shown at 16:20. Señior Don Ramon is shown on screen at 16:44. The Native Americans he goes to meet were preparing for their Banquet of Death ceremony at 17:50. The Banquet of Death is where the Native Americans will go when a comet they believe will hit the Earth, hits at 18:42. The violin was introduced to these Native Americans during colonial times at 19:26. The Native Americans offer food up to the four winds at 20:26. The film shows a letter in Spanish that Wilhelmsen brought back from Father Trapas at 21:01.
The film transitions back to Wilhelmsen and Stevenson sitting in the production room where Stephenson begins to ask Wilhelmsen about the Native Americans at 21:36.
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