This 1970 color installment of an ABC News magazine program for young people offers a tour of Utah’s natural landmarks and parks, including Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Rainbow Natural Bridge, Bears Ears, Monument Valley, and other National Monuments of the region (TRT: 22:27). The episode is hosted by Bill Owen and Virginia Gibson. Owen, widely known as the “King of Trivia”, originally started as the announcer on “Discovery”. In 1966, Owen succeeded Frank Buxton as host. He and Gibson (best known for “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”) continued as a team for five years, traveling throughout the world.

Aerial photography of Utah’s Painted Desert (0:09). Opening titles and animated “Discovery ‘70” sequence (0:40). Hosts Virginia Gibson and Bill Owen, wearing knit sweaters, introduce themselves at Arches National Monument in Utah’s Red Rock Country (1:10). Footage of Arches National Park taken from a passing vehicle shows craggy rocks, partially covered in snow. Cliffs, canyons, and frost-covered valley (1:45). The hosts exit a log cabin. Children sit on a wagon in the background. Naturalist William Taylor, an educator at the park, instructs a group of children (2:24). A group of school-age children squint into the sun, listening (3:09). The auto tour of Arches continues under clear blue skies (3:56). Montage of notable rock formations: “Balanced Rocks” in closeup. “The Parade of Elephants.” “Devil’s Garden” is seen from afar. “The Three Gossips.” “Park Avenue” (4:09). Hosts reappear at Dead Horse Point Overlook, a snow capped, high-elevation promontory (5:15). Additional views of Dead Horse Point (6:18). Hosts approach a 1964 Cessna 206, airplane (N5186U). The plane taxis on a runway (7:17). Aerial photography of canyon country shows the effects of erosion. Chesler Park, a winding trail surrounded by sandstone pillars (8:12). “Spirit Land,” a series of canyons to the east (9:35). “The Maze,” an intricate network of narrow ravines and natural bridges (9:49). “Robber’s Roost.” Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are invoked in narration (10:11). To the west, Cataract Canyon in Canyonlands National Park. Desolate, rocky outcroppings tower above a river (10:45). Lake Powell. Rainbow Natural Bridge National Monument in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area of southern Utah (11:25). San Juan Hill at Bears Ears National Monument (12:49). The ruins of a trading post from the late 1800s (13:29). The “Mitten Buttes” of Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park. Cathedral Rocks, Eagle Rock Mesa, and Grey Whiskers rock formations (14:20). Desert scrub and a juniper tree. Sheep and goats with an indigeonous shepherd among brush (15:40). Anasazi cliff dwelling ruins and petroglyphs (16:07). Hosts speak on the subject of the Navajo (or Diné) people, on whose reservation they are standing. A small gathering of Navajo people are visible in the background (16:41). The Navajo family gathers for a meal outside a traditional hogan. Aged pickup trucks stand nearby (17:19). Herding sheep and goats. A young Navajo girl has her hair tied up while a woman prepares weaves a large weaving on a loom (17:36). Outdoors, just outside the hogan, a teenage girl uses hand carding combs to felt wool. Her grandmother spins yarn. Both women wear turquoise jewelry and velvet blouses (18:31). The hosts return and summarize the program (19:46). Book recommendations for young readers: “Utah, Dancing Cloud, Along Sandy Trails” (21:10). End credits (21:38).

This episode of Discovery ‘70 was written by Michael Burton and produced by Jules Power in association with ABC News. Production assistance and promotional consideration was provided by the Utah Travel Council.

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