Fr. Hesburgh film to be distributed to public TV stations nationwide
May 12, 2006
National Educational Telecommunications Association (NETA), Columbia, S.C., has selected Family Theater Productions' latest documentary God, Country, Notre Dame: The Story of Father Ted Hesburgh, CSC for a satellite feed on May 14 to the more than 340 public television stations. Family Theater Productions granted NETA a nonexclusive, three-year license for these stations to broadcast the documentary at their discretion.
NETA is a professional association that serves public television licensees and educational entities in all 50 states, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. It has 93 members representing 97 public broadcasting licensees (some of which operate multiple stations) in 45 states, the Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia.
Family Theater Productions is conducting a station relations campaign, sending the program managers promotional materials and calling them, encouraging them to air the program.
This will be Family Theater's ninth program since 1994 that has been selected for a satellite feed to public television stations by NETA and its forerunner the Southeastern Educational Communications Association as well as American Public Television.
The other programs were The Search, The Visit, Voices of Appalachia, We Have a Table for Four Ready: The Story of the St. Francis Inn, Room Enough for Joy, Bernardin, Glidepath to Recovery and The Fifth Gospel: The Land and Sea of Galilee, the latter having 352 broadcasts so far by more than 150 public TV stations since its release in March 2002.
God, Country, Notre Dame, which has won a Telly Award for "outstanding video and film productions," had its broadcast premier on The Hallmark Channel Nov. 6, 2005, as a presentation of Faith and Values Media.
"In addition to being an innovative leader in higher education who turned Notre Dame into the premier Catholic university in the world, Father Hesburgh also rendered historic service to the United States through his presidential appointments, including crafting legislation granting civil and equal rights for all citizens and voting rights for 18 year olds," said Father Willy Raymond, CSC, Family Theater's National Director and the documentary's executive producer. "When asked how he wants to be remembered, the octogenarian is quick to answer, 'priest,'" Father Raymond added.
Shot in true high definition with Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound, this program features reflections by Father Hesburgh and all of the living former U.S. Presidents: Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, Gerald Ford and Bill Clinton, as well as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, former Notre Dame football coach Ara Parseghian, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop of Washington, D.C., and others.
The narrators are TV personality Regis Philbin, Notre Dame's outstanding alumnus; and actors Sean Astin (Sam in The Lord of the Rings trilogy and star of Rudy about a Notre Dame football walk-on) and Clarence Gilyard (co-star of Walker Texas Ranger and Matlock).
As the documentary relates, Father Hesburgh, who turns 89 on May 25, is still working from his retirement office in the Notre Dame library named in his honor in 1987 and still has his door open to students as he has for the last 60 years as faculty member, executive vice president, president and president emeritus.
Despite his many accomplishments, Fr. Hesburgh maintains that his greatest is being a priest.