Wharton Field House
Wharton Field House

 

July 1, 2022

Regional Filmmakers

 

Throughout the year, WQPT PBS features documentaries by regional filmmakers. “We are committed to partnering with filmmakers who tell those famous or little known stories about our area's history,” said said Lora Adams, WQPT PBS Director of Marketing and Local Content.

 

Tragedy on Highway 74

FeatureExplore the final moments leading up to the death of vigilante and local grocer, Bob Sproat in Cedar County in Iowa.

John “Jack” Mercer, his brother Roy, and Wain Kile held up a Davenport drug store in August 1930. Featuring historical re-enactments and archival photos. Produced by Stephen Folker Films.

 

Havencrest

FeatureProduced by WQPT PBS, Havencrest: A Very Special Place is the story of the home completed in 1901 at Hillcrest, was purchased in the mid 1970's by artist Alan St. George and his wife Adrienne Blue-Wakefield St. George. They quadrupled the size of the house and used it as a canvas for Alan's skill as an artist and Adrienne's vision of her home.

 

Whiskey Cookers

FeatureWhiskey Cookers: The Amazing True Story of the Templeton Rye Bootleggers tells how Templeton, Iowa—population 400—became the whiskey bootlegging capital of America’s heartland.

Aging bootleggers and their children recount tales of moonshiners, federal agents—even drunk pigs. Awarded the Best Documentary prize at multiple film festivals, Whiskey Cookers provides a window on the 18th Amendment’s impact on America’s heartland—100 years after Prohibition. Produced by Democracy Films.

 

The Fort

FeatureThe Fort: 177 Years of Crime and Punishment at the Iowa State Penitentiary details the dramatic history of the Iowa State Penitentiary — the oldest prison west of the Mississippi River.

Daring escapes, brutal executions, and prisoner riots make up the story and the surprising history of one of America’s most progressive penitentiaries.

Among the prisoners portrayed in the film: Jack Nutter, one of America’s longest-serving inmates, imprisoned since 1956. Produced by Democracy Films.

 

Stout Hearted

Feature George Stout, leader of The Monuments Men, saved over 5 million pieces of art stolen by the Nazis during WWII, then continued developing techniques for art conservation still used in major art museums worldwide.

Today's Monuments Men and Women protect ancient art and artifacts from wars in various parts of the world and terrorists such as ISIS. Produced by New Mile Media Arts.

 

Snapshots

FeatureWQPT PBS produced Snapshots are short-form documentaries focusing on the historical people, places and things throughout the Eastern Iowa, Western, and West-Central Illinois region.

Meet an elephant named Norma Jean, buried in Oquawka, Iowa, after she was electrocuted in a storm.

In the second half, explore the story of Raymond Fairbank, an Air Force weatherman on the crew that helped Chuck Yaeger break the sound barrier.

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