Any TV producers out there interested in developing / funding the below story?
The Burb in the Bush
On a recent South African "safari" up near the Cullinan mine, where the famous "Star of Africa diamond was discovered in 1905, I found my own "diamond in the rough"- a rare left hand drive, 5-7 seat '61 Chevrolet Suburban. Incredibly, after lying out under the harsh African sun for the last 30 years, the body had only minor, surface rust. Granted it needed a bit of work but the only thing that really concerned me was the badly damaged, (yellow/black) curved windscreen. The owner, Monty (83), a sun baked, wily African Boer offered to sell it to me. Somewhat amused, I told him I'd think it over and continued on my quest to track down another elusive classic - a '35 Chevy Pick Up, abandoned somewhere up near the Skeleton Coast, a heavily restricted Namibian diamond mining area.
On route up to the Namibian border, I took a detour to check out another unusual find, '53 Chevy hearse, gathering dust in a local funeral parlour. This hearse looked like something you'd see in an early Bond film or used to "voodoo" terrorize Haitians by Papa Doc's dreaded secret police, the Ton ton Macute. After discovering I was an Irishman and not a "Brit" (these guys have long memories of the Anglo-Boer war!) Monty chilled and agreed to sell me the vehicle. I knew this weather beaten hearse wouldn't be a problem to rent out as a movie "prop" vehicle and would certainly compliment my other Cape Town classics.
Driving through the sweltering Namibian desert, my thoughts kept returning to that "burb in the bush". As a Chevrolet enthusiast, I just couldn't leave it there to "RIP" (rust in peace!) This old classic had plenty of life left in it. A few hours later, over a well earned, ice cold beer in the Namibian coastal town of Luederitz, I was still thinking about Monty's "burb" when another idea flashed into my head........ Why not make a TV doccie tracking down African "bush" classics on route to Kenya?
Over an ice cold "Windhoek", I thought about the idea. It wouldn't be a problem to transport the "burb" 1800 kms back to Cape Town, fix it up, kit it out but still keep that weather beaten paint job. After all, this was a '61 African rugged Chevy about to journey over thousands of pot holed, dusty roads. The last thing I wanted was a lot of shady characters checking out my shiny Chev only to scarper with a lot of expensive film equipment. Nope, better to blend in with the surroundings and keep a low profile!
Beginning in Cape Town, I'd head up through South Africa, into Botswana, through the Okavanga Delta, on up to majestic Vic Falls, following the Zambesi checking out the elephants and rhinos along the riverbanks. From there I'd cross the border into Zambia, Malawi, stopping at the Serengeti and finally into Kenya. In Nairobi, I could do all the post production at a friend's film studio and then concentrate on pre-selling this exciting doccie to various TV networks like National Geographic, BBC and so on. Who knows, maybe even continue the adventure by shipping the "burb"over to Argentina and driving down through the Pampas, over the Andes into Chile and up through Central America! Come to think of it, maybe Mombasa wouldn't be too cool what with all those pirates hanging about off the Kenyan coast.... The "burb" might end up ferrying a load of AK-47 pirates around Somalia which wouldn't exactly be in my plans!
The thought of filming this exciting adventure was appealing and also something different. Here was a true life adventure - a cool, rugged, weather-beaten vehicle, spectacular scenery, amazing wildlife, unusual classics and
interesting characters to interview about their cars / lives. I had the time, passion, experience, and energy and after 6 years working in the Cape Town film industry, it wouldn't be difficult to round up a motley crew of 3/4! Any adventurous TV producers out there?
"Life's a journey, not a destination!"
To view some recent African "bush" discoveries, log on to: www.photobucket.com/piers
The Burb in the Bush
On a recent South African "safari" up near the Cullinan mine, where the famous "Star of Africa diamond was discovered in 1905, I found my own "diamond in the rough"- a rare left hand drive, 5-7 seat '61 Chevrolet Suburban. Incredibly, after lying out under the harsh African sun for the last 30 years, the body had only minor, surface rust. Granted it needed a bit of work but the only thing that really concerned me was the badly damaged, (yellow/black) curved windscreen. The owner, Monty (83), a sun baked, wily African Boer offered to sell it to me. Somewhat amused, I told him I'd think it over and continued on my quest to track down another elusive classic - a '35 Chevy Pick Up, abandoned somewhere up near the Skeleton Coast, a heavily restricted Namibian diamond mining area.
On route up to the Namibian border, I took a detour to check out another unusual find, '53 Chevy hearse, gathering dust in a local funeral parlour. This hearse looked like something you'd see in an early Bond film or used to "voodoo" terrorize Haitians by Papa Doc's dreaded secret police, the Ton ton Macute. After discovering I was an Irishman and not a "Brit" (these guys have long memories of the Anglo-Boer war!) Monty chilled and agreed to sell me the vehicle. I knew this weather beaten hearse wouldn't be a problem to rent out as a movie "prop" vehicle and would certainly compliment my other Cape Town classics.
Driving through the sweltering Namibian desert, my thoughts kept returning to that "burb in the bush". As a Chevrolet enthusiast, I just couldn't leave it there to "RIP" (rust in peace!) This old classic had plenty of life left in it. A few hours later, over a well earned, ice cold beer in the Namibian coastal town of Luederitz, I was still thinking about Monty's "burb" when another idea flashed into my head........ Why not make a TV doccie tracking down African "bush" classics on route to Kenya?
Over an ice cold "Windhoek", I thought about the idea. It wouldn't be a problem to transport the "burb" 1800 kms back to Cape Town, fix it up, kit it out but still keep that weather beaten paint job. After all, this was a '61 African rugged Chevy about to journey over thousands of pot holed, dusty roads. The last thing I wanted was a lot of shady characters checking out my shiny Chev only to scarper with a lot of expensive film equipment. Nope, better to blend in with the surroundings and keep a low profile!
Beginning in Cape Town, I'd head up through South Africa, into Botswana, through the Okavanga Delta, on up to majestic Vic Falls, following the Zambesi checking out the elephants and rhinos along the riverbanks. From there I'd cross the border into Zambia, Malawi, stopping at the Serengeti and finally into Kenya. In Nairobi, I could do all the post production at a friend's film studio and then concentrate on pre-selling this exciting doccie to various TV networks like National Geographic, BBC and so on. Who knows, maybe even continue the adventure by shipping the "burb"over to Argentina and driving down through the Pampas, over the Andes into Chile and up through Central America! Come to think of it, maybe Mombasa wouldn't be too cool what with all those pirates hanging about off the Kenyan coast.... The "burb" might end up ferrying a load of AK-47 pirates around Somalia which wouldn't exactly be in my plans!
The thought of filming this exciting adventure was appealing and also something different. Here was a true life adventure - a cool, rugged, weather-beaten vehicle, spectacular scenery, amazing wildlife, unusual classics and
interesting characters to interview about their cars / lives. I had the time, passion, experience, and energy and after 6 years working in the Cape Town film industry, it wouldn't be difficult to round up a motley crew of 3/4! Any adventurous TV producers out there?"Life's a journey, not a destination!"
To view some recent African "bush" discoveries, log on to: www.photobucket.com/piers