Ken Chowder: Writer, Author, Novelist: Documentaries, Novels and Articles  
All or nothing, bit by bit.  
  Houston Post: "Chowder presents a dazzling array of insights into the human psyche."


 
 
 
Films

Films Chowder has scripted include: Through Deaf Eyes, Audubon: Drawn from Nature, John Brown's Holy War, Influenza 1918, Tuberculosis: The People's Plague, The Wilderness Idea, Wild By Law, Russia's Last Tsar, The Lost Fleet of Guadalcanal, and The Harriman Alaska Expedition Retraced, and the feature film The Boyhood of John Muir.

Films recently broadcast:

 

  • History through Deaf Eyes, a two-hour documentary for WETA and Florentine Films/Hott Productions about the history of deaf people in America, funded by the Public Broadcasting System, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. National PBS Broadcast.

  • Beyond Hubble, a one-hour documentary for National Geographic, about the bizarre world of outer space revealed by the Hubble Space Telescope (co-written by Dana Berry)

  • Audubon: Drawn from Nature, a one-hour documentary about the painter and American icon for the PBS series American Masters (WNET) and Florentine Films/Hott Productions. Production supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. National PBS Broadcast.

 
NIAGARA FALLS
a one-hour documentary for WNED by Florentine Films/Hott Productions. National PBS Broadcast.

  image 1   THE LIFE AND TIMES OF ANNIE OAKLEY
a one-hour documentary for The American Experience and WGBH about the sharpshooter and her era. Production supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. National PBS Broadcast. The New York Times review of this film can be downloaded here (PDF).		  
JOHN BROWN'S HOLY WAR
a 90-minute documentary by Robert Kenner Films
(Broadcast on "The American Experience" on PBS)
INFLUENZA 1918
A one-hour documentary by Robert Kenner Films
(Broadcast on "The American Experience" on PBS)
DON'T SAY GOODBYE:
AMERICA'S ENDANGERED SPECIES
a one-hour "National Geographic Special"
(Broadcast on NBC)

THE BOYHOOD OF JOHN MUIR
a ninety-minute dramatic film by Florentine Films
(Broadcast on PBS)

  • Gold Hugo (Best Children's Feature Film), Chicago Television Festival
  • Silver Award (Best Adult Feature Film), Charleston Television Festival
THE LAST TSAR
a one-hour "National Geographic Special"
(Broadcast on NBC)

KNUTE ROCKNE & HIS FIGHTING IRISH
a one-hour documentary by Florentine Films
(Broadcast on "The American Experience" on PBS)

  • Golden Apple Award, National Educational Film Festival

THE HARRIMAN ALASKA EXPEDITION RETRACED
a 110-minute documentary by Florentine Films/Hott Productions
(Broadcast on PBS)

DEFENDING EVERYBODY:
THE STORY OF THE ACLU
a one-hour documentary by Florentine Films
(Broadcast on PBS)

  • Golden Award Apple, National Educational Film Festival
DINOSAUR HUNTERS
a one-hour National Geographic "Explorer"
(Broadcast on TBS)

THE LOST FLEET OF GUADALCANAL
a 105-minute National Geographic “Explorer”
(Broadcast on TBS)

  • Gold Award, WorldFest Film Festival -- Best Documentary
  • Best Documentary Feature, Hong Kong Film Festival
  • Script nominated for Humanitas Award


WILD BY LAW
a one-hour documentary by Florentine Films
(Broadcast on "The American Experience" on PBS)

    • Nominated for Academy Award -- Best Documentary
    • Feature Accepted by the Telluride Film Festival; CINE Golden Eagle

THE WILDERNESS IDEA:
JOHN MUIR, GIFFORD PINCHOT, AND THE FIRST BATTLE FOR WILDERNESS
a one-hour documentary by Florentine Films
(Broadcast on "The American Experience" on PBS)

  • Blue Ribbon (Best History Film), American Film Festival
  • Golden Apple Award (Best History Film), National Educational Film Festival
  • Golden Gate Award (Best History Film), San Francisco Film Festival
  • Golden Plaque (Best History Film), Chicago Film Festival
  • CINE Golden Eagle
         
   

THE PEOPLE'S PLAGUE:
TUBERCULOSIS IN AMERICA
a series of two one-hour documentaries by Florentine Films (Broadcast on PBS)

TREASURES OF THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
a one-hour documentary by Wentworth Films,
(Broadcast on PBS)

SIBERIAN SOUL ON ICE
a half-hour National Geographic "Explorer"
(Broadcast on TBS)
 
             
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