Film Project

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December 2006

A reproduction of
the Brewster Roof Seat Break Carriage

(copy of a carriage in the collection
that belonged to Loula Long Combs)

That’s Bonnie in the BIG hat.

Courtesy of Goose Neck Bend Farm
The horses are American Saddlebreds.

(Photo reprinted with
permission from the Northeast News)

Several years ago I was asked to ride in a carriage parade of the American Royal, dressed as Kansas City horsewoman Loula Long Combs.

Loula Long looking “very pert”
(For an Enlargement,
CLICK on Picture)

I wanted to study as much as I could about this fascinating lady and read her autobiography, My Revelation. I also studied period photos of her. As a result, I simply fell in love with this charming, generous-spirited woman.

Not long after, I had a dream that I was watching a movie about her life. It was such a poignant and moving dream, I couldn’t get back to sleep thinking about it. As I lay awake, I thought to myself “I can make this happen”. A few years before I had met an Emmy-nominated filmmaker by the name of Richard Luckin. He and my husband worked together on an award-winning orientation film for Union Station’s KC Rail Experience.

Richard was well-known for his award-winning PBS documentaries, mostly on railroad history. I was determined to tell him about my dream and perhaps interest him in doing my dream film. To my delight, he said “yes,” explaining that “my wife and I had just talked about my wanting to do a different kind of project and you’ve just described exactly what we had in mind.”

Michael Gross, best known as Steven Keaton from the TV sitcom “Family Ties,” has agreed to be the narrator of the proposed PBS film about R. A. Long, his family and his legacy.

It took two years and a long fundraising process, but the finished result exceeded all my hopes. It’s called Ours To Give: The Long Legacy of an American Family. It premiered on PBS on Thanksgiving night, 2007. With its theme of generosity and giving it was a perfect fit!

Hollywood actor Michael Gross (the father in the sitcom “Family Ties”) narrates the film and gives it a very professional tone.

Peter A. Hansen was the script writer. Peter is a nationally known historian and Editor of Railroad History Magazine. Peter has been a source for NBC Nightly News, CBS Sunday Morning and Fox. His work related to the Abraham Lincoln bicentennial garnered national attention.

Peter Hansen on "Nightly News" with "Railroads Woven Into Presidential History"

Since its first broadcast in 2007, “Ours to Give” has been seen from Albuquerque to Jacksonville and has been awarded four national awards.

Bonnie Hansen – Executive Producer

March 25, 2007

“Filmmakers focus on R. A. Long”
from
THE DAILY NEWS
Longview, Washington

CLICK on this “thumbnail” of newspaper clipping
to view and read enlarged version.