For Release: Sept. 24, 2007
Christopher Columbus changed the world in a way that few others have, bringing together the unknown and the known. Yet remarkably, the great explorer went to his grave ignorant of his great accomplishment, unaware that he had discovered two vast continents. The Magnificent Voyage of Christopher Columbus , airing Monday, Oct. 8, at 9/8 p.m. CT on KET1 and Sunday, Oct. 14 at 9/8 p.m. CT on KET2, recounts the history and epic adventure of Columbus' first Atlantic crossing, as a modern-day crew retraces his voyage, sailing replicas of his famous fleet.The forces that Columbus unknowingly set into motion brought about a profound transformation of America and Europe and, in short order, Africa and Asia. His voyage initiated a tremendous trans-oceanic migration of peoples, plants and diseases that, for better, and often for worse, affected the entire globe.
"When we were filming this first voyage aboard the replicas of the Pinta, the Nina and the Santa Maria and re-creating Columbus' passage through the Bahamas, Cuba and Hispaniola, we were very conscious of the need to tell the great adventure story of the European discovery of America," said executive producer and director Zvi Dor Ner. "But we but also wanted to give our viewers a sense of the great drama that was about to engulf the people Columbus encountered."
The Magnificent Voyage of Christopher Columbus is adapted and upgraded to high definition from the original, critically acclaimed seven-part series Columbus and the Age of Discovery (1991), which was a co-production with the BBC United Kingdom, SEQC and TVE Spain, RAI Italy, RTP Portugal, NHK Japan and NDR Germany. More information about KET programming and education services, as well as how to support KET, can be found at www.ket.org.