The network goes around the world with attitude, tracking super-cold
environments, martial arts, prehistoric battles, and the great beyond - all
with a unique historical perspective
NEW YORK, March 27 /PRNewswire/ -- The History Channel today announced
five new weekly series that are currently in production for the network, to
premiere in 2007 and 2008. This aggressive slate runs the gamut from
Alaskan survival techniques, to world-traveling martial-arts adventures, to
prehistoric dinosaur clashes, to the edge of the unknown in the universe.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051031/HISTORYLOGO)
Series premieres are:
-- Ice Road Truckers - a race against time on a thin sheet of ice
-- The Universe - charting the uncharted territory of the universe
-- Tougher in Alaska - the guts and smarts it takes to survive in that
tough environment
-- Human Weapon - a different quest each week for a master of a
martial-arts discipline
-- Jurassic Fight Club - new breed of dinosaurs makes a battlefield of the
prehistoric world
Nancy Dubuc, Executive Vice President and General Manager, The History
Channel, announced the projects, saying: "We want to harness the tremendous
breadth and depth of history, to create energetic new directions for the
network. We plan to build on the quality programming we are known for. By
invigorating history, with these new series, we aim to create riveting
content and powerful storytelling -- something people feel compelled to
tune in and watch each week."
History.com will showcase each series with exclusive destination
mini-sites featuring dynamic interactive broadband and short form content,
games, video logs, timelines, and much more.
New series in Production
ICE ROAD TRUCKERS
It's all about adventure ... and cash. And, incredible determination by
a small group of indomitable men. Battling sub-zero temperatures, 24/7 work
schedules, and a thinning road right beneath their wheels, the ice-road
truckers are engaged in a gritty race against time. In the harsh winter of
northernmost North America, miners rely on a tenacious group of long-haul
truckers -- "top-drivers" -- to drive their rigs over hundreds of miles on
ice roads cut across the surface of frozen lakes. Often the ice cannot
support the heavy rig, and driver and cargo plunge through the ice, and
sink. That is why these men live with one hand on the wheel and one hand on
the door, at all times. They never know when they will need to react -- to
everything. The raw material mined there is used in machines all around the
world, and the miners depend on this lifeline for survival. Ultimately,
their survival -- and that of the truckers themselves -- rests on the
thinnest of ice. Dolores Gavin is The History Channel Executive Producer.
(10 episodes).
THE UNIVERSE
From the planets to the stars and out to the edge of the unknown,
history and science collide in this epic exploration of the Universe and
its mysteries. It's a very old universe. Yet just 50 years since man first
ventured into outer space, the heavens are yielding their greatest secrets.
Robotic rovers give us eyes on the red rock of Mars. ... NASA probes slam
into comets at hyperspeed. ... deep-space telescopes capture violent images
of the birth of stars and their collapse into black holes. All have
significantly changed the way we see ourselves. We wonder, Is there
anywhere else out there that can support life? Using cutting-edge computer
graphics, this series brings the universe down to earth to show what life
would be like on other planets, and to imagine what kind of life forms
might evolve in alien atmospheres. Episodes examine how discoveries were
made and the scientists and explorers who dared to venture into the
uncharted territory of the universe. Beth Dietrich Segarra is The History
Channel Executive Producer. (13 episodes).
TOUGHER IN ALASKA
Everything is harder in Alaska, from the way you earn a living, to how
you bury your dead. Tougher in Alaska explores the guts and self-reliance
-- not to mention, ingenuity and technology -- it takes to survive the
challenges of extreme cold and extreme isolation. In a land where severe
weather, vast distances and rugged terrain shape everything about life,
there's a long history of overcoming adversity and surviving the tough
environment. Episodes will cover emergencies like the 1927 Nome diphtheria
epidemic; how present-day structures like the pipeline are designed to
withstand the potential fury of one of the most active seismic zones in the
world; and how loggers must use helicopters to cope with remote locations.
The series shows how -- both historically and today -- people have learned
to overcome ... and live to tell the tale. Marc Etkind is The History
Channel Executive Producer. (13 episodes).
HUMAN WEAPON
Each of the martial arts -- whether Karate, Capoeira, Muay Thai, Kung
Fu, or Greco-Roman wrestling -- is the unique product of a fascinating
culture. Each is steeped in the history and mythology of a region. And each
has a Master. Every week on Human Weapon, our hosts, Jason Chambers, a
mixed martial artist and professional fighter, and Bill Duff, a former
football player and wrestler, go on a quest to find the master of a
different martial art. They venture to extreme and exotic places -- one
week, seedy back streets of Bangkok to find Master Muay Thai fighter Suriya
Ploenchit, and the next, sampling local delicacies such as steamed
silkworms and snake blood en route to face off with the reigning Taekwondo
champion in South Korea. Along the way they absorb a nation's unique
history and traditions, and how it gave birth to its distinct form of
combat. In a series of extreme tests, they must confront professionals in
each fighting style and fight a master. Marc Etkind is The History Channel
Executive Producer. (13 episodes).
JURASSIC FIGHT CLUB
They were the ultimate fighters -- prehistoric beasts who walked the
earth millions of years ago. With cunning and strategy, they hunted their
prey -- transforming the prehistoric world into a battlefield. Today,
archaeologists are uncovering these battlefields -- and are gaining
startling new insight into how quick thinking, maneuverability, and
striking at the exact moment separated the weak from the strong. Blow by
blow, each episode will dissect these battles, uncovering a predatory world
far more calculated and complex than we originally thought. Episodes of
Jurassic Fight Club will include Gang Killers, T-Rex Hunters, Deep-Sea
Dinosaurs, and Armored Predators. Dolores Gavin is The History Channel
Executive Producer. (10 episodes).
The History Channel(R) is a leading cable television network featuring
compelling original, non-fiction specials and series that bring history to
life in a powerful and entertaining manner across multiple platforms. The
network provides an inviting place where people experience history in new
and exciting ways enabling them to connect their lives today to the great
lives and events of the past that provide a blueprint for the future. The
History Channel has earned four Peabody Awards, three Primetime Emmy(R)
Awards, 10 News & Documentary Emmy(R) Awards and received the prestigious
Governor's Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the
network's Save Our History(R) campaign dedicated to historic preservation
and history education. The History Channel reaches more than 91 million
Nielsen subscribers. The website is located at http://www.History.com.
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