The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club
Encyclopedia
The Legend of Pancho Barnes
and the Happy Bottom Riding Club
is an Emmy award-winning documentary that chronicles the life of aviation pioneer Florence Lowe 'Pancho' Barnes.
. It was written and produced by Nick T. Spark
and directed by University of Southern California
professor Amanda Pope. The film features interviews with many of Pancho Barnes' surviving friends including astronaut Buzz Aldrin
and test pilots Robert Cardenas
, Bob Hoover
and Chuck Yeager
. Biographers Lauren Kessler
and Barbara Schultz also appear in the documentary. The film is narrated by Tom Skerritt
, with Kathy Bates
as the voice of Pancho Barnes.
, the Los Angeles International Women's Film Festival, the San Francisco Women's Film Festival, the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival
and the San Luis Obispo Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award. It also won the Audience Award at the Big Muddy Film Festival and Best Documentary Film at the Los Angeles Women's Film Festival.
The documentary won the 2010 L.A. Area Emmy Award in the Arts & Culture / History category.
A shortened, broadcast version of The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club is currently being distributed by American Public Television
and will be seen on over 100 public television stations in the United States of America.
The film was also shown at the Experimental Aircraft Association
's AirVenture, the AOPA National Convention, the Northwest EAA Fly-In
, Sun 'N Fun
and dozens of air museums across the United States.
Pancho Barnes
Florence Lowe "Pancho" Barnes was a pioneer aviator, the founder of the first test pilots union and the owner of the Happy Bottom Riding Club, a bar and restaurant. She broke Amelia Earhart's air speed record in 1930...
and the Happy Bottom Riding Club
Happy Bottom Riding Club
The Happy Bottom Riding Club, more formally known as the Rancho Oro Verde Fly-Inn Dude Ranch, was a dude ranch restaurant and hotel operated by Pancho Barnes on the site of current-day Edwards Air Force Base in southern California's Antelope Valley, in the southwestern part of the United...
is an Emmy award-winning documentary that chronicles the life of aviation pioneer Florence Lowe 'Pancho' Barnes.
Production
The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club was made on a non-profit basis through the Orange County PBS station KOCE-TVKOCE-TV
KOCE-TV is a Public Broadcasting Service member Public televisionstation, and is the primary PBS member for Los Angeles and Southern California. KOCE also features programming focused on the communities of Orange County, California. It airs Orange County's only nightly newscast, Real Orange, with...
. It was written and produced by Nick T. Spark
Nick T. Spark
Nick T. Spark is an American documentary filmmaker and writer. Films he has written, directed or produced include Regulus: The First Nuclear Missile Submarines and the Emmy award winning The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club...
and directed by University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
professor Amanda Pope. The film features interviews with many of Pancho Barnes' surviving friends including astronaut Buzz Aldrin
Buzz Aldrin
Buzz Aldrin is an American mechanical engineer, retired United States Air Force pilot and astronaut who was the Lunar Module pilot on Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing in history...
and test pilots Robert Cardenas
Robert Cardenas
Robert L. "Bob" Cardenas is a retired Brigadier General of the United States Air Force.-Childhood and adolescence:He was born in Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico. When he was five, his family moved to San Diego, California. He excelled in Mathematics and Physics in high school...
, Bob Hoover
Bob Hoover
Robert A. "Bob" Hoover is a former air show pilot and United States Air Force test pilot, known for his wide-brimmed straw hat and wide smile. In aviation circles, he is often referred to as "The pilots' pilot."-Aviation career:...
and Chuck Yeager
Chuck Yeager
Charles Elwood "Chuck" Yeager is a retired major general in the United States Air Force and noted test pilot. He was the first pilot to travel faster than sound...
. Biographers Lauren Kessler
Lauren Kessler
Lauren Kessler is an American author, as well as Director of the Literary Nonfiction Program and Professor in the School of Journalism and Communication at the University of Oregon....
and Barbara Schultz also appear in the documentary. The film is narrated by Tom Skerritt
Tom Skerritt
Thomas Roy "Tom" Skerritt is an American actor who has appeared in over 40 films and more than 200 television episodes since 1962.-Early life:...
, with Kathy Bates
Kathy Bates
Kathleen Doyle "Kathy" Bates is an American actress and director.After several small roles in film and television, Bates rose to prominence with her performance in Misery , for which she won both the Academy Award for Best Actress and a Golden Globe...
as the voice of Pancho Barnes.
Distribution and Awards
The film premiered at the NewFest film festival in Manhattan in June, 2009, and was subsequently shown at the American CinemathequeAmerican Cinematheque
The American Cinematheque is an independent, non-profit cultural organization in Los Angeles dedicated exclusively to the public presentation of the Moving Image in all its forms. It is considered among the premier organizations of its kind in America....
, the Los Angeles International Women's Film Festival, the San Francisco Women's Film Festival, the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival
Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival
The Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival began as a cooperative effort between the Southern Film Alliance and a small group of Hot Springs volunteers in 1992. Academy Award nominated films were shown free of charge to the public in the Historic District of Hot Springs...
and the San Luis Obispo Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award. It also won the Audience Award at the Big Muddy Film Festival and Best Documentary Film at the Los Angeles Women's Film Festival.
The documentary won the 2010 L.A. Area Emmy Award in the Arts & Culture / History category.
A shortened, broadcast version of The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club is currently being distributed by American Public Television
American Public Television
American Public Television is the largest syndicator of programming for public television stations in the United States.-History:...
and will be seen on over 100 public television stations in the United States of America.
The film was also shown at the Experimental Aircraft Association
Experimental Aircraft Association
The Experimental Aircraft Association is an international organization of aviation enthusiasts based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Since its inception it has grown internationally with over 160,000 members and about 1,000 chapters worldwide....
's AirVenture, the AOPA National Convention, the Northwest EAA Fly-In
Northwest EAA Fly-In
The Northwest EAA Fly-In, known colloquially as the Arlington Air Show, is an annual Experimental Aircraft Association airshow hosted in Arlington, Washington at the Arlington Municipal Airport...
, Sun 'N Fun
Sun 'n Fun
Sun 'n Fun is a "Fly-in" and airshow held annually at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Lakeland, Florida, usually during the second or third week of April....
and dozens of air museums across the United States.