DIRECTOR OF TLES SURVIVES KLONDIKE!

Ok, that's not such big news, but it is for me. These are photos of actually two Klondikes we did, one a few months ago and the other just this past weekend. My troop is not very big, about 7 kids total, but their energy is enormous. (The photos in the middle are my son, Parke. Then me coming back from the Klondike, I'd had enough).

My assistant Scoutmaster, Jed, also has a great love for the scouts. He makes me look good by helping them with knots and camping, things I haven't mastered. I think much of scouting is for the adults as well.

I have done about 2 other Klondikes before this year as a leader and was a wimp. I ended up sleeping in my car both times. But I was only assistant Scoutmaster at the time. Now I felt obligated to live up to what the boys themselves go through. So on these recent Klondikes, I slept in the tent and it snowed both times in the middle of the night.

We actually camped at Camp Maple Dell, which is where we filmed all camping scenes for THE LAST EAGLE SCOUT. It was weird going back to the same place but now having to lug everything around in a sled.

At this past Klondike, the boys had competitions where they did speed knot tying, guessed first aid needs, measured their scout spirit, built fires, raced snow sleds and mapped out compass courses. The council that put this on was awesome and you can tell the great spirit of scouting was alive and well.

WHERE DOES "THE LAST EAGLE SCOUT" STAND.

I have been getting many inquiries as to where we stand in the making of this film, when it comes to the Boy Scouts and Politics. Some of it has become hate mail, which comes with the territory of making a controversial film. (Some of it is kind of fun to read). Since this is a satire film, it can be fairly blurry what statement is trying to be conveyed, especially in only watching a trailer.

But my objective in making "The Last Eagle Scout" was not to spark controversy, but maybe to start a debate, a discussion. The focus on the film is on political correctness, not the Boy Scouts. I personally love the Boy Scouts. I was never one, mostly because where I lived the leadership wasn't there. But I am a scout master now and have served on many levels in scouting for the past 12 years. Both my sons have been or are now in scouting. I believe in the scout law, motto, oath and so forth. With that in mind, I believe the scouts to be one of the last great institutions for young men.

In the film, the lead scout is pressed to his limits in a "what if" situation to see if he can handle things that go to the extreme. If anything, this film is very pro scouting and pro America. The objective is to show how we, as a country are losing the history, freedom and patriotism that has made this country great in the name of political correctness.

What I am not doing is picking on any one person, party, organization or administration. If a viewer reads into that as satirizing anyone in particular, then so be it. Political Correctness is the antagonist in this film, in the form of some shady characters. And to do that and still carry a story to make it interesting and fun is not easy. But we feel we have done our best.

I hope to have put a few things to rest on the topic. Enjoy the film when it is released.