VENTURING "INTO THE UNKNOWN" WITH EXPLORER JOSH BERNSTEIN
By Troy Rogers

Deadbolt
04905/joshbernstein_interview.php
Aug 21 2008

After traversing the globe, exploring ancient mysteries on his
popular series Digging for the Truth, explorer and survival expert
Josh Bernstein returned to the Discovery Channel airwaves on Monday
for the premiere of his new eight episode expedition called Into the
Unknown. Next week on Monday, August 25, Josh Bernstein travels to
parts unknown to investigate a compelling new theory about the truth
behind the story of Noah’s Ark, exploring questions whether Noah
actually existed and whether his gargantuan animal transport was real.

Although Josh cracked open a vault of secrets last week surrounding
the world’s Gladiators, we set out on our own expedition on a recent
conference call with the survivalist to explore a number of new
mysteries Into the Unknown has to offer and what Bernstein thinks of
the mystery surrounding the new Bigfoot discovery.

THE DEADBOLT: What did you find out about gladiators that really
surprised you?

JOSH BERNSTEIN: I didn’t know there were female gladiators. I don’t
know if that made it into the show. I didn’t realize that they were
mostly vegetarian, which was surprising. That was one of the data
points we got out of the Stansky analysis that we looked at and their
bones. And I didn’t realize that even though they were the lowest
of the low in terms on their status and hierarchy in ancient Rome,
they could also be simultaneously glorified as celebrities. It’s an
interesting paradox and there’s a lot more. Obviously Hollywood has
to focus on the stories to create a blockbuster, but there’s a lot
more to a gladiator’s day-to-day life that I found fascinating. Plus
the role that Christianity played in the decline of the gladiatorial
games, I wasn’t aware of the religious connection.

THE DEADBOLT: You mentioned that the locations need to be beautiful
because of HD. Was that always possible? You’re in the desert
sometimes, which sometimes doesn’t really look that nice?

BERNSTEIN: Really? I don’t know, I like deserts. I think the cameraman,
the DP’s job is to make the show visually exciting and that’s what
I meant more than we don’t only shoot beautiful locations. But we
want the cinematography to be compelling and to support the sense of
bigness we hope the series represents. So even if we’re in a dark
cave in Egypt exploring Akhenaten or the 18th Dynasty, we want it
to be shot in a way that makes you say, "Dude, this is incredible,
and I’m even more grateful it’s in High Definition."

THE DEADBOLT: Did you revisit places that you’re already been to in
Digging for the Truth?

BERNSTEIN: Absolutely, yeah. It’s hard not to. I did a show in Peru
where I’ve been several times. But I explored a region and a culture
I had not explored previously, the Chachapoyas, the Cloud Warriors
episode. Egypt, of course I’ve done what – seven, eight shows in
Egypt for Digging. I worked with Dr. Zahi Hawass many times and I
explored the 18th Dynasty. I looked at Nefertiti, I looked at King Tut,
but I never really focused on Akhenaten. So if there’s any overlap,
that’s direct in the sense that I’ve already done this. We just shoot
it down and I don’t do that episode and we just move on to the next
idea. It’s important that I feel like I can engage intellectually
and honestly whatever material I’m exploring.

THE DEADBOLT: With the Noah’s Ark episode or any of the biblical
[oriented expeditions], is there ever a worry about pissing certain
people off?

BERNSTEIN: [laughs] Yeah, of course. There has to be because there are
people who are going to be offended that you’re evaluating the word of
God and questioning it in any sort of way. But I’ve faced that before
when I did King David or King Solomon or any of the biblical stories
I explored on Digging. I’m respectful of that. I understand it and I
think I’m very clear upfront with any conversations I have with people
that when it comes to biblical studies, it’s fairly binary. Either
you think it’s all God’s word and shouldn’t be questioned at all or
there’s interpretation there, and I’m in the latter camp. I think
that exploring the bible is a fascinating story, some of it grounded
in history and proven by archeology and some of it perhaps still to
be proven.

When it comes to Noah and the flood, that’s the second oldest
story. The only older, basically, is Adam and Eve and Cain and
Able. So to get anything that to prove that in the landscape is an
uphill challenge. That’s a battle, but I was up for it. I think it
is unusual and a bit curious that so many cultures, Judeo Christian
and others in the Mediterranean, have the same story. Why is that the
case? If everyone says that someone was shot on the corner and then
got hit by a car, if everyone says that then you think maybe it really
happened. This is the same thing. But it was so many thousands of years
ago, maybe there’s some truth to it. It’s worthy of my explorations.

THE DEADBOLT: You mentioned that you went to Israel for that story. Did
you also go to Mount Ararat [to explore that theory]?

BERNSTEIN: Mount Ararat in Turkey, I did. I’ve been to Turkey and
to Armenia exploring the – We decided to fall on the Armenian side
so we’re certainly in view of Ararat and we shot up there. But we
went to a church that believe they actually have a piece of the Ark,
that’s where the show begins.

THE DEADBOLT: Can you let us know what the other six episodes are?

BERNSTEIN: Sure. I don’t know the run order, but gladiators, Noah’s
flood, there’s one called Cloud Warriors on the Chachapoyas culture
in Northern Peru, pre-Inca culture, and I went and explored its
mysterious disappearance. Timbuktu, I went into Mali, the fabled City
of Gold, to find out if it truly was as rich as people, legend would
tell us. Akhenaten, the Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty who overturned
all of the pantheon of Egypt to create monotheism. There’s another
episode, elephants attacking in Kenya for no reason that people
understand. Papua New Guinea, the dying wish of the chief of the Anga
people – [he said] "No one has been mummified in fifty years. It’s a
sacred tradition and I was the last person to do it to my father. I’m
about to die, I want to teach my sons how we used to mummify." And
so we came in with our cameras to document that. And the last episode
is life on Earth, could it have come from Mars?

THE DEADBOLT: Is there anything you didn’t get to do on Digging for
the Truth that you brought over to this one?

BERNSTEIN: No, not really. Well, I hope I get to Angkor Wat. That was
on my list. Timbuktu I was happy to go to. I know that Digging did
that in season four, and so, yeah, I’d love to go. And I was jealous
when they called me from Mali and said, "Guess where we are?" And I’m
thinking, "You guys suck." So yeah, I think it’s a little different
series in that we don’t want to replicate Digging, we want to bring
a fresh face to it. I guess the same face, but a fresh feel.

THE DEADBOLT: What are your thoughts on that recent Bigfoot story
coming out of Georgia?

BERNSTEIN: [laughs] You know, if the timing was right maybe I could
explore that eventually. I do think it’s fascinating that Bigfoot,
Sasquatch, Yeti – the different terminology that exists in different
parts of the world – there does seem to be some pervasive story of
larger than life. Even the Abominable Snowman, there seems to be
something out there that people look to. I have not done any more
research than reading about it on the internet. I don’t know what’s
in the freezer. I don’t know what the story is about. These guys who
claim to have shot it and seen others, I do think it certainly is
water cooler conversation worthy. I don’t know if it can hold up to
a full hour of credible analysis. But if this story is still kicking
around when I get back in the game for Season Two, maybe I’ll go down
there and take a look.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress