My name is Dr. Francis B. Gross,
and again I invite you to join me
as I travel through the world of the dead.
Several months after I completed my first study,
I realized that some of my original theories
were no longer valid.
My optimism regarding life after death
has greatly diminished.
Still, there is one hope, that our body suffers
little pain and that our mind will end
on a thought unaffected by the fear of dying.
music
The ritual of commemorating the dead
has a history which dates back to the beginning
of man kind.
There is no group on earth that doesn't have
some kind of ceremony which acknowledges
the death of a loved one.
Many extraordinary customs have resulted from man's
realization of death.
In the 14th century, people were hired
to rouse the ghost.
Their job was to attempt to bring the deceased
back to life.
This strange ritual eventually produced
the practice of necrophilia.
By making love to the dead, it was believed
that sexual arousal would bring the spirit of life
back into the body of one who recently died.
This custom of the Middle Ages led to a greater
understanding in the finality of death.
As time passed, man realized that those
who died would never physically return to life.
Religion then introduced another concept of death,
it conceived the belief that the soul
or Holy Spirit travels beyond this earthly plane
when the physical being ceases to exist.
In some countries, as hamlets became villages
and villages grew into towns,
graveyards had to be modified to provide
accommodations for the bodies
of future generations.
Carnal houses were created to house
the bones of the dead who were removed
from the cemetery after a certain number of years.
Upon being blessed by a priest,
the deceased's remains were placed on display
for loved ones to visit.
The time is 1981, graveyards still exist,
but death has now become
a multi-billion dollar industry.
Today a person can choose their style of wardrobe
and in which manner they want to be secured
for their eternal rest.
Shopping for a casket is similar to buying a car,
the more money you pay, the more lavish
your coffin will appear.
The fee for a normal funeral runs about $3,500.
Of course, you have to pay an extra fee
for the embalming process and any necessary
cosmetic touch-ups.
Funerals lie at the very innermost core
of life's experience.
It is a time of introspection where we
honor and value fond memories of a person
we shall never forget.
A Hindu cremation presents a striking
contrast to a Western burial.
The banks of the Ganges River are considered
the most desirable place for the ceremony.
To prepare their dead for cremation,
the body is bathed in oil,
and then with soap and nut powder,
among other preparations.
The Hindus believe at death the soul is trapped
in the skull.
Therefore, it is imperative that the skull will
explode during the burning process.
The mourners of a loved one
sprinkle holy water on the deceased
and take purification baths
during the cremation.
They also shave their heads in deference
to the departed.
For the Hindu, death represents a liberation
of the soul.
Their ceremony of cremation ensures
that the spirit of the departed will have
the chance to be reborn once again.
It's one thing to witness the cremation of the dead,
but the horror of being burned alive
is a truly agonizing face of death.
(fire siren sounds)
The residents of this West German
apartment building were the victims
of a furnace explosion.
Within seconds, their apartment became
a burning inferno.
Although firemen worked furiously to extinguish
this out-of-control blaze,their efforts
to save those trapped inside the building
proved unsuccessful.
On that cold January morning in 1979,
18 of the 20 residents that occupied
this building lost their lives.
Those who weren't asphyxiated by the massive
amounts of toxic smoke, were eventually
burned alive.
This particular man suffered third-degree
burns on his hands, legs and face.
A special preparation was applied to the burned
areas of his body to promote healing
and reduce infection.
An emergency tracheotomy had to be performed
so that the victim could breathe.
Unfortunately, even the advanced treatment
administered by the burn center specialist
could not keep this man alive.
When the warmth of springtime begins
to melt the snow,
a new setting for death is created.
At any moment, a disaster can occur
capable of turning a beautiful panorama
of natural magnificence into an explosive wall
of destruction.
This white blanket of death
is called an avalanche.
When the snow begins to rumble down the mountain,
anything in its path is instantly destroyed.
Brenner Passis located near the border
of Austria and Italy.
In April of 1975, this highway connecting
the two countries became the scene of one
of the worst avalanches in history.
Before this disaster occurred, people had been
warned not to use this route of passage.
Road warnings had been posted
and frequent radio reports admonished drivers
of this expected danger.
But people didn't want to listen,
for many were on holiday and needed to return
to either side of the border.
As a result, many vacationers decided
to challenge this prediction,
and subsequently lost their lives.
In total, 50 people died in this avalanche,
a whole section of Brenner Pass was buried
under more than 14 feet of snow.
Some people never made it out of their cars.
Those who did, had nowhere to go
and froze to death while trying to escape.
Hypothermia is probably one of the most painful
ways to die.
During this process, you literally freeze to death.
The whole disaster could have been avoided
if these people had only heeded the warning signs
of impending danger.
Boxing is perhaps the most brutal of all
professional sports.
Sheer strength, endurance and agility are the major
ingredients of a winner.
Everyone who enters this sport dreams of one day
becoming the next champion.
Their desire for wealth and recognition are great
motivating factors in their quest for the title.
I was born poor, and many nights
I went to bed with an empty stomach.
And I read where guys like Sugar Ray Robinson,
Joe Lewis and all these guys were born
in very poor areas, and, they...
through sports they got recognition,
they got respect, they traveled around the world
and they got to do things that otherwise they would
have never done.
And, but yet, nothing comes easy in life.
Boxing's a tough life, it's very tough.
Three minutes in the ring of actual fighting
is much more difficult
than two weeks of hard training.
But it's the training that hardens the muscle
and strengthens the fighter's endurance.
Another important element of his training
is the fighting strategy.
He must learn how to throw a punch
and how to protect himself at all times.
If more trainers would take time and teach kids
the difference between coming in
and going backwards, or if they would take more time
to teach this kind of boxing, there--
there would be less people getting hurt in the ring.
Sparring marks the final stage of training.
During these sessions a fighter will learn
to take punches, and to test
his own offensive skills.
Ninety per cent of the boys are not in the physical
condition for a boxer that they should be
at the time of their career for a fight.
On September 19th,1980,
Johnny Gowens and his managers
felt he was ready.
The fight was a scheduled 15-round title bout
for the Bantam weight Championship of the World.
Gowens' opponent was the reigning champion
from Mexico, Lupe Pintor.
For the first eight rounds,
Johnny Gowens held his own, although his battle wounds
were clearly visible.
The ninth eighth round, Gowens went down
for the first time.
At the end of this round, Johnny Gowens was hurting.
But he was not a quitter, and even though
he was bleeding from his nose and mouth,
continued to battle Pintor
over the next three rounds.
When Johnny Gowens was knocked out
for the second time of the fight,
he seemed totally disoriented.
As a doctor, it seemed obvious to me that
the fight should have been stopped,
but the referee thought otherwise.
Prior to this fight, Gowens had never
been knocked out.
This time when he hit the canvas,
he would never get up.
At the time, Lupe Pintor had no idea
his devastating punch had sent his opponent
into a coma.
At 24 years old, Johnny Gowens had subjected
his body to such severe punishment;
he would never even realize he had lost
his match, for this was to be his last fight.
As the doctor worked furiously
to help Gowens regain consciousness,
the people surrounding the fallen fighter
knew he was in serious trouble.
The two knock downs in the twelfth round
had definitely done their damage.
Before finally dying,
Gowens would undergo two brain operations
and would be connected to a life support system
for almost his entire stay at the hospital.
After contracting a respiratory condition
during his coma,
Gowens succumbed to the final count.
If this youngster ever decides to enter
the world of professional boxing,
I wonder what the future has in store.
There is a breed of men who enjoy
taking their machines beyond the normal use
of transportation.
The word impossible is not a part
of their vocabulary.
When the odds seem totally against them,
they are the first to tell you otherwise.
These people are modern day gladiators,
better known in our society
as stunt men or daredevils.
The thrill of putting their lives on the line
is not the key to their profession.
If you talk to any of these professionals,
they'll continually emphasize their own
safety is foremost in any stunt they perform.
But no matter how prepared they may be
in their technical planning,
the risk of death is still something
they must consider.
And yet, the spectators who watch these events
can never be really disappointed,
for they can share its success
or scream at the results of failure.
I have watched a crowd's reaction
when a stunt man has been unsuccessful.
In my mind, there is no doubt that most of them
have held a morbid fascination when viewing
a human disaster.
If you disagree with me, I'll prove my point.
Now it's your turn to be a part of that crowd.
On August 4th, 1974, stunt man Bobby Pesco
attempted unsuccessfully to jump 28 cars
on his motorcycle.
After hitting the last car, Pesco's body
was hurled hundreds of yards
on the cement roadway.
Paramedics and track marshals tried frantically
to save his life.
Unfortunately, their efforts were in vain,
for Pesco died a few hours later.
As Pesco's wife held on to her unconscious husband,
spectators tried to get a final glimpse
of the fallen stuntman.
There is no doubt it takes a certain kind
of man to enter this profession.
If Pesco was ever afraid of dying,
at least his end came quickly.
Chuck Strange realized early in his career
that ramp-to-ramp acts in cars and motorcycles
were becoming commonplace.
In late 1975, he found a Chevy dealer willing
to supply him with pick-up trucks
to perform his stunts.
Strange had finally found a vehicle that would make
his act unique.
In November 1978 at the Ontario Motor Speedway,
Strange attempted a ramp-to-ramp jump
with his pick-up truck,
covering a distance of 98 feet.
During this jump, Strange's truck
was flying at a speed of 50 miles per hour
after taking off from a ramp angled 17 degrees.
This jump was just a prelude to a stunt
he would perform on January 13th, 1978,
in front of 59,000 people at the Houston Astrodome.
During this jump, Strange would attempt
to clear 16 cars.
What made this jump dangerous
was that the Dome's sunken arena floor
was not nearly big enough for him to make a straight
and level approach.
Earlier in the day during his last
practice jump Strange was unaware
that he had peeled back a steel shield
underneath his truck.
As a result, this bent steel dug into the ramp
at take-off, and it caused his truck to veer
to the right.
It took 30 minutes to extricate Strange
from the truck, but he was lucky.
The impact broke one of his ribs,
bruised a kidney, dislocated his elbows,
shattered his forearms, and broke his nose.
When doctors later examined Strange,
they all agreed that it was miraculous
that he had not been killed.
It had been the third time in his career
that he had heard this remark.
You can rest assured that when his injuries
finally heal, this man will be back
ready to challenge death once again.
In 1976, Morrisburg, Canada was the site
of the greatest car stunt ever performed.
This event was known as the Super Jump.
Stunt man Kenny Powers would attempt the longest
car jump in history.
His goal was to jump the St.Lawrence River;
the distance would be one mile.
An eight-and-a-half story ramp was constructed
for his rocket-powered, Lincoln Continental.
Once the car would leave this ramp,
it would sail one mile over the river,
and land on Gogden Island in the state of New York.
This jump had been in the planning
for over four years.
Over one million dollars had been spent,
and 110,000 yards of dirt had been moved
to construct the special runway.
Kenny Powers will be jumping three times
the distance Evil Knievel had tried to achieve
during his jump at Snake River Canyon.
Powers' car would reach a take-off speed
of 280 miles an hour;
within seconds he would reach
an altitude of 300 feet.
His body would undergo a force of over 30 G's.
This jump had been attempted four times
previously and had to be canceled.
This time, Kenny Powers
knew there was no turning back.
Powers said his final prayers,
his self-confidence was high, any self-doubt
or hesitation could cost him his life.
A helicopter roamed the sky,
while power speed boats and divers
waited on the other side of the river
in case of a disaster.
As the final seconds ticked away,
Powers' young wife became anxious,
would this be the last stunt
he would ever perform.
Powers' jump was unsuccessful.
As rescuers reached the car,
Powers was freeing himself from a special harness.
But nobody knew the extent of his injuries,
his car disintegrated in midair
and landed in the river.
His wife and the crowd waited anxiously for news.
Powers was lucky, he had broken his back.
This was nothing new, for he had suffered
the same injury seven times before.
As he was carried to the ambulance in a state
of semi-consciousness, all that he kept asking was,
did I make it, is everybody pleased.
As the ambulance rushed off
to the hospital, all that remained of his
$1 million attempt were the remains of a yellow,
rocket-powered Continental floating
aimlessly on the banks of the St.Lawrence River.
The dangers of reaching high altitudes
aren't always confined to stuntmen equipped
with a rocket-powered car.
When Flight 2605 left Los Angeles for Mexico City,
another air disaster was entered
into aviation history books.
As the pilot made his descent, he was informed
that the runway lights had malfunctioned.
The control tower instructed the pilot
to line up his jet over an alternate runway.
After the pilot reported he had done so,
the controller warned,
you are at the left of the track.
The pilot replied confidently,
just a little bit.
He was tragically wrong.
As the DC-10 touched down on the runway,
it headed towards a dump truck.
The pilot realized his mistake and tried to lift
his DC-10 back into the air.
It was too late, the plane smashed
into the truck and veered wildly
into a maintenance building
and burst into flames.
The final death count was 73,
and the over-confident pilot
was one of the dead.
The rugged peaks of Mount Barjin
in the country of Iran was the site of another
air disaster.
It was the first crash in Iran's 18-year
aviation history.
The first group of revolutionary guards
to arrive at the crash site, reported they heard
screams as they fought their way
through the snow.
Many of the passengers on the flight
were Shiite pilgrims returning from Mashad
after religious ceremonies
marking the death of prophet Muhammad.
Villagers near the crash site
reportedly saw a flash of light in the sky,
followed by a loud explosion.
I wonder what prayers were said
by the passengers as they realized their religious
journey would end on a note of death.
India's West Bengal state was the scene
of another accident in the realm
of public transportation.
This train was crossing a bridge over
the Falroo River when six coaches separated
and derailed from the main engine.
It took rescuers all day to find
most of the bodies.
Twenty-three passengers died in this accident.
Many of the people were trapped underwater
and drowned.
Relatives who knew passengers on the train
went to the rescue center to find out
about their loved ones.
For some, the news of death caused tears
and sorrow.
None of us ever really know
when our end will come.
Every time we use any kind of modern
transportation, we increase the odds
of our own death.
Is there a solution, I don't really think so.
When it's our time to die,
there is no alternative.
On a typical day in El Salvador,
50 people are killed because somebody
doesn't like their politics.
When the leftist guerrillas hijacked
a bus, they staged their own execution
against some of the passengers
who were government officials.
This unique footage was filmed by
a UPI cameraman.
The only reason he was allowed to live
was because the guerrillas felt this incident
would be good publicity.
Their red revolutionary flag was placed
as a warning to the military
of hunt and power.
It has been estimated that if a full-scale
civil war were to break out in El Salvador,
approximately 50,000 or more would die.
That's one out of every 100 persons living
in this country.
The violence that exists here is caused by
two extremist elements, the far right is comprised
of the few who are rich in this country.
They are determined to maintain their wealth,
and refuse to yield to any semblance
of compromise.
To protect themselves, they have hired
death squads and supporters
in the army to kill any Salvadorians
who are trying t change the country's
feudal structure.
In this case, their protection faulted.
The far left is headed by a hardcore of fanatic
Marxist Leninist guerrillas.
They are the killers responsible
for this execution, and would be content
to create a civil war within their country.
The five million Salvadorians packed
into this land of gentle rolling countryside
are caught between the fighting forces of these
two political factions.
Most citizens want to improve their lives,
but have not yet made the commitment to join
the violence themselves.
The war in Vietnam provided the battleground
for weapons which created horrific results.
The napalm bomb was introduced during
World War II, and was used with great effectiveness
in Vietnam.
When dropped from a plane, specially designed
canisters release a jelly like substance
that bursts into flame upon impact.
This particular accident occurred
when a South Vietnamese aircraft dropped napalm
on an incorrect target.
What should have been a jungle was instead
a small village.
Napalm adheres to whatever it hits,
and then burns with great intensity.
When scientists developed napalm
at Harvard University during World War II,
I wonder if they ever expected
their chemical would be used on people.
When this woman watched her baby burn to death,
I'm sure she wasn't even aware that the chemical
napalm was responsible for her agony.
A cluster bomb is a ten-foot long canister
filled with hundreds of small shrapnel
laden bomblets.
Dropped from a plane, the cluster bomb unit splits
open in midair, spewing out bomblets
and saturating an area of several hundred
square yards with steel shards.
These Lebanese children were the helpless
victims of one such bomb.
Israeli bombers attacked this village
in retaliation for Palestinian rocket
attacks that killed three civilians in the Israeli
city of Nahariyya.
The small village of Azea in Lebanon
has always appeared peaceful.
At one time, the village had been a pretty little
collection of stonehouses.
After this attack, more than 50 of the 250
villagers were dead, many of them children.
The village was reduced to a pile of rubble,
which looked more like a rock quarry
than a place of human habitation.
The cries of grieving parents filled the morning
stillness of this southern Lebanese village.
There is never a reason to kill a child,
but morality has no place in war.
There is no right or wrong.
Any semblance of human compassion
and understanding is substituted
with the instinct to kill.
The enemy must be destroyed at all costs,
even if he is a child.
It will be a long time before the people of this
village ever forget this nightmare.
Raids like the one on Azea can only deepen
Lebanese hatred and earn new enemies for Israel.
The Bible predicts the end of the world will start
in the Middle East, when opposing powers
are unwilling to compromise and war becomes
the only means to an end.
The hope for peace becomes an impossible dream.
If this continues, the prophecy of the Bible
is certain to become a reality.
During the summer of 1957,
the United States military conducted 24 tests
at Yucca Flats, Nevada.
The basic objective was to determine the physical
and psychological impact of nuclear weapons
on troops in the field.
A few hundred troops were told to sit together.
Several miles away a 44-kiloton atomic bomb,
mounted on a steel tower, was detonated.
After the initial flash, the soldiers
were instructed to face the mushroom cloud.
They would later report a sensation of great heat,
much like standing next to a blast furnace.
Twenty-four years later, some of these
soldiers have been stricken with leukemia.
They believe their disease resulted from
excessive radiation exposure.
Many of these men are still waiting to find out
if they will be victims of a deadly disease
as a result of following orders, 24 years ago.
The art of survival plays another
important role in a soldier's training.
Killing game must be quick and effective,
and no part of the animal is wasted.
When man can make a profit through
the slaughter of a specific animal,
he will kill without hesitation.
The fur of an infant Persian lamb brings
a high price in the fashion market.
Before this baby reaches its third day of life,
it will be slaughtered;
its fine fur will be used to shield many
of us from extreme cold.
Some consumers are not concerned about
the origin of their purchase.
When they don the Persian lamb hat,most do not even
realize that they are wearing
the skin of an infant to keep themselves warm.
This mink has been raised for slaughter.
Its fur will bring a high price
in the fashion market place.
The fur coat has always been a symbol
of both opulence and high style.
As a result, a variety of animals have met
their death to fulfill our greedy demands.
Man's wardrobe comforts are not the only cause
for animal butchery.
This year in the United States alone,
over 60 million animals will be killed
under the guise of scientific research.
A great number of the general public have led
demonstrations protesting the inhumane scientific
research performed on animals.
Scientists look upon these protesters
as sentimental eccentrics,
and feel their experimentation
is for the benefit of all mankind.
Although rats and mice constitute
a large portion of animal extermination
in the laboratory,
the most horrifying experiments
are performed on our biological relative,
the primate.
Thousands and thousands of monkeys have been
maimed, mutilated and killed in experiments
designed to help prepare the United States
for World War III.
The most pathetic results occur when these
creatures are subjected to drug experimentation.
Many of these monkeys are kept high for months,
so their convulsive withdrawal symptoms
may be studied in detail.
PCP, commonly referred to as "angeldust,"
should actually be termed "the angel of death."
This victim, under the delusionary influence
of PCP, caused a car accident which resulted
in the death of two people.
The drugged driver didn't even know
he was responsible.
On January 10th, 1979, Lovell, California,
was the site of a nightmare.
Two men under the influence of PCP
would create a crime that the people of this town
would never forget.
Come on, tell me, what happened down there?
Just calm down, just calm down, relax.
Two men--
-came in the drugstore.
And -- and they --
they looked really weird ,you know.
And -- and -- and the druggist, he--
he didn't -- he went to the phone and --
and he called the police, and -- and then --
Okay, calm down, tell me what happened.
And they, and they shot him.
And there was blood everywhere.
How many people were there, how many people?
Two.
Two people? With guns?
Yes.
What kind of guns?
Guns.
(voice in background) You fuckin' pigs.
Fuck you...
you fuckin' cops, you motherfuckers...
I'm bleeding all over the fuckin' place, man...
fuck you, man.
Lie face down with your hands
out in front of you.
Do it now.
We got a god damn bitch in there, man,
we 're gonna blow her head off.
Fuck you, man, fuck you, man.
Oh, fuck.
Motherfuckers.
When the assailants were attempting to flee,
one was wounded in the crossfire.
With his accomplice trapped on the sidewalk,
the other drug-crazed killer held police at bay
by threatening the life of a hostage
inside the store.
Come on, pigs, you wanna fuck around?
Drop your gun and then step out of the door
with your hands over your head.
Get down...
hold your fire, someone's coming out...
don't move, don't move...
get down... don't move.
Get your hands...
Fuckin' asshole...
Shut up.
Fucking pig.
Fuckin'...
Shut up...
When this young man awakens
from his angel dust dreams,
he'll not only feel the agony of his wounds,
but suddenly realize he's been responsible
for the deaths of two innocent people.
But what is even more horrifying to him,
is that he has secured a position
among the condemned of Death Row.
The wilderness of America has always seemed
boundless and inexhaustible.
Nature has always been the substance
of our strength and inspiration.
The silence of the wilderness has been
a place where we can cleanse our soul,
and reflect about our lives.
Over the past 250 years, we have subdued
a continent created by the ages.
We race from the age of industrialization
into an age of anxiety.
Our cities began to replace the wilderness,
and so began the birth of urban America.
With the development of the cities
came new job opportunities,
and then came the people by the millions.
In production and consumption, we achieved
a kind of greatness.
Becoming the most affluent country
in the world was no easy task.
Just as the American dream
seemed within reach,
we found the limits of our American earth.
Today, ever major city in America
is afflicted with the problems of litter
and pollution.
The air quality has become so severe
that the cleansing winds of North America
are now contaminated.
And what price will the next generation
have to pay?
Scientists predict that if something drastic
is not done about our environmental abuse,
within the next century the earth will become
a toxic waste land.
Eleven thousand miles of American rivers
and streams have been damaged by acid drainage.
As a result, thousands of our fresh water lakes
are now dying centuries ahead of their time.
When the microorganic life of a lake gives way
to sludgeworms and the smell of toxic chemicals,
the area becomes unlivable.
Our oceans are in no better shape,
a million tons of oil are spilled
at sea each year.
More than 10 million tons are dumped in to bays
that run into the sea.
This abuse means death for the creatures
inhabiting this environment.
America comprises six percent of the world's
population, yet we consume 50 percent
of all its goods and services.
There is a whole industry in this country dedicated
to the removal of our garbage.
Over a half million tons of garbage is thrown away
each day, 365 days a year.
Our war against nature can only end
in total human devastation.
Herman Melville, the author of "Moby Dick",
once wrote, "The point is whether the whale
can long endure so wide a chase,
so remorseless a habit,
whether he must not at last be exterminated
from the waters, and the last whale,
like the last man, smoke the last pipe,
and then himself evaporate in the final puff."
Once the explosive-tipped harpoon
has killed the whale, an air hose is jabbed
through its blubber,
inflating the giant carcass.
Days later, this vessel will return to pickup
the floating beasts.
The world population of the blue whale
has dropped in the past 30 years from 100,000
to under a thousand.
There are also other species of whales
that face extinction.
Even with this threat, there is still a demand
for its meat.
But some countries throughout the world
are trying to protect this creature.
The whale pirate respects no international laws,
as long as he is paid for his bounty,
there is no safe hiding place
for this giant of the ocean.
Today, nearly every product
derived from the whale can be synthetically produced,
but some countries still view the whale as a cheap
and profitable commodity.
Stewart Udall, former secretary of the Interior,
stated, "This decade may god own in history
as marking the end of life for the largest
animal ever to inhabit this earth."
Because of its superior intelligence,
the dolphin has been trained to perform
various tricks in marine parks all over the world.
Dolphins possess their own unique language.
Dr.John Lily has studied these mammals
for the past two decades, and he firmly believes
that man and dolphin will one day communicate.
Once this language barrier has been overcome,
Lily is convinced that dolphins will teach
mankind about the unanswered mysteries
of the sea.
These particular men are not concerned
with the dolphin's intelligence,
they simply hunt these mammals for food.
On November 6th through the 8th in 1978,
in Izu, Japan,
the slaughter of hundreds of dolphins took place.
After this nightmare, I wonder if the dolphin
will consider man his friend.
The menu of mankind is not limited
to just the lower beasts,
some men consume their own neighbors.
Deep within the jungles of New Guinea resides
a group of natives known as the Cannibal Kings.
Here the Cannibals are in a constant struggle
against the elements, other hostile tribes,
and an assortment of rare tropical diseases.
Holding their war axes, the elders listen
to a recent dispute in the village.
When an argument began between a warrior
and his wife,
their dispute ended in violence.
After hitting her on the head with an axe,
the husband tells the elder,
his woman got off lightly, she is lucky to be alive.
The elder agrees that respect
must be maintained.
Violence for these people is a way o life.
This woman has an extra joint to serve
as a life long reminder of an arm fractured
in some long-forgotten family brawl.
But modern medicine sometimes enters
the lives of these people.
The sweltering tropical climate breeds a series
of skin diseases.
With the aid of sophisticated drugs,
total recovery becomes possible.
This youngster's skin shows light patches,
the first telltale signs of leprosy.
Yaws is a vicious skin disease which eventually
disfigures its victims.
With a single injection of penicillin,
this horrid disease can be brought under control.
Unfortunately, for this victim,
help came too late.
This woman wears the foot of her dead husband.
When he died, the villagers ate the man,
hoping that his traits would be passed on.
Since medical science is often unavailable
to these people, many of these children will never
reach adulthood.
Here in Cambodia, medical services
are available,
but even with the help of medical science,
there are some diseases
that still rage out of control.
Leprosy is termed
"the disease of the living dead,"
its effects are irreversible
and devastating.
With the aid of modern medicine,
doctors can now prescribe drugs which can stop
this disease from spreading,
while alleviating its agonizing pain.
Medical science is making major advances
in certain areas of disease control.
With the aid of a microscope,
doctors are now able to diagnose cancer
in its early stages.
Since this disease has so many variations
and is capable of attacking
any area of the body,
doctors cannot always cure those who are afflicted
with this dreadful illness.
This particular victim died of intestinal cancer.
When these pathologists completed his autopsy,
various specimens will be sent to numerous
research laboratories.
Here scientists will continue to search
for answers to a disease which kills
thousands each year.
Some forms of cancer can be surgically removed
with the use of a highly sophisticated operation
called microsurgery.
Using miniaturized surgical instruments
incorporated with a system of fiber optics,
the surgeon can view and remove tumors
growing deep within the throat of the patient.
With the cancer removed, this patient has been
granted a new lease on life.
Walter Johnson is a collector of Western
memorabilia, and death has a special place
in his collection.
Well, really, almost all m life
I've been interested in the Gold West,
and mainly California history and Civil War,
in that era.
And I've collected guns for several years,
and Indian artifacts and Western artifacts.
But I believe my prize is my buddy here,
old Joachim Murietta.
He was a California bandit,
which I believe is more legend and fiction
than anything else, but California,
they wanted a bandit like the East had Jesse James
and soon, they wanted sort of a Robin Hood.
So they picked Joachim Murietta.
He was pretty good at plundering gold
such as this here,
which was pretty plentiful in California around 1850.
But the way the story goes, he got to be quite
a nuisance and the Governor of California
in 1853 wanted to get rid of him.
So he offered a reward, $5,000,
for the man dead or alive.
So he authorized, Captain Love, I believe,
yeah, Captain Love of the California Rangers
and his men to go out and get Joachim.
Which they did and they caught up with him
in Cantua Creek, California,
July 7th, 1853.
And a man named William Henderson --
and they shot him to death,
the whole bunch of Rangers.
William Henderson was credited with cutting
off his head and the hand of Three Finger Jack
and they brought it back for the reward money,
which they got.
Then the head was displayed around
California for many years in a jar,
preserved in whiskey.
It finally wound up in a museum,
Professor Jordan's Museum in San Francisco,
where it stayed until 1906, where supposedly it
was destroyed in the earthquake.
But then, the way the new story goes,
in 1957 this head was found in San Francisco
in a man's attic,
and it was pretty well checked over
and found out to be pretty authentic.
And it wound up in the Amity Museum
for several years where it was on display.
And then they went bankrupt,
and when they did,
a man from northern California, Alkeck,
bought the head and he had it in his museum
for quite a while.
And I seen it there and I really was interested
in that head and I really liked it,
so he sold it to me roughly for $2000.
New York City is the home of a very unique museum.
Located in the County Coroner's building,
the Museum of Death preserves both the weapons
and the actual remains of victims
who lost their lives by unnatural means.
The atrocities of mankind are on display
for use by pathologists and criminologists.
This museum is dedicated to understanding
the various causes of murder in society.
By displaying the weapons and their
devastating effects,
criminologists are able to gain
a better understanding of the behavioral patterns
of various killers.
It is a sad testimony to our society that innocent
people must die by violent means.
What is even sadder are the criminals who commit
these crimes.
They are usually the outcasts of our society,
the losers nobody cares about.
When man goes to war, he is given a license
to kill.
The war in Indochina produced some of the most
brutal atrocities in the history of mankind.
A soldier who is in battle, faces
the possibility of death at any moment,
violence becomes his only means to an end.
These are just some of the horrors
that developed out of the Indochina War.
The guillotine was first used by the French
in the seventeenth century.
This effective killing device found its rebirth
in the Indochina War.
Politicians and dissidents who disagreed
with their government were often decapitated
in public.
Massive executions were also quite effective.
These mutilated dead bodies of communist
soldiers were displayed to Cambodian citizens
to show the strength of their army
and their dislike for the Vietcong.
But there is one execution
that was captured live by a French cameraman.
It happened in Liberia.
When a group of military officers raided
the executive mansion of President William Tolbert,
Liberia experienced the first coup d'etat
of its 133-year-old history.
As news spread of the downfall of the Tolbert
government, the general populace grew anxious.
Tolbert's government had made
their lives miserable.
He had increased the price of food
and used his private army and police to terrorize
and kill those who disagreed
with his policies.
With Tolbert dead, the rest of his cabinet
would now stand trial.
In all cases their charges would be the same;
high treason, misuse of public office,
rampant corruption and gross violation of human
and constitutional rights.
...by the decree,
signed and/or approved,
it is hereby united by the People's Redemption
Council of the Republic of Liberia,
one, high treason.
It has constituted the crime of high treason,
a first degree felony, if, A), by rampant corruption,
a public official selfishly
accumulates wealth to himself,
and thereby denies or negates a fair
distribution of the national wealth
to his fellow citizens,
and thereby necessitating a mandatory coup d'etat
as the only means of liberating the people.
Signed, Master Sergeant Samuel K. Doe,
Chairman of the People's Redemption Council
here in the state of the Republic of Liberia.
Mr.Chairman, I am not guilty
of any act of treason.
I have outlined in the act that you have
just heard, read as a proposing project,
programs and plans for the government
which were mainly intended to serve people.
What we want to know here is that you have
worked in the government for 18 years,
and on top of that, you are a Liberian citizen.
We want to know whether in your own opinion,
the democratic processes that have been going on
through the years in the Liberian government,
in the instrumentality of the true party,
do you think there has been political lives
by just a few people which has excluded
the masses of the Liberian people from taking part?
That's the question.
It has not taken into account the feelings
of the masses of the people because
the decisions were made by only a few people.
The military tribunal tried 13 government
officials of the Tolbert regime.
All of them were found guilty and condemned
to death by a firing squad.
A public execution was to be staged
on the beach front of Monrovia,
Liberia's capital city.
The new leader of this country,
Master Sergeant Samuel Kanyon Doe,
declared these executions would mark the end
of this country's oppression.
The Liberian people were eager for the executions
to begin.
The sooner Tolbert's men were shot,
the sooner their country could enter
an era of civilian rule.
For nearly an hour the condemned men sat
in a bus and watched crews erect their execution
posts on the quiet beach front.
It would now be a matter of minutes before
they would die.