Original Airdate | July 2013

Wallace Stegner

This film is a portrait of the conservationist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Wallace Stegner. He was many things: teacher, historian and environmentalist but, above all, Wallace Stegner was a writer. Considered by many to be the "Dean" of western writers, he was a Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and non-fiction author, with more than 30 full-length works and countless essays addressing the landscape, humankind's footprint and the evolution of a region and nation. Producer John Howe has captured the tremendous influence Stegner has been on the lives of generations of readers and students.

In conjunction with the University of Utah, KUED is honoring alumni Wallace Stegner - the “Dean” of western writers. Wallace Stegner, a biographical film portrait, celebrates the 2009 centennial of his birth. Wallace Stegner was an acclaimed writer, conservationist, and teacher. He became one of America’s greatest writers. His books include the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Angle of Repose" and "Beyond the Hundredth Meridian." His "The Wilderness Letter" became the conscience of the conservation movement. Wallace Stegner mentored a generation’s greatest writers including Ken Kesey, Edward Abbey, and Larry McMurtry. Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor was a student.

This one-hour documentary paints a portrait of the West that Wallace Stegner so loved. The film reveals insights into his life by interviews with his famous students, contemporaries, and family. The film is narrated by motion picture/television actor Peter Coyote in High Definition Television with 5.1 Surround Sound.

Bonus Material

Interview between Rachael Stegner Sheedy, Wallace Stegner's granddaughter, and Producer John Howe.