TSN's Original Documentary Series, ENGRAVED ON A NATION, Premieres Thanksgiving Monday, Oct. 8 on TSN

TSN's Original Documentary Series, ENGRAVED ON A NATION, Premieres Thanksgiving Monday, Oct. 8 on TSN


- THE 13(TH )MAN kicks off highly-anticipated, eight-film, original documentary
series immediately following the CFL ON TSN game featuring

Saskatchewan @ Toronto at 4 p.m. ET -

- Encore presentations to air on CTV and CTV Two, and in French on RDS -



To tweet this release: http://bit.ly/UDIGzM

"The CFL and the Grey Cup embody the human spirit more than anything
else I've learned about in sports."

- Larry Weinstein, Director, THE 13(TH) MAN


TORONTO, Sept. 25, 2012 /CNW/ - Powered by a slate of documentaries
directed by some of Canada's most acclaimed and award-winning
filmmakers, TSN today announced the broadcast schedule for the
network's ambitious original documentary series, ENGRAVED ON A NATION, leading up to its broadcast of the 100(TH) GREY CUP on November 25.  The series premieres Thanksgiving Monday (October 8) at 7:30 p.m. ET on TSN and TSN Mobile TV.



Kicking off ENGRAVED ON A NATION is THE 13(TH) MAN - a documentary that examines the unique love affair between the
Saskatchewan Roughriders and their fiercely loyal fans against the
backdrop of the team's heartbreaking loss at the 97(th) Grey Cup.  THE 13(TH) MAN airs immediately following the CFL ON TSN game with Saskatchewan @
Toronto beginning at 4 p.m. ET.



Encore presentations of the documentaries will air Saturdays at 7 p.m.
ET on CTV Two and Sundays at 5 p.m. ET on CTV (visit CTV.ca to confirm local broadcast times).  Fans can also watch all the
documentaries on demand following their television broadcasts online at
TSN.ca and will be available for purchase on iTunes.  RDS has French-language
presentations of the documentaries in October and November.



TSN's complete ENGRAVED ON A NATION broadcast schedule is as follows*:



-- Monday, Oct. 8 - THE 13TH MAN at 7:30 p.m. ET
-- Friday, Oct. 12 - STONE THROWER: THE CHUCK EALEY STORY at 10:30
p.m. ET
-- Thursday, Oct. 18 - THE KID FROM LA PUENTE at 9 p.m. ET
-- Friday, Oct. 26 - PLAYING A DANGEROUS GAME at 8 p.m. ET
-- Friday, Nov. 2 - THE CRASH OF FLIGHT 810 at 8 p.m. ET
-- Friday, Nov. 9 - THE PHOTOGRAPH at 10 p.m. ET
-- Friday, Nov. 16 - WESTERN SWAGGER at 10 p.m. ET
-- Tuesday, Nov. 20 - THE GREATEST TEAM THAT NEVER WON at 8 p.m.
ET


*Schedule subject to change


**MEDIA NOTE: see below for full documentary synopses or visit BellMediaPR.ca/TSN for synopses and director biographies**


Commissioned by Bell Media, ENGRAVED ON A NATION celebrates the 100(th) Grey Cup with eight 60-minute documentaries demonstrating how one of
the oldest trophies in professional sport has played an intrinsic role
in shaping Canada's history and national identity.


"ENGRAVED ON A NATION is a special project unlike anything TSN has done before. Transcending
football, we've engaged the independent production community and worked
with passionate documentary filmmakers to bring to life eight powerful
stories of history, politics, culture, family, passion, and
loyalty," said Shawn Redmond, Vice-President, Programming, TSN.  "As we
get closer to the 100(th) Grey Cup, all of us at TSN and Bell Media are looking forward to
putting a national spotlight on these films and reminding Canadians how
the CFL and its championship trophy have left an indelible mark on our
heritage."


ENGRAVED ON A NATION is being featured prominently and promoted across Bell Media's robust
television, online, digital, radio, and social media platforms with an
integrated marketing campaign that reflects all aspects of the original
documentary series.  Key components of the campaign include original
promo spots for the ENGRAVED ON A NATION series and each documentary, along with weekly features and promotional
integration on TSN broadcasts, and support on TSN-related Facebook and
Twitter sites.


DOCUMENTARY SYNOPSES




-- THE 13TH MAN,
directed by Larry Weinstein - premieres Monday, Oct. 8 at 7:30
p.m. ET on TSN

The unique love affair between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and
their fiercely loyal fans - known as the "13th man" - lives far
beyond what happens on the field. On the cusp of winning the
97th Grey Cup, the Roughriders suffered a 13th man penalty that
triggered a dramatic defeat. The unprecedented twist in CFL
history shattered an entire province and left millions of
Canadians heartbroken. In the wake of the team's Grey Cup
defeat, the faithful fans in Riderville staunchly stood by the
Roughriders - proving why they have forever been the team's
symbolic "13th man" on the field.


-- STONE THROWER: THE CHUCK EALEY STORY,
directed by Charles Officer - premieres Friday, Oct. 12 at
10:30 p.m. ET on TSN

The revealing and emotional story of how gifted Ohio-born
quarterback Chuck Ealey found refuge in Canada and the CFL in
the face of racial intolerance in the United States. Ealey,
who went undefeated at the quarterback position throughout high
school and university, signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in
1972 and led his team to a Grey Cup victory in his rookie
season - becoming the first African-American quarterback to win
the CFL's championship trophy. Along with giving him a place to
play the game that he loved, Canada became the place Ealey
chose to raise his family, and where he proudly remains rooted
today. Ealey recounts his early struggles and successes while
his daughter Jael tries to peel away at a reserved man to
uncover missing pieces of his story.


-- THE KID FROM LA PUENTE,
directed by Shelley Saywell - premieres Thursday, Oct. 18 at 9
p.m. ET on TSN

Anthony Calvillo's inspirational journey from the gang-ridden
slums of east L.A. to la Belle Province, where he builds a
family and emerges as one of the greatest quarterbacks in
Canadian football history is examined in THE KID FROM LA
PUENTE. Narrated by Calvillo's younger brother Mario, this
classic against-all-odds story examines how he pushed through
repeated obstacles - on and off the field - to lead the
Montreal Alouettes to its first Grey Cup in 25 years in 2002.
For the first time ever, the three-time Grey Cup champion opens
up about passing life's hardest tests as a kid in La Puente to
becoming a devoted family man in Montreal - earning the title
of football's all-time leading passer in the process.


-- PLAYING A DANGEROUS GAME,
directed by John Walker - premieres Friday, Oct. 26 at 8 p.m.
ET on TSN

As tensions heightenedduring the Quebec FLQ conflict in 1969,
CFL commissioner Jake Gaudaur not only planned to hold the Grey
Cup in Montreal for the first time since 1931, but he invited
the FLQ's arch-enemy, Prime Minister of Canada Pierre Elliot
Trudeau, to perform the ceremonial kick-off at the beginning of
the game. Gaudaur, a passionate Canadian nationalist with a
vision of football as a unifying force, may not have fully
understood what he was getting himself into. Russ Jackson, the
Canadian-born quarterback hero of the Ottawa Rough Riders,
oblivious to the dangers plaguing Montreal, knew exactly what
he had to do. This was the last game of his illustrious career
and he was determined to beat Saskatchewan in what was destined
to be one of the greatest games in CFL history against a
complicated backdrop of political unrest.


-- THE CRASH OF FLIGHT 810,
directed by Paul Cowan - premieres Friday, Nov. 2 at 8 p.m. ET
on TSN

Before the birth of the modern day Grey Cup in 1958 there was
an annual East vs. West All-Star game. In 1956, Vancouver's
Empire Field hosted the annual game, which was followed by
arguably the greatest tragedy in CFL history. A flight carrying
five All-Star players crashed in the Canadian Rockies, killing
everyone onboard. The tragedy sent shockwaves through the CFL
and ripped the heart out of the league. For Calgary Stampeders
Edwin Harrison's family, the impact of the crash is still felt
to this day. Harrison's grandfather Calvin Jones was on his
way to becoming one of the greatest offensive linemen to ever
play football when he tragically died in the crash. Now, more
than 50 years later, Harrison embarks on an emotional journey -
from Calgary, to Texas, to Ohio, and finally to the crash site
- to piece together a family both connected and torn apart by
football.


-- THE PHOTOGRAPH,
directed by Manfred Becker - premieres Friday, Nov. 9 at 10
p.m. ET on TSN

Football was an important distraction for Canadians during
thedark days of the Second World War. When the Toronto Royal
Canadian Air Force Hurricanes won the 1942 Grey Cup, it boosted
the morale of a country deeply affected by war. After their
victory, many Hurricanes were sent overseas to fight, but the
brotherhood forged during the Grey Cup would live on. The
Hurricanes' Jake Gaudaur, a flight instructor who stayed behind
in Canada, was devastated when many of his teammates became
casualties of war. Determined to honour their memory, Gaudaur
dedicated his life to the CFL and became the league's longest
serving commissioner. Growing up, his daughters Jackie and
Diane Gaudaur always wondered why their father's prized
possession was a tattered photograph of his old team. Now 70
years later, Jackie and Diane embark on an emotional and
revealing quest to discover why the Hurricanes and the old team
photo were so important to their father and ultimately to the
rest of the country.


-- WESTERN SWAGGER,
directed by Barry Greenwald - premieres Friday, Nov. 16 at 10
p.m. ET on TSN

WESTERN SWAGGER is as much a story of political drama as
football. While the discovery of oil in Alberta solidified
Canada as an energy superpower during the 1970s and 80s, the
province's prowess on the gridiron was being ignited by the
Edmonton Eskimos' unprecedented five consecutive Grey Cup
titles. With the mighty Eskimos dominating on the field,
former Eskimo and Alberta Premier Peter Lougheed battled Prime
Minister Pierre Trudeau in the boardroom over the National
Energy Program, which risked putting Alberta's economy in a
dangerous tailspin and tipping the country on a brink of
constitutional chaos. WESTERN SWAGGER demonstrates Alberta's
unshakable determination on and off the football field and the
beginnings of an East vs. West rivalry that can still be felt
today.


-- THE GREATEST TEAM THAT NEVER WON,
directed by Christie Callan-Jones - premieres Tuesday, Nov. 20
at 8 p.m. ET on TSN

It was a magical moment in time. The mavericks from the 1971
Toronto Argonauts captivated a city that was shedding its
"Toronto the Good" image and coming alive both on and off the
gridiron. After a 20-year drought, Canada's oldest football
franchise was determined to bring the Grey Cup home. Legendary
CFL coach Leo Cahill spent a fortune on a young and wild
roster, fielding one of the league's most colourful teams with
characters like Tricky Dick Thornton, Dave Raimey, Jim
Stillwagon, Gene Mack, Leon McQuay and Joe Theismann. With the
adoration of a city behind them, the team made it to the 1971
Grey Cup - only to have their championship dream fade away on a
last-minute fumble. For the first time since the infamous
fumble, the stars of the 1971 Argos reunite to relive the game
that changed their lives forever and to remember those wild and
heady days in Toronto.

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SOURCE TSN

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CONTACT: Greg McIsaac, (w) 416.384.5180, (c) 416.458.3591, greg.mcisaac@bellmedia.ca
Chobi Liang, (w) 416.384.7584, (c) 416.859.4738, chobi.liang@bellmedia.ca
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