Arena — Woody Guthrie (S1 E320)

he legend of Woody Guthrie - the rambling guitar player who discovered America from the roof of a freight train - was an inspiration to two decades of Americans, from the Weavers to Bob Dylan, from Jack Kerouac to Bruce Springsteen. If anyone seemed to fulfil the prophecy of a 'Shakespeare in overalls' it was this diminutive 'Okie', driven west by the great duststorms of the 30s to become, like John Steinbeck , the spokesman for the exploited migrant workers of California. Guthrie's most celebrated anthem, This Land Is Your Land, still stands as a poignant retort to God Bless America. Arena has compared that legend with Woody's own far from romantic life; it has talked to the hobos who still ride the freights and his friends and family, including Pete Seeger, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, Alan Lomax and, of course, Arlo Guthrie.

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Original title

Arena

Genres

Documentary

Release date

1988-01-08

Runtime

90 min

Status

Returning Series

Production countries

United Kingdom

Seasons

1

Episodes

692

Networks

BBC Four, BBC Two