I love to watch hunting shows. Don't care if it's commercialized, still a heck of a lot more interesting than the silly reality shows. But, I think the problem with hunting shows today is that people think they can earn a living hunting. The minute you take your passion and try to earn a living at it you've changed the very dynamic that made it so exciting. All of a sudden getting something on video is more important than anything else. I used to have some real early videos of some of the people on TV today before they had shows. I had a video showing Tammy Gregory's first bow deer, a fawn as I recall. She was stoked. Now I see her passing 150" deer, but even when they shoot a big one the excitement is different. Far better off to earn a living doing a regular job and let hunting be your escape.
Country singer Gary Morris used to have a show on where he made amazing shots with a longbow on often running game. I loved it, but haven't seen him on TV in a long time. Any time you see Larry D. Jones on a hunting show you're gonna see a recurve, and the Wenzels used to show up on shows from time to time with their recurves. The only self bow/stone point hunt I've ever seen on TV was a deer hunt by Russel Thornberry on "Adventures Abroad". As I recall he made the osage bow, learned to knapp and made the point and arrow, and then took a deer in either Texas or Mexico with it. That was a year or so ago. Good stuff.
I have video'd 3 hunts, 2 for my brother, including one where he took a decent buck in Nebraska with a glass recurve I made for him. Videoing is harder than it looks and not much fun for the camera man.
Interesting topic.
George
