Oregon Coast DVD Makes Perfect Christmas Gift

Gibson filming for Oregon Coast Show

(Portland, Oregon) – As if just in time for the Christmas rush, a unique gift for those in love with the Oregon coast has just been released. “Oregon Lights” is a new DVD from Oregon Coast Show cameraman and producer Scott Gibson and writer David Anslow, now available online at www.oregonlightsdvd.com. The award-winning show was aired on Oregon Public Broadcasting a few times in the early part of this decade

13 chapters of the video take you through all ten of Oregon’s lighthouse, including the private lighthouse owned by famed maritime author Jim Gibbs, as well as some other related subjects.

Those who love to travel the Oregon coast will find this film intoxicating. The DVD is 72 minutes of glorious footage, beautiful scenery, and fascinating background information and history. It takes the viewer on a tour of all the lighthouses up and down the coast, through their history, and touches upon the legends of hauntings as well. It even features interviews with Gibbs, who not only served aboard the crazed Tillamook Rock Lighthouse until it was shut down in 1957, but created his own small lighthouse at his home in Yachats.

A bonus feature on the DVD is a special story about the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse in Newport.

Cape Meares

It was a labor of love for Gibson, who thought about the documentary for years. “Ever since I was a kid I had a fascination with lighthouses,” Gibson said. “So I was happy to blend my skills as a producer with a fascination of mine. I really loved making this documentary.”

The film took about a year to make, with Gibson having to rent equipment for $300 a day at the time, since he didn’t have his own broadcast quality gear. “It became a real ‘magical act’ for me to coordinate interviews and days that were available to shoot at the various lighthouses,” he said. “Plus, I had to coordinate with the ever-changing Oregon coast weather.”

Postproduction took another three months, and still included a lot of exhausting driving between the coast and Portland.

The making of the film had its perks, however. Most lighthouse officials gave Gibson exclusive access to areas not normally permitted to the public. He got to see a lot of things most people don’t.

But one hurdle was the officials at Cape Arago’s lighthouse, on the south coast. “The Coast Guard Chief from Coos Bay at that time would not allow me to cross the footbridge to get right up to the lighthouse,” Gibson said. “He said it was a liability issue, and I explained that I would sign any necessary waivers, etc. But he wouldn't budge. It seemed to me like he just wanted to throw his weight around. I saw the footbridge myself and it would have been safe for me to walk across it.”

Gibson learned much from his documentary work, including the revelation that the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse’s ghost was from a work of fiction. In the DVD, he’s careful to point that out, and to dispel the myth that Yaquina Head’s lighthouse was accidentally built in the wrong place.

Tillamook Rock Lighthouse, north coast

“Basically, there's no reason a lighthouse as tall as Yaquina Head would need to be placed high atop Cape Foulweather where it would be in the fog line much of the time,” he said.

The ghost stories didn’t faze him at all. Gibson is a realist – but one who knows first the sad truth about Oregon’s lighthouses. The DVD ends with a poignant statement about what won’t ever happen again with these wonderful icons.

“I don't know if any of the other ghost stories have any credibility, but lighthouses are truly remarkable structures,” Gibson said. “It’s sad to think another one will never be built.”

The DVD is $14.95, with $3 shipping and handling. It can be previewed and ordered at www.OregonLightsDVD.com.

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