Ishi, The Last Yahi

Synopsis

Tells the story of anthropologist Alfred Kreoeber and Ishi, who walked out of the hills of northern California in 1911, and was the last living Yahi Indian. Ishi spent the last four years of his life at the University of California’s Museum of Anthropology in San Francisco, where he died in 1916. There he dedicated himself to teaching and sharing the Yahi way of life through his songs, stories and skills as a master archer and craftsmen. Using Krober’s notes and recordings taken at the time, the programme provides a glimpse of life in America before the arrival of Europeans. It includes still photographs, archive film, dramatised readings of letters and articles by Ishi’s contemporaries, and Kroeber’s wax recordings of Ishi’s voice. Also includes interviews with several authorities on Yahi and Raymond Clar, an 89-year-old man who met Ishi in 1911 and again in 1915 at the museum.

Language

English

Country

United States

Medium

Video; Videocassette. VHS. b&w/col. 57 min.

Year of production

1992

Availability

Hire; 1999 hire: £15.00 (+VAT +p&p)

Subjects

Anthropology

Keywords

Indians of North & South America; Yahi

Credits

Director

Jed Riffe; Pamela Roberts

Writer

Ann Makepeace

Contributor

Alfred Kroeber

Cast

Linda Hunt

Distributor

Name

Royal Anthropological Institute Film & Video Library, c/o Concord Media

Email

sales@concordvideo.co.uk

Web

http://www.concordmedia.org.uk/ External site opens in new window

Phone

01473 726012

Fax

01473 274531

Address

Rosehill Centre
22 Hines Road
Ipswich
IP3 9BG