First HDTV of Russia Acquires Episodes of Richard Bangs' 'Adventures with a Purpose' Series

Janson Media announced today that it has licensed six episodes of the documentary travel series, Richard Bangs: Adventures with a Purpose to First HDTV of Russia. Produced by Small World Productions, Adventures with Purpose is a popular series of one-hour adventure travel, eco-conscious, historical documentaries. The series is co-produced by KCTS/Seattle, and Richard Bangs Productions of Marina del Rey, California.

Episode 101: Egypt: Quest for the Lord of the Nile Follow Bangs up the Nile River and deep into the heart of ancient Egypt. Egypt is a vast desert; a searing sun beating down; inhospitable to man and beast. Rain almost never fell. But once a year the river magically surged with water, and with this annual flood, thousands of crocodiles washed into the lives of the ancient Egyptians. Death by crocodile was common. Richard"s goal is to catch a glimpse of this legendary creature in the wild and along the way come to know the powerful god he inspired thousands of years ago.

Episode 102: New Zealand: Quest for Kaitiakitanga Bangs ventures to the southernmost reaches of civilization, in a down under world with an upright world-view. Join Richard in search of an age-old Maori concept that might hold a key to our planet"s future survival. He hikes the Franz Joseph Glacier in southern New Zealand, takes a wild raft ride down the Kaituna River through sacred Maori land and waits for sperm whales to surface on a Whale Watch boat near the town of Kaikoura. Episode 103: Switzerland: Quest for the Sublime Follow Bangs on a quest to discover the roots of adventure travel and to search for what philosophers and poets of earlier times called &'the sublime.&' This search for a deeper connection takes him to the scenic splendor of Switzerland. He begins in Lucerne, with stops at Mr. Pilatus and nearby Entlebuch Valley, St. Moritz, and the famous Glacier Express train. He side trips to the Jungfrau region, and finally lands in Zermatt to experience the rapture of a deadly mountain that helped change our perception of nature - the Matterhorn. Episode 104: Morocco Morocco is sometimes called the land of &'a thousand Kasbahs,&' referring to the way-stations of ancient caravan routes traveled by countless tradesmen and adventurers. These diverse peoples carried with them a bounty of crafts and skills, customs and beliefs, and they found shelter and social interaction within secure Kasbah walls. And throughout the centuries, these Kasbahs, strong and enduring, have kept silent vigil over their cultural store. Episode 105: Norway: Quest For The Viking Spirit Bangs kayaks on a Norwegian fjord in his latest special, Adventures with Purpose—Norway: Quest for the Viking Spirit. A thousand years ago Vikings set out from these fjords striking fear across Europe. Yet today this ruggedly beautiful country is the home of the Nobel Peace Center, of explorers and adventure travelers and is one of the most eco-friendly countries on earth. Episode 106: Assam India: Quest for the One-Horned Rhinoceros This time Bangs is traveling in a remote state on the northeastern cusp of India called Assam, which is steeped in religion and philosophy that revere all life. Bangs concludes that nothing happens unless we dream, and Assam is a dream awakened.

The First HDTV Network was launched in April 2007 and features a diverse mix of channels including Travel HD, Zoo TV, Teen TV, Fishing & Hunting TV Hi Life, Cinema, and Woman"s World.

Richard Bangs is a world adventurer, international river explorer, Web pioneer and award winning author. He is also a founding partner of Mountain Travel Sobek, America"s oldest and largest adventure travel firm. In addition to his Adventures with Purpose series, Bangs has produced web-based projects such as Great Escapes, Well-Traveled and Terraquest. Small World Productions is a small Seattle-based independent production company that since 1980 has been dedicated to making first-rate travel programs for public television. The company"s television series focus on the sights, art, and history of destinations in Europe, the USA, and Mexico & the Caribbean. Each episode is meant to appeal to travelers and armchair travelers and includes useful travel tips.

Established in 1989, Janson Media is an independent content distribution company based in the United States, with a rights portfolio of over 1,500 hours of exclusive programming available for licensing to worldwide television, VOD, DVD/video, and emerging new media platforms. The company has licensed programming to virtually every country in the world, and its clients include nearly every major broadcaster or media company, as well as a wide range of DVD labels and distributors. Janson Media is also a publisher/ manufacturer of award-winning DVDs.