Ken Burns' The National Parks: America's Best Idea is 12 hours of fascinating history about the men and women who created the national park system and how we almost lost one of our most valuable resources.

This little antidote always amuses me:

A young Teddy Roosevelt read in his local New York paper that buffalo were becoming more scarce in the American west. Wasting no time, he hopped on a train for Yellowstone. Upon arriving he spent several weeks looking for the majestic beast. He finally found one -- a lone bull -- weathering the snow in a clearing. So he promptly shot it, took it home, and mounted it on his wall.

Ironic that many years later, as President, he became one of the most important figures in creating what we now call the national parks, realizing that the truly beautiful places needed preserving, not only for their uniqueness but as protective haven for wildlife.

Get the DVD here for $64.99