Marwencol

WELCOME TO:

"INDEPENDENT LENS."

I'M AMERICA FERRERA.

TO HEAL HIMSELF,

HE CREATED:

A FANTASY WORLD.

THIS IS ME.

AFTER THE ATTACK,

OF COURSE.

THIS IS INDEPENDENT

FILMMAKER JEFF MALMBERG.

HE CAME ACROSS:

WORLD WAR II PICTURES

IN A MAGAZINE.

EXCEPT IT WASN'T

WORLD WAR II,

IT WAS A TOWN OF DOLLS,

INCLUDING BARBIES

AND GI JOES:

BUILT BY A MAN:

WHO HAD SURVIVED

A BRUTAL BEATING.

NOW HE'S TRYING

TO RECLAIM:

HIS DAMAGED MIND

THROUGH ART OR THERAPY,

OR WHATEVER YOU MAY CALL

THIS UNIQUE VISION

THAT REACHES OUT TO US.

"MARWENCOL." NEXT.

THE CORPORATION:

FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING,

THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT

FOR THE ARTS,

AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS

TO YOUR PBS STATION

FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU.

DREAM:

WHEN YOU'RE FEELING BLUE

DREAM:

THAT'S THE THING TO DO

THINGS NEVER ARE

AS BAD AS THEY SEEM

SO DREAM:

DREAM, DREAM

Man:
ON APRIL 8, 2000,

MARK HOGANCAMP WAS IN A BAR.

HE LEFT THE BAR:

ABOUT CLOSING TIME.

AND A GROUP OF 5 INDIVIDUALS

HAD BEEN IN THE BAR

HARASSING HIM,

THEN THEY WENT OUTSIDE,

FOLLOWED HIM,

AND BEAT HIM SENSELESS.

STOMPED ON HIM,

AND DID SOME PRETTY BAD

DAMAGE TO HIS BRAIN.

THE DOCTORS HAD TO

REBUILD HIS FACE.

THE IMPACT ON THE BRAIN

FROM THE ASSAULT

WAS SUCH THAT HE WAS

IN A COMA FOR 9 DAYS.

TO SEE YOUR 38-YEAR-OLD SON

HAVING TO LEARN:

HOW TO EAT AGAIN,

TAKING HIS FIRST STEPS.

I MEAN, SEEING

YOUR 38-YEAR-OLD SON

STARTING TO WALK AGAIN.

AND SEEING IT,

IT'S HEART BREAKING.

HE WAS THERE FOR 40 DAYS

IN THE HOSPITAL.

AND THEN THEY DISMISSED HIM

BECAUSE HE COULDN'T PAY FOR IT

WHEN HE WAS ON MEDICAID.

I TOOK CARE OF MARK

FOR 2 YEARS

AFTER HE GOT OUT

OF THE HOSPITAL.

I MEAN, HE REALLY

LITERALLY HAD TO LEARN

EVERYTHING OVER.

HE WENT TO THERAPY

FOR A VERY SHORT TIME.

IT WAS--ALL THESE

PHYSICAL THERAPIES

HE WENT THROUGH:

AND TALKING:

AND WORD SEARCH:

AND ALL THIS STUFF.

HE WAS JUST STARTING

TO GET, YOU KNOW,

SOME OF THIS STUFF BACK

WHEN THEY JUST, LIKE,

CUT IF OFF.

"THAT'S IT.

THAT'S ALL YOU GET."

THEN YOU COME HOME

FROM WORK:

AND HE'S BUILDING

THIS LITTLE MINIATURE

BUILDING,

AND LOOKS LIKE HELL,

JUST MADE FROM:

OLD PLYWOOD:

AND NASTY STUFF:

AND PIECES OF STUFF YOU

FIND AROUND THE YARD.

BUT IT'S DEVELOPED

INTO A WORLD,

HIS OWN WORLD.

THIS IS ME.

AFTER THE ATTACK,

OF COURSE.

ALWAYS SMOKING.

UM, I USED TO CARRY

ONE REVOLVER.

AND THEN GENERAL PATTON

GAVE ME HIS OTHER REVOLVER.

SO NOW I HAVE TWO.

BECAUSE THE GENERAL

JUST WANTS TO HANG OUT,

HAVE A DRINK.

[INDISTINCT]

WHAT'S THIS

ALL ABOUT, MAN?

[CAR PASSES BY]

[INSECTS CHIRPING]

WHEN THE TEENAGERS

KICKED MY HEAD TO PIECES,

THEY WIPED, I MEAN,

EVERYTHING.

ALL MEMORY OF EVERYTHING.

MY MEMORIES THAT I DO GET,

THEY COME BACK IN STILLS,

JUST A SINGLE SHOT,

BUT NO CONTEXT.

ALLS I HAVE IS A PHOTO

TO REMIND ME THAT, OK,

I WAS MARRIED, WOW.

TO A GOOD-LOOKING GIRL, TOO.

SHE WAS A RUSSIAN POLISH.

ANASTASIA.

I STARTED TO ASK QUESTIONS

BECAUSE I DIDN'T KNOW

WHO I WAS.

I HAD TO ASK OTHER PEOPLE.

WHAT WAS I LIKE?

WAS I BAD GUY?

WAS I MEAN? WAS I?

AND THEY WOULD TELL ME,

"NO, YOU WEREN'T MEAN.

YOU WERE JUST DRUNK."

YOU KNOW, YOU WERE

AN ALL RIGHT GUY.

"DID I HURT ANYONE?"

"NO, YOU JUST HURT

YOURSELF."

THEN I STARTED FINDING

MY DRUNK JOURNALS

AND STARTED READING THOSE

BECAUSE I WANTED

TO FIND OUT WHO I WAS.

FOR REAL.

'CAUSE THE ONLY ONE

THAT WOULD KNOW:

IS THE GUY WHO WAS WRITING

THEM, WHO WAS ME.

MAYBE NOT IN THE RIGHT

FRAME OF MIND,

BUT IT WAS ME.

IT'S ALL MESSED UP LIKE THIS

BECAUSE I WAS HAMMERED.

"I'M GONNA DIE TONIGHT."

AND, OH, JANUARY 19, 1993.

"LAST ENTRY."

AND I WAS LIKE, MY GOD.

IT WAS LIKE READING

SOMETHING:

THAT STEPHEN KING WROTE

OR SOMETHING.

IT WAS BAD.

I NEVER WANT TO SEE

THIS GUY AGAIN.

I FIGURED, ALL RIGHT,

WELL, WHAT'S THE FIRST THING

I GOT TO WORK ON?

THAT'S MY IMAGINATION.

I CAME FLYING OVER

IN MY P-40 WARHAWK.

ON FIRE.

AND I SAW A FIELD

DOWN BELOW.

AND I CRASH LANDED IT.

AND WHEN I WALKED

INTO TOWN,

THERE WAS NOBODY THERE.

AND THEN ONE BY ONE,

BEAUTIFUL BARBIE-LOOKING WOMEN

STARTED EMERGING.

I WAS THE ONLY MAN IN TOWN

WITH 27 BARBIES.

THE SS, I FOUND OUT LATER,

WENT THROUGH THERE

AND KILLED MEN.

IT WAS LIKE A DESOLATE TOWN.

AND THEY ALL HID

WHEN THE SS WERE THERE.

SO THEY CAME OUT

AND THEY THANKED ME.

I WAS THINKING, "BOY, WHAT

A LUCKY GUY I AM."

SO THEY GAVE ME MY

OWN PLACE, MY OWN BUILDING,

WHICH I TURNED INTO A BAR.

I USED TO WORK THERE

5 DAYS A WEEK.

YOU KNOW, 10 HOURS A DAY.

BUT NOW I JUST WORK

ONCE A WEEK,

AND IT'S 4 OR 5 HOURS

A WEEK,

JUST SO I CAN GET USED TO

DOING THINGS AGAIN.

MARK'S JOB IS--HE KIND

OF DOES ANYTHING I ASK

HIM, REALLY.

DOESN'T COME IN TOO MUCH

BECAUSE IT'S

TOO MUCH FOR HIM

IF HE'S AROUND

A LOT OF PEOPLE:

AND A LOT OF STRESS.

HE CAME TO ME,

HE WAS IN RECOVERY.

DIDN'T LAST LONG.

AND HE WAS AWFUL.

HE DRANK. SOMETIMES HE

CAME TO WORK,

SOMETIMES, LIKE HE SAID,

HE WOULD HAVE A SHOT

JUST TO STEADY HIMSELF

FOR THE DAY:

AND JUST CALL IN

AND SAY, I'M NOT COMING.

AFTER HE GOT OUT

OF THE HOSPITAL,

IT WAS LIKE SOMEBODY

TURNED A SWITCH.

HE HAD NO INTEREST

IN ALCOHOL AT ALL.

AT ALL.

AFTER THE ATTACK,

WHEN I STARTED COMING

AROUND BACK HERE,

I LOOKED AT THE BOTTLES

AND I DON'T GET

THAT SAME FEELING.

NOTHING HAPPENS WHEN

I LOOK AT THE BOTTLE.

IT'S LIKE LIQUOR, BOOZE,

THAT'S IT.

I MEAN, IF I DON'T

REMEMBER WHAT IT'S LIKE

TO BE DRUNK:

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