The Branch of Araquooduh

During the summer of 2004, Tracy Bowersox and Jordan Rebman decided to make a movie. Made mainly to pass the time, the movie was a loose parody of Indiana Jones in which Indiana Bum, a dim-witted archeologist, stumbles upon the legendary Branch of Araquooduh--a chunk of wood with the power to raise the dead. Followed by a mysterious man, Bum is attacked and the branch is stolen. The mysterious man escapes, but leaves a clue behind: a shoe. Determined to retrieve the branch, Bum vowes to bring the "One-Shoed Man" to justice.

Unscripted and filmed in an afternoon, the movie was titled "Indiana Bum and the Branch of Araquooduh and the One-Shoed Man and a Gun." After the movie was edited, it became clear that the concept was a winner. The world of Indiana Bum would inspire a spinoff and two sequels in the span of two years.

Raiders of the Lost Bark

Before the summer was over, Tracy and Jordan had begun filming the first sequel to Indiana Bum entitled "Indiana Bum and the Raiders of the Lost Bark". While it was much more thought-through than its predecessor, the second Indiana Bum was also scriptless. The plot involved a cult called the "One-Shoers" who steal the Branch of Araquooduh and resurrect their leader: the One-Shoed Man.

Because the Branch is missing some bark, the One-Shoed Man is only resurrected half way. Unable to feel pain, the One-shoed Man is seemingly unstoppable, and all he can think about is exacting his revenge on Indiana Bum.

The movie was 20 minutes long and had some funny jokes and interesting characters, but it suffered from some fairly severe technical problems that made it unsuitable for public consumption.

While somewhat of a disappointment, Indiana Bum and the Raiders of the Lost Bark introduced two IB favorites: Bill Bills the policeman and Patsy the stick horse. The janitor, Flemmings, would be the inspiration for the spinoff "Flemmings: Before Bum".

The Pamphlet of the Dead

Tracy's dad, Kevin, saw potential in the characters and storylines of Indiana Bum and decided to write an outline for a sequel called "Indiana Bum and the Aztec Colander". Tracy was impressed and welcomed Kevin's help. Kevin set to work immediately on a script--a first for the series. When it was finished, it was "Indiana Bum and the Pamphlet of the Dead," and Kevin had big plans for it. The movie would require lights, sound equipment, an enormous warehouse full of boxes, and even the use of a green screen. The movie was a huge step for Tracy. The third installment would be the longest, most complicated film that Tracy had ever worked on by a long shot.

The story is that the Kansas City Institute of Old Stuff has been robbed of the Pamphlet of the Dead, and it's up to Indiana Bum and Bill Bills to bring the villian to justice. The thief left only one clue: a note.

The movie was finaly finished in the spring of 2006. Test audiences were wowed by it, some even asked to see it again. "When you're watching this movie, you can tell how much effort went into it," says Tracy Bowersox as he writes this, "It's genuinely funny."

It was decided that the first showing for the general public would be a fund-raiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. So in Liberty Hall in Lawrence Kansas on May 31st of 2006 Indiana Bum made his first big screen appearance bfore an audience of 165, raising $825 for the CFF.