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This week we celebrate the release of a free Dized app for Robinson Crusoe. Let me tell you about a true story that inspired me to design one of my fav scenarios for Robinson Crusoe…
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David Livingstone (born 19 March 1813) was a Scottish medical missionary and an explorer in Africa. He run a couple successful expeditions, he was a kinda tough bastard with a passion in his heart. You can learn more about him and his expeditions reading history books, but for now, just take it for granted – he was the Explorer.
And as you can guess, one day he got into trouble. He got lost.
Livingstone completely lost contact with the outside world for six years. Only one of his 44 letters made it to Zanzibar, it was year 1871. (the letter became available to the public in 2010. It read: ‘I am terribly knocked up but this is for your own eye only, … Doubtful if I live to see you again…’)
As I said, this one letter arrived. Was frightening, but also had the potential for a good story. That’s where New York Herald and young journalist Henry Morton Stanley show up…
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New York Herald announced that is sending an expedition to find and rescue doctor Livingstone. And it is going to go live…
Today we have all types of reality shows, from Big Brother, Real Housewives of Miami to MTV’s True live. In 1871 they had their own – Tracking doctor Livingstone. Every single week New York Herald was publishing a report written by Henry Morton Stanley sent right from Africa with a description of his adventures and progress of the expedition. They had the story.
Reading the biography of Julius Verne I found an interesting part – the story of tracking doctor Livingstone was so popular those times and New York Herald got so much attention and higher sells, that editor of the magazine ordered Stanley to not find Livingstone too soon! Stanley was visiting different parts of the region, writing dreadful stories of his journey, and was keeping the story alive for many months.
Awesome, isn’t it?
Finally, believe it or not, he found doctor Livingstone…
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So you can imagine. You are in a heart of Africa. You found a village. There is a white man there. Only one white man in this region, and saying this region I mean thousands of miles around you. It is the town of Ujiji on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, 10 November 1871. Clearly, this is the end of the expedition. Clearly, Stanley has just found Livingstone. So what does he do? He approaches Livingstone and says words that will become one of the most famous quotes of journalism.
He says: ‘Dr. Livingstone, I presume?’
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Tracking Dr. Livingstone scenario for Robinson tells this story. You are taking an expedition to find Doctor Livingstone. Keep this story in mind when you will play it. Let us honor these two great explorers of XIX century!
