James D. Long The Riddle of the Exodus After more than 15 lengthy journeys throughout the Middle East and spending months at a time on archaeological digs and interviewing key scholars in Egypt and Israel, James D. Long wrote The Riddle of the Exodus, one of the most preeminent books and documentaries on the Exodus, offering historical and archaeological proof of this epic event as found in the Hebrew Bible (Christian Old Testament). Born in Swinton, Missouri, Long began his broadcast career as a disc jockey for his hometown radio station before graduating from Brady (Texas) High School in 1967.  During the next 10 years, he worked as a journalist and program director in a number of cities including Houston and Dallas.  In addition to being a favorite on-air personality, he is an energetic, creative writer-producer.  Long earned a number of awards including three "Addys" from the world's largest advertising competition (American Advertising Federation). Long combined his love of archaeology, writing and film-making in 1979, shooting 16mm documentary footage in the mountains of Chihuahua, Mexico, the arid deserts of Jordan and the misty Andean foothills of Ecuador in South America.  His first foray into feature films was as Creative Director for Houston-based MediaPlex Entertainment. He relocated to Dallas in the 1990s and returned to broadcasting.  There, he interviewed Professor Vendyl Jones and was so impressed with his scholarship and unique perspective on archaeology and the Bible that Long began working with the Vendyl Jones Research Institutes.  He wrote and directed two critically acclaimed documentaries, Digging Up the Future and Return to Gilgal, and participated in several archaeological excavations in the Middle East, documenting them on film and video. Long and his wife, Carol, met and married on an dig in Israel, at the Cave of the Column on the shores of the Dead Sea.  They later founded Lightcatcher Productions, a publishing and production company. Long co-produced Search for the Ark of the Covenant for Fox-Lorber's Quest Series, seen on the BBC and Dutch Television.  Under the Lightcatcher Productions banner, James and Carol shot location footage in Israel, Egypt and Jordan, which is featured in Giants: The Myth & the Mystery, (The Learning Channel); Gold!, a mini-series on the History Channel; Pax Television's Encounters with the Unexplained, and Discovery Channel International's Secrets of the Holy Land. Long is developing a number of film and television projects with Phoenix-based Desert Film Productions, including an action-adventure feature to be shot on-location in the Middle East.  Lightcatcher Productions is in post-production on a new high-definition theatrical documentary entitled Treasures of the Copper Scroll. Seeking a serene environment perfect for writing and production, the Longs recently moved to rural Northwest Arkansas where they share a home with two cats and Dibbs the dog. Back to Lecturers Page