For most members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the closest they ever get to their leaders is their biannual general conference, which will be held this weekend in Salt Lake City. For everybody else, there was Duane Cardall.
For nearly three decades, Cardall brought church leaders into the living rooms of their followers. He covered the church for KSL-TV, following presidents around the world, interviewing and observing them during a time when the church grew from 3 million members to 12 million.
You could do worse than getting a seat next to Cardall at general conference. The stories he could — and did — tell could fill a book, which is why Deseret Book has asked him to write one. (So far, he has declined.) He could whisper some interesting anecdotes in your ear during the slow parts of general conference this weekend (not that there are slow parts!).
Cardall has been embraced by President Spencer W. Kimball. He has stood side by side with President Gordon B. Hinckley in a soldiers' graveyard and watched tears roll down his cheeks. He observed Ezra Taft Benson tell Donny Osmond to get a haircut. He has seen things he says he can't tell because he considers them sacred.
From 1969 to 1998 Cardall covered the church, which meant he became acquainted with seven of the church's 15 presidents — David O. McKay, Joseph Fielding Smith, Harold B. Lee, Spencer W. Kimball, Ezra Taft Benson, Howard W. Hunter and Gordon B. Hinckley. They taught him many things; for one thing, he learned never to underestimate the energy of older men.
They ran him ragged as he followed them around the world to some 55 nations. "It was exhausting," he says. A full night's sleep was rare, what with the demands of travel and the limits of the technology at the time. He had to rely on airline pilots to take his film to Salt Lake City from wherever he happened to be in the world at the time.
There isn't room here to do his experiences justice, but Cardall, now editorial director of KSL, riffs through the memories during a brief conversation. He once accompanied President Hinckley on a visit to his ancestral home in England and while they gazed out at the sea together the church leader told him, "You ought to go up the road to Gravesend and do a story on Pocahontas. She was buried there."
Says Cardall, "The Disney movie on Pocahontas was just about to be released. He knew there would be interest in that at the time. He's very much aware of contemporary culture and society. I wound up doing a story on Pocahontas."
His most poignant moment with President Hinckley came when he accompanied him on a visit to an American cemetery in Manila. As they stood there he recalled that he had dedicated the land of the Philippines 40 years earlier when there was one member of the church there. Now there were a half-million.
"Just a few of us went out there," says Cardall. "He stood on that spot and recounted the experience. It was extremely emotional. He had tears in his eyes."
Cardall has particularly fond memories of President Kimball, a diminutive man with a history of illness that led many to believe his presidency would be short-lived. He served 12 years, all of it at a virtual sprint that took him to 40 nations.
"First of all there was his utter humility and willingness to reach out to people," says Cardall. "He embraced people and kissed them on the cheek and said, 'I love you.' I experienced it first-hand. . . . He was the prophet of the people. He traveled on buses instead of limousines. He interacted with people and people loved him."
There were light moments along the way. He was standing near President Benson at a high-brow reception in England to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the church in that nation. The president was in a receiving line greeting well-wishers when Osmond came along. "Young man, you need a haircut," he told him.
Looking back, Cardall wraps it up eloquently when he says, "For nearly three decades I had the privilege of having a front row seat as these church leaders traversed the world, guiding the remarkable growth of the LDS Church. Personally, it was a gratifying experience and, professionally, it was simply a great story."
Doug Robinson's column runs on Tuesday. Please send e-mail to drob@desnews.com.
