An Iowa newspaper publisher's 2013 Lincoln MKS, now carrying 382,778 miles as of early November, is the unlikely star of a new documentary short making its way through Michigan theaters this week, including a stop at The Henry Ford in Dearborn Thursday night. The film, titled “The Immortal Lincoln,” traces how Douglas Burns leaned on the car, and an unexpected bond with the factory workers who built it, while he moved through one of the hardest stretches of his life.
The Henry Ford's Giant Screen Experience has scheduled the special screening for Thursday, Nov. 12, with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. and the program beginning at 7 p.m., according to a release distributed via PR Newswire. The release describes the documentary as the story of “an Iowa newspaper publisher, his 2013 Lincoln MKS and how an unexpected connection to the people who built his car helped him through one of the most difficult periods of his life.” The Dearborn program is also set to include a live musical performance, the 23-minute film itself, and a conversation with filmmakers, a mental health expert and the museum's curator of transportation.
Burns is a fourth-generation newspaper publisher who runs the Iowa Mercury and the Times of Ankeny news sites, according to The Detroit News. He purchased the Lincoln MKS in Carroll, Iowa, during a period that included losing ownership of the Carroll Times Herald and selling his mother's house to pay off debt, the paper reports. Burns has said the car gave him motivation amid suicidal thoughts.
People Behind the Car
The Detroit News reports that C. John Anter directed the film. Anter interviewed workers who built Burns's car at the Chicago Assembly Plant, including Marvin Jones, who said he was shocked to learn that Burns drew strength from the vehicle he and his colleagues had made.
The Detroit News also reports that the film features Ford CEO Jim Farley and Executive Chair Bill Ford, along with Lindsay Bornheimer, a University of Michigan mental health expert. Dakota Elings, a Jiffy Lube service technician in Grimes, Iowa, discusses Burns's car maintenance.
The Film's Origins
The documentary grew out of a 2024 USA Today Network story by executive producer and narrator Phoebe Wall Howard. It previewed to nearly 200 people at the Pearson Lakes Art Center in Okoboji, Iowa, this September and received a standing ovation, according to The Detroit News.
Peter Hedges, who wrote the book and screenplay for “What's Eating Gilbert Grape,” called the film a triumph, The Detroit News reported. The documentary has also been submitted to film festivals throughout the United States for 2027.
Three Michigan Screenings in One Week
Beyond Dearborn, the film is making two other Michigan stops. A Port Huron screening is set for the Carnegie Museum at 6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 9 — a date confirmed by the Times Herald, which also reported that the short film runs 23 minutes and was directed by John Anter. A screening at the main Detroit Public Library on Woodward follows Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 6:30 p.m., ahead of the Dearborn event.
At the Henry Ford's Giant Screen Experience Thursday, musician Jason Walsmith is scheduled to perform the song “Momentum,” and the film team plans to host a question-and-answer session about making the film.
General admission tickets for the Dearborn screening were listed at $15, with member tickets at $12.75, according to the PR Newswire release. The Henry Ford also advised that the documentary discusses mental health challenges and that some content may be emotionally difficult for viewers, adding that parental discretion is advised.
Putting mileage and mental-health support in context
According to S&P Global Mobility, the average age of U.S. light vehicles reached 12.8 years in 2024. For viewers affected by the film's discussion of self-harm, the 988 Lifeline says it is available 24/7/365 and that conversations are free and confidential.
