VPA professor to host WCNY’s new classic movie night

VPA professor to host WCNY’s new classic movie nightJanuary 04, 2007Jaime Winne Alvarezjlwinne@syr.edu

Beginning this weekend, television audiences can tune to WCNY-TV to see Syracuse University professor Kendall Phillips host the new show “WCNY’s Classic Movie Night.” Phillips, associate professor of communication and rhetorical studies in SU’s College of Visual and Performing Arts, will host the show Saturdays at 9 p.m.

The program premieres this Saturday, Jan. 6, with the 1978 horror flick “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” Upcoming titles include “Snows of Kilimanjaro” (1952), “Cocoon” (1985), “Proud Valley” (1940), “Elmer Gantry” (1960), “Hello Dolly” (1969), “Judgment at Nuremburg” (1961) and “North By Northwest” (1959). On the program, Phillips will introduce the films and present a brief conclusion.

“People often overlook the classics because they think these films are old-fashioned and out of touch, but the films we’re showing are really timeless,” Phillips says. “In the first two months alone, we’re showing films that touch on race relations, religion and politics, war and aging. These topics are as relevant today as they were when these films were released.”

Phillips is an expert on rhetoric, public discourse and rhetoric of popular culture. He explores these concepts through a variety of rhetorical artifacts, including comic books, film, political speeches and scientific controversies. Most recently, he authored the book “Projected Fears: Horror Films and American Culture” (Praeger, 2005), which explores the relationship between 10 classic horror films and the cultures they reflect.