Jeanine Basinger
Jeanine Basinger (born February 3, 1936,
Early life and education
Jeanine Basinger was raised in Brookings, South Dakota.[3] She first became interested in film at the age of 11 when she worked as an usher at The College Theater.[3] She said that seeing the same film over and over gave her an understanding of "the way films... [affect] the audience, ... where they work and where they don't."[3] She attended and received her BS and MS from South Dakota State University.[2][4]
Career
Basinger first arrived in
In 1970, she and then-student Laurence Mark established a student-run film series that eventually became the country's longest-lasting such series.[3] She was a pioneer of taking Hollywood film seriously as a subject of academic study, teaching the work of Clint Eastwood as early as 1971.[3] Because of Basinger, Wesleyan increasingly became seen as a place for Hollywood figures to deposit their archives; among those who have done so are Elia Kazan, Frank Capra, and eventually the aforementioned Clint Eastwood.[3]
Under her leadership, by 1990 film had become a standalone program and major at Wesleyan separate from the art department, cross-listing courses with the art department and other established departments.[3] It evolved into a formal department in 2000, with its own faculty and with Basinger as chair, a role she relinquished in 2016 before retiring in 2020, by which time that department had evolved into the College of Film and the Moving Image.[3]
Basinger is also a trustee
Legacy
Basinger has been described as "one of the most important film scholars alive today."
She has appeared in numerous documentaries and in a dramatic role in A Better Way to Die (2000). In 2006 she participated in
Awards
- 1996 Wesleyan Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching[6]
- 1999 Film History for Silent Stars[13]
- 2005 Governor's Arts and Tourism Award from the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism[14]
- Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the American Film Institute on June 7, 2006[15]
- 2008 Theatre Library Association Award for The Star Machine[16]
- 2013 Wesleyan Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching
- 2024 Robert Osborne Award
Works
Books
- The World War II Combat Film: Anatomy of a Genre (1985, 2003)
- Anthony Mann: A Critical Study
- The It's a Wonderful Life Book
- Shirley Temple (1975)
- Lana Turner (1976)
- Gene Kelly (1976)
- A Woman's View: How Hollywood Spoke to Women 1930-1960 (1993)
- American Cinema: 100 Years of Filmmaking (companion book for a PBS series).
- Silent Stars (1999)
- The Star Machine, from the 1930s to the 1950s.
- I Do and I Don't: A History of Marriage in the Movies (2013)[17]
- The Movie Musical! (2019)
Audio commentaries
- The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, with film historian Kenneth Geist
- Gigi, with actress Leslie Caron
- In This Our Life
- It (1927 film)
- laserdisc)
- Jezebel
- Laura, with composer David Raksin
- The Philadelphia Story
- Pearl Harbor, with director Michael Bay
- Sergeant York
- The Tall T
- Three Coins in the Fountain
- Week-End in Havana
- The Wild One
Notes
- ^ "Basinger, Jeanine 1936- (Jeanine Deyling Basinger)".
- ^ a b "Jeanine D. Basinger - Faculty, Wesleyan University".
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Wasson, Sam (2019). "Who Could Ask for Anything More?". Wesleyan University Magazine (2): 6–15. Retrieved 2022-05-28.
- ^ "Faculty". wesleyan.edu.
- ^ Wesleyan Facts and Trivia Archived May 27, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Wesleyan University. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
- ^ National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, accessed October 20, 2011.
- ^ Pulle, Goug (August 12, 2011). "Experts' insights add to Plaza Classic Film Festival experience" Archived 2012-09-11 at archive.today. El Paso Times, accessed October 18, 2011.
- ^ Appelo, Tim (July 27, 2011). "The 25 Best Film Schools Rankings". The Hollywood Reporter, accessed October 18, 2011.
- ^ Women's Impact Report 2012: Academics Jeanine Basinger, Film Studies Chair, Wesleyan U. Variety. By Anneta Konstantinides. 4 October 2012. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
- ^ "Wesleyan's Entertaining Class". Vanity Fair, Oct. 2008, Issue 578, p180-180, 1p, 32 Color Photographs.
- ^ Loewenstein, Lael (March 27, 2008). "Basinger's students make their mark". Variety, accessed October 20, 2011.
- ^ "Students and peers praise Basinger". Variety (March 27, 2008), accessed October 18, 2011.
- ^ "William K. Everson Award for Film History" Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine. National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, accessed October 21, 2011.
- ^ "The Wesleyan Connection's Achievements 2006" Archived 2009-03-24 at the Wayback Machine. Wesleyan University newsletter, accessed October 18, 2011.
- ^ Rich, Katey (May 5, 2006). "Basinger to receive honorary degree". The Wesleyan Argus, accessed October 20, 2011.
- ^ "Theatre Library Association Award - Winners, 1974-2009" Archived 2011-11-05 at the Wayback Machine. Theatre Library Association, accessed October 21, 2011.
- ^ "I Do and I Don't by Jeanine Basinger - PenguinRandomHouse.com". PenguinRandomhouse.com.
References
- Wesleyan Faculty Page (accessed 30 November 2014)
- Jeanine Basinger at Rotten Tomatoes
- Quotations from Jeanine Basinger (accessed 16 June 2006)
- Jeanine Basinger at IMDb(accessed 16 June 2006)
- WNYC Leonard Lopate June 3, 2013 interview on marriage and the movies.
- NY Times Review March 10, 2013 review of "I Do and I Don't"
- Washington Post Feb. 1, 2013 Review "I Do and I Don't"