Live Virtual Sky Room Talk – AIRPORT: Rebirth
of a Genre
Hosted by Film Historian Philip Harwood
Tuesday, July 6th at 7:00 PM – Zoom Invitation Link provided in Email Order Confirmation
Public $7 | Members $5
Airport: Rebirth of a Genre
Airport, directed by George Seaton, adapted from the Arthur
Hailey best-selling novel, and released by Universal studios in 1970, is
important for many reasons: It is the first in the Airport film series, and set the stage for the disaster film genre
of the 1970s. It is also the last film for Film Composer Alfred Newman, and stars Van
Heflin and Joyce Royce Landis. Starring
Burt Lancaster, Dean Martin, Jean Seberg,
Jacqueline Bisset, George Kennedy (a character who would
be a key figure in the Airport franchise) and in an Academy Award Supporting
role, Helen Hayes, the film is about
an airport manager trying to keep his airport open during a snowstorm, while a
desperate man plots to blow up a Boeing 707 airliner in flight. The film was
produced on a $10 million budget, and earned $128 million. The film would
receive nine other Academy Award nominations. Much attention was paid to detail
the day-to-day airport and airline operations and personal stories: airliners
buried in snow, noise pollution, economic distress, divorce, and pregnancy. No
stone is unturned in Airport. It was
the biggest money maker for Universal Studios, until JAWS was release four
years later.
The focus of the discussion will also be on the fact that Airport was also the start of a rebirth
of the disaster film genre. Many films had been released many years before. New
York State Librarian and Film Historian Philip Harwood, will discuss the making
of the film, the fascination we have with the film and genre, and childhood
memories of the film.
The following link has multiple places where you can rent and
stream the film on your preferred platform ahead of the discussion: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/airport. You can also request a copy of the DVD from your local library!
About Philip Harwood:
New York State Librarian and Film Historian Philip Harwood is an
Adjunct Lecturer in the Hutton House Lectures at LIU Post, and is an Adjunct
Lecturer at St. Francis College. He teaches film studies at the JCC Manhattan,
and has taught at 92nd Street Y, The New School, and Queens College. He is also
a published author.
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