Gerald Peary (born October 30, 1944) is an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
film critic
Film criticism is the analysis and evaluation of films and the film medium. In general, film criticism can be divided into two categories: journalistic criticism that appears regularly in newspapers, magazines and other popular mass-media outlets ...
, filmmaker, editor of the University Press of Mississippi, and a former curator of the
Harvard Film Archive
The Harvard Film Archive (HFA) is a film archive and cinema located in the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Dedicated to the collection, preservation and exhibition of film, the HFA houses ...
.
Early life and education
Peary graduated from
Rider University
Rider University is a private university in Lawrence Township, New Jersey. It consists of four academic units: the Norm Brodsky College of Business, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the College of Education and Human Services, and West ...
in 1964, went on to earn an MA in drama from
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, th ...
in 1966, and received a Ph.D. in Communications at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
in 1977 with the dissertation, ''The Rise of the American Gangster Film, 1913-1930.''
[ Peary was a 1986 Fulbright Fellow in ]Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...
, studying Yugoslavian film comedy.[
]
Career
Peary moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...
, in 1978 to work as a first-string critic for ''The Real Paper'', an alternative weekly
An alternative newspaper is a type of newspaper that eschews comprehensive coverage of general news in favor of stylized reporting, opinionated reviews and columns, investigations into edgy topics and magazine-style feature stories highlighting ...
, which closed in 1981. He is married to producer and filmmaker Amy Geller
Amy Geller is an American documentary film director and producer. She is best known for her work on the documentaries ''The Rabbi Goes West'' and ''The Guys Next Door''.
Life and career
Geller was born in Hampton, New Hampshire. She holds a B.A. ...
, former artistic director of the Boston Jewish Film Festival
The Boston Jewish Film Festival (BJFF) is an annual film festival that screens the best contemporary films on Jewish themes from around the world. The festival presents features, shorts, documentaries, and conversations with visiting artists in o ...
. Peary is the brother of American film critic and sportswriter Danny Peary
Dannis Peary (born August 8, 1949) is an American film critic and sports writer. He has written and edited many books on cinema and sports-related topics. Peary is most famous for his book '' Cult Movies'' (1980), which spawned two sequels, '' Cu ...
.
He was a reviewer and columnist for the ''Boston Phoenix
''The Phoenix'' (stylized as ''The Phœnix'') was the name of several alternative weekly periodicals published in the United States of America by Phoenix Media/Communications Group of Boston, Massachusetts, including the ''Portland Phoenix'' and ...
'' from 1996 until its demise in 2012. He is now a critic-at-large for The Arts Fuse
''The Arts Fuse'' is an online arts magazine covering cultural events in Greater Boston, as well as Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, and New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the ...
, a Boston-based online arts magazine.[Boston University College of Communication]
/ref> He was from 1998 to 1999 the Acting Curator of the Harvard Film Archive
The Harvard Film Archive (HFA) is a film archive and cinema located in the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Dedicated to the collection, preservation and exhibition of film, the HFA houses ...
[Professor Gerald Peary at Suffolk University, Boston]
/ref>[The X-list: the National Society of Film Critics]
/ref> and is now general editor of the University Press of Mississippi
The University Press of Mississippi, founded in 1970, is a publisher that is sponsored by the eight state universities in Mississippi.
Universities
*Alcorn State University
*Delta State University
* Jackson State University
*Mississippi State U ...
''Conversations with Filmmakers Series
The Conversations with Filmmakers Series is part of the University Press of Mississippi which is sponsored by Mississippi's eight state universities. The mission of the Series is to publish collected interviews with world-famous directors. The cu ...
''. Since 1997, he has been the programmer/curator of the Cinematheque at Boston University's College of Communication
__NOTOC__
Boston University College of Communication (COM) is a communication school at Boston University. It was founded in 1947 as the School of Public Relations. The College of Communication is the oldest public relations school in the United ...
, bringing independent filmmakers to show their works. He has programmed for the Institute of Contemporary Art-Boston, the Vancouver International Film Festival
The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October.
The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Fest ...
, and helped choose films for the Edinburgh International Film Festival.
His cinema articles have appeared in the ''Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Gl ...
'', ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...
'', ''The Globe and Mail
''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...
'', ''Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
'', and '' The Real Paper''. Peary has also contributed to numerous magazines, including ''Positif'', ''Film Comment
''Film Comment'' is the official publication of Film at Lincoln Center. It features reviews and analysis of mainstream, art-house, and avant-garde filmmaking from around the world. Founded in 1962 and originally released as a quarterly, ''Film Co ...
'', '' Cineaste'', ''Sight & Sound
''Sight and Sound'' (also spelled ''Sight & Sound'') is a British monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). It conducts the well-known, once-a-decade ''Sight and Sound'' Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time, ongoing ...
'', the ''Boston Review
''Boston Review'' is an American quarterly political and literary magazine. It publishes political, social, and historical analysis, literary and cultural criticism, book reviews, fiction, and poetry, both online and in print. Its signature form ...
'', ''Flare
A flare, also sometimes called a fusée, fusee, or bengala in some Latin-speaking countries, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a bright light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for distress signaling, illumination, ...
'', and ''Maclean's
''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian pers ...
''.
Peary is a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics
The Boston Society of Film Critics (BSFC) is an organization of film reviewers from Boston, Massachusetts in the United States.
History
The BSFC was formed in 1981 to make “Boston’s unique critical perspective heard on a national and internati ...
,[The Boston Society of Film Critics Members]
/ref> the National Society of Film Critics
The National Society of Film Critics (NSFC) is an American film critic organization. The organization is known for its highbrow tastes, and its annual awards are one of the most prestigious film critics awards in the United States. In January 2014, ...
, and FIPRESCI
The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI, short for Fédération Internationale de la PRESse CInématographique) is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the world fo ...
(the International Film Critics Association).[ He has frequently served as president of international critics' juries at film festivals including ]Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte (river), Rotte'') is the second largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the Prov ...
, Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
, Karlovy Vary
Karlovy Vary (; german: Karlsbad, formerly also spelled ''Carlsbad'' in English) is a spa city in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 46,000 inhabitants. It lies on the confluence of the rivers Ohře and Teplá. It is n ...
, San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
, and Mar del Plata
Mar del Plata is a city on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the seat of General Pueyrredón district. Mar del Plata is the second largest city in Buenos Aires Province. The name "Mar del Plata" is a sh ...
. Peary has taught film studies and screenwriting classes at many universities, including The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...
, Livingston College-Rutgers University, Boston University
Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original cam ...
,[ ]Concordia University (Montreal)
Concordia University (French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...
, and Simon Fraser University (Vancouver). He taught for over 30 years at Suffolk University
Suffolk University is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. With 7,560 students (includes all campuses, 7,379 at the Boston location alone), it is the eighth-largest university in metropolitan Boston. It was founded as a la ...
, Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, where he was a professor of communication and journalism. He retired and was named Professor Emeritus in 2015.
Peary also made the feature documentaries ''Archie’s Betty'' (2015) and ''The Rabbi Goes West'' (2019). He made his acting debut playing a chess champion in Andrew Bujalski’s acclaimed independent feature, ''Computer Chess
Computer chess includes both hardware (dedicated computers) and software capable of playing chess. Computer chess provides opportunities for players to practice even in the absence of human opponents, and also provides opportunities for analysi ...
'' (2013).
Upon being asked "What drew you to film criticism?", Peary replied, "I’m a film critic for my love of film. I want other people to see the same films that I saw and love. From the age of four, I was going to movies all the time."[Gerald Peary interview]
by Robin Berghaus of ''BU Today'', 12 Nov 2008
Work
Books
* ''Rita Hayworth: A Pyramid Illustrated History of the Movies'' (1976). .
* ''Women and the Cinema: A Critical Anthology'', edited by Karyn Kay and Gerald Peary (1977). .
* ''The Classic American Novel and the Movies'', edited by Gerald Peary and Roger Shatzkin (1977). .
* ''The Modern American Novel and the Movies'', edited by Gerald Peary and Roger Shatzkin (1978). .
* ''The American Animated Cartoon: A Critical Anthology'', edited by Danny Peary and Gerald Peary (1980). .
* ''Little Caesar'' (Wisconsin/Warner Brothers Screenplays series) edited by Gerald Peary (1981). .
* ''Quentin Tarantino: Interviews'' (Conversations With Filmmakers Series) (1998). .
* ''John Ford: Interviews'' (Conversations With Filmmakers Series) (2001). .
* ''Samuel Fuller: Interviews'' (Conversations With Filmmakers Series) (2012). .
Films
* ''Twist'' (documentary, 1992) tory editor* ''Old Warrior'' (documentary short, 1994) roject consultant* ''Spanish Fly'' (comedy, 1998) tory editor, script consultant* ''Little Caesar: End of Rico, Beginning of the Antihero'' (video documentary short, 2005) ppeared as himself* '' For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism'' (documentary, 2009) irector and writer* ''Computer Chess
Computer chess includes both hardware (dedicated computers) and software capable of playing chess. Computer chess provides opportunities for players to practice even in the absence of human opponents, and also provides opportunities for analysi ...
'' (comedy, 2013) ctor
In class-based, object-oriented programming, a constructor (abbreviation: ctor) is a special type of subroutine called to create an object. It prepares the new object for use, often accepting arguments that the constructor uses to set required ...
* ''Archie's Betty'' (documentary, 2015) irector and writer* ''The Rabbi Goes West'' (documentary, 2019) o-director and writer
References
External links
Gerald Peary interview
by Cheryl Eagan-Donovan of ''NewEnglandFilm.com'', 1 January 2007
Gerald Peary interview
by Robin Berghaus of ''BU Today
Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campus ...
'', 12 November 2008
Gerald Peary interview
by Scott Macaulay of ''FilmMaker Magazine'', 24 March 2009
Gerald Peary interview
by Shlomo Porath of ''Midnight East'', 23 July 2009
Gerald Peary interview
by David Cairns of ''Shadowplay'', 28 July 2009
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peary, Gerald
American film critics
National Society of Film Critics Members
Film theorists
American male screenwriters
Boston University faculty
Rider University alumni
Tisch School of the Arts alumni
Suffolk University faculty
University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Journalism & Mass Communication alumni
Living people
1944 births
Concordia University faculty
Simon Fraser University faculty
American male non-fiction writers