Professor at Large: The Cornell Years

Professor at Large: The Cornell Years

<P>And now for something completely different. <I>Professor at Large</I> features beloved English comedian and actor John Cleese in the role of Ivy League professor at Cornell University. His almost twenty years as professor-at-large has led to many talks, essays, and lectures on campus. This collection of the very best moments from Cleese under his mortarboard provides a unique view of his endless pursuit of intellectual discovery across a range of topics. Since 1999, Cleese has provided Cornell students and local citizens with his ideas on everything from scriptwriting to psychology, religion to hotel management, and wine to medicine.</P><P>His incredibly popular events and classes―including talks, workshops, and an analysis of<I> A Fish Called Wanda</I> and <I>The Life of Brian</I>―draw hundreds of people. He has given a sermon at Sage Chapel, narrated Prokofiev's<I> Peter and the Wolf</I> with the Cornell Chamber Orchestra, conducted a class on script writing, and lectured on psychology and human development. Each time Cleese has visited the campus in Ithaca, NY, he held a public presentation, attended and or lectured in classes, and met privately with researchers. From the archives of these visits, <I>Professor at Large</I> includes an interview with screenwriter William Goldman, a lecture about creativity entitled, "Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind," talks about <I>Professor at Large</I> and <I>The Life of Brian</I>, a discussion of facial recognition, and Cleese's musings on group dynamics with business students and faculty.</P><P><I>Professor at Large</I> provides a window into the workings of John Cleese's scholarly mind, showcasing the wit and intelligence that have driven his career as a comedian, while demonstrating his knack of pinpointing the essence of humans and human problems. His genius on the screen has long been lauded; now his academic chops get their moment in the spotlight, too.</P>