APSU’s Center of Excellence Celebrates 25th Anniversary with New Musical by Two APSU Professors
March 30, 2011
Clarksville, TN – One thing that really annoys Dr. Richard Gildrie, emeritus professor of history at Austin Peay State University, is when people commonly mistake Benjamin Franklin for a serious, pompous old man. Don’t even mention to him D.H. Lawrence’s essay criticizing the founding father’s seminal work, “The Autobiography,” unless you’re looking for an argument.
“That essay angered me so much, in which Lawrence took seriously the assumption in ‘The Autobiography’ where Franklin said he wanted to be perfect,” Gildrie said. “The whole thing is obviously a spoof. Few people understand that Ben Franklin was quite a comedian, and the Pennsylvania Gazette was a sort of ‘The Daily Show’ of its time.”
Retired Austin Peay State University professors George Mabry and Richard Gildrie joke around on the tavern set of their new musical “Ben and the Virtues.” (Photo By Charles Booth/APSU Public Relations and Marketing)
APSU Center of Excellence Celebrates 25 Years with Major Arts Events
August 16, 2010
Chris Burawa, the executive director of the Austin Peay State University Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts, looked tired. He sat slumped in a booth at the Einstein Bros. Bagels coffee shop with his Blackberry on the table, and a large poster filled front and back with event listings.
“It’s the Center’s 25th anniversary,” he said, lifting the poster, “and we’re going to have a yearlong celebration.”
Chris Burawa at the 2010 Clarksville Writers' Conference.
