Welcome to the homepage of William D. Romanowski, Professor of Communication Arts & Sciences at Calvin College..

With a background in American culture studies, a field of inquiry marked by interdisciplinary methodologies, I teach courses in film studies with a particular focus on the history and influence of American film.

My Oxford University Press book, Reforming Hollywood: How American Protestants Fought for Freedom at the Movies, is set for publication in July 2012. This study, which is the first sustatined treatment of Protestant engagement with the film industry, tells the surprising story of how Protestants led the fight for artistic freedom and helped shape the movie industry.

Check out Reforming Hollywood on Facebook.

Sometimes life is stranger than fiction. On The Tonight Show (May 6, 2009) host Jay Leno used my Eyes Wide Open book in a segment on "Amazon Worst Sellers." Leno called it "a fantastic book" and then held up another that "didn't do quite as well"--a book by Nancy Pelosi, Eyes Really Wide Open, with a cover photo of the "wide-eyed" Speaker of the House. Click on the image below to view the segment.

Communication Arts & Sciences, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI 49546 | 616.526.8527 | romw@calvin.edu

  [last updated 5.17.2012]