Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson to Present AN ASTROPHYSICIST GOES TO THE MOVIES
Posted: February 5, 2020
Astrophysicist Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, host of National Geographic's “StarTalk,” bestselling author, and director of the Hayden Planetarium, takes audiences through an entertaining and enlightening review of the science in some modern film favorites as well as some classics—what they got wrong and what they got right—from Star Wars to Frozen to The Martian.
CAPA presents Neil deGrasse Tyson: An Astrophysicist Goes to the Movies at the Palace Theatre (34 W. Broad St.) on Wednesday, March 18, at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $48.50-$203.50 (VIP) and can be purchased in-person at the CBUSArts Ticket Center (39 E. State St.), online at www.capa.com, or by phone at (614) 469-0939.
Neil deGrasse Tyson was born and raised in New York City where he was educated in the public schools through his graduation from the Bronx High School of Science. Tyson went on to earn his BA in physics from Harvard and his PhD in astrophysics from Columbia.
Tyson’s professional research interests are broad, but include star formation, exploding stars, dwarf galaxies, and the structure of our Milky Way.
In 2001, Tyson was appointed by President Bush to serve on a 12-member commission that studied the future of the US aerospace industry. The final report was published in 2002 and contained recommendations (for Congress and for the major agencies of the government) that would promote a thriving future of transportation, space exploration, and national security.
In 2004, Tyson was once again appointed by President Bush to serve on a nine-member commission on the Implementation of the United States Space Exploration Policy, dubbed the “Moon, Mars, and Beyond” commission. This group navigated a path by which the new space vision can become a successful part of the American agenda. And in 2006, the head of NASA appointed Tyson to serve on its prestigious Advisory Council, which will help guide NASA through its perennial need to fit its ambitious vision into its restricted budget.
In addition to dozens of professional publications, Dr. Tyson has written, and continues to write for the public. From 1995 to 2005, Tyson was a monthly essayist for Natural History magazine under the title Universe. And among Tyson’s 13 books is his memoir The Sky is Not the Limit: Adventures of an Urban Astrophysicist and Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution co-written with Donald Goldsmith.
Two of Tyson’s recent books are the playful and informative Death by Black Hole and Other Cosmic Quandaries, which was a New York Times bestseller, and The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America’s Favorite Planet, chronicling his experience at the center of the controversy over Pluto’s planetary status. The PBS/NOVA documentary The Pluto Files, based on the book, premiered in March 2010.
In February 2012, Tyson released his tenth book, containing every thought he has ever had on the past, present, and future of space exploration, Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier.
For five seasons, beginning in the fall of 2006, Tyson appeared as the on-camera host of PBS/NOVA’s spinoff program “NOVA ScienceNOW,” which is an accessible look at the frontier of all the science that shapes the understanding of our place in the universe.
In 2009, Tyson identified a stable of professional standup comedians to assist his effort in bringing science to commercial radio with the NSF-funded pilot program “StarTalk.” Now also a popular podcast and limited-run television series on the National Geographic Channel, “StarTalk” combines celebrity guests with informative yet playful banter. The target audience is all those people who never thought they would, or could, like science. In its first year on television, it was nominated for a Best Informational Programming Emmy.
Tyson is the recipient of 20 honorary doctorates and the NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, the highest award given by NASA to a non-government citizen. His contributions to the public appreciation of the cosmos have been recognized by the International Astronomical Union in their official naming of asteroid “13123 Tyson.” On the lighter side, Tyson was voted “Sexiest Astrophysicist Alive” by People Magazine in 2000.
Tyson’s latest book, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry (2017), is an adorably readable introduction to all that you’ve read and heard about that’s making news in the universe—consummated, in one place, succinctly presented, for people in a hurry.
Recently, Tyson served as executive editor and on-camera host and narrator for “Cosmos: A SpaceTime Odyssey,” the 21st century continuation of Carl Sagan’s landmark television series. The show began in March 2014 and ran for 13 episodes on FOX before appearing in 181 countries in 45 languages around the world on the National Geographic Channels. “Cosmos” won four Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award, two Critics Choice Awards, as well as a dozen other industry recognitions.
Tyson is the fifth head of the world-renowned Hayden Planetarium in New York City and the first occupant of its Frederick P. Rose Directorship. He is also a research associate of the Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History.
