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December 18, 2007
Professor to appear in History Channel documentary
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - |
Randy Roberts, a Distinguished Professor of History, was interviewed by the History Channel in November about the former Texas congressman. Wilson was instrumental in aiding the Afghan rebels in the 1980s as they fought against the invading Soviet Union. The documentary airs the same day the new film "Charlie Wilson's War" opens in theaters. The movie stars Tom Hanks, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Julia Roberts.
"The Charlie Wilson story is captivating," Randy Roberts says. "The man was an irresistible force of nature whose efforts to support Afghanistan aided in the fall of communism. His encouragement to support the Afghan freedom fighters also brought on some unintended results, such as access to weapons, that the world is coping with today."
Geoff Wawro is the host of "History in Focus." The show will repeat on the History Channel, including Saturday (Dec. 22) at 3 a.m. and Sunday (Dec. 23) at 9 a.m.
Roberts has made more than 50 appearances on television documentaries and films in the past 20 years for the History Channel, ESPN Classic, HBO, BBC, PBS, E!TV and on the ABC, CBS and NBC networks. As a pop culture historian, Roberts often is quoted in national media and appears on nationally syndicated radio shows. He is a regular on History Channel's "Reel To Real," and he also served as a consultant and on-camera expert for the Emmy-Award winning series "10 Days that Unexpectedly Changed America" and the award-winning Ken Burns documentary "Unforgivable Blackness."
In 2006 Roberts was named the Indiana Professor of the Year.
Writer: Amy Patterson Neubert, (765) 494-9723, apatterson@purdue.edu
Source: Randy Roberts, (765) 494-0040, rroberts@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
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