March 18, 2022
K-State Salina professor to be featured in Sunday's episode of 'Combat Ships' on Smithsonian Channel
Submitted by K-State Salina Communications and Marketing
K-State Salina professor and U.S. Navy combat veteran Bill Genereux will be featured in an upcoming episode of the Smithsonian Channel series "Combat Ships." Genereux served aboard the battleship USS Missouri in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm.
Now a professor of digital media and computer technology, Genereux has long been interested in photography and video making. While serving in the Navy, he recorded hours of video footage from the war, of day-to-day life aboard ship and of the places he traveled to overseas. Over the years he has uploaded many of these videos to YouTube. One particularly harrowing scene that shows sailors responding to an Iraqi missile attack recently surpassed 2 million views.
When the call for "Combat Ships" contributors went out in spring 2021, Genereux contacted the U.K.-based production company Woodcut Media about a possible interview for the program. One initial concern was that Kansas was too far away from the other veteran interviews being filmed on the East and West coasts. But ultimately, a film crew consisting of K-State students and faculty worked with the U.K. team to record Genereux's interview.
K-State digital media student Shea Clark did most of the logistical work in Kansas for coordinating with the U.K. on arranging the filming details and ensuring that the required COVID-19 safety protocols were being followed.
"It was an invaluable learning experience," Genereux said. "Shea took charge of things on our end and really helped us to make this project happen. It was great to see a professional video shoot in Salina, Kan., go without a hitch in the middle of a pandemic while working in real time with a team from London."
The episode in which Genereux appears is called "Gulf War Warriors" and will air at 8 p.m. Sunday, March 20, on the Smithsonian Channel.