Multimedia Gallery
A Collection of Multimedia Materials By and About Walker Percy
Directory
Given Walker Percy's prominence as a literary figure, ample historical video footage of him exists from reliable and professional sources. Other video has surfaced that unveils his authentic and personal character. Select a directory button to view representative materials from the following categories.
VIDEO CATEGORIES: Presentations Interviews Biographical Related Mentions
Video
Formal Presentations by Walker Percy
The Fateful Rift: The San Andreas Fault in the Modern Mind (C-SPAN version, TRT: 1:01:55)
This video shows Walker Percy delivering his Jefferson Lecture in the National Endowment for the Humanities on May 3, 1989. The Jefferson Lecture is the highest honor the federal government bestows upon humanities figures.
Walker Percy Addresses Notre Dame Graduates (TRT: 9:55)
Walker Percy receives the Laetare Medal from the University of Notre Dame at their Commencement on May 21, 1989. His address to the graduates is a useful primer for understanding his work as a novelist.
Interviews with Walker Percy
Firing Line with William F. Buckley, Jr. (TRT: 59:17)
This PBS show features Eudora Welty and Walker Percy talking about "The Southern Imagination." The video is from 1972, filmed in Jackson, MS. Buckley talks about the theme and introduces both writers.
On the Difficulty of Young Writers Getting Published (TRT: 0:37)
In this short video interview clip from circa 1985 on the 50th anniversary of The Southern Review, Walker Percy talks about the dearth of publications that will publish short fiction from a young writer.
Biographical Video & Film
Walker Percy: A Documentary Film (TRT: 2:05)
This trailer for the documentary by New Orleans filmmaker Winston Riley on Walker Percy shows the high-quality interest and production value of the documentary. For more information about the film, visit https://www.walkerpercymovie.com.
A Theory of Man (TRT: 0:50)
This short clip from the film "Walker Percy: A Documentary Film" shows Percy himself describing his work as being informed by the Catholic faith to define the essence of a human.
An Existential Search (TRT: 2:39)In this clip from the film "Walker Percy: A Documentary Film," a variety of writers and scholars talk about the basis for Percy's lifelong search for meaning.
Meet Walker Percy (TRT: 1:42)
Open Road Integrated Media features a short biographical video on Walker Percy. Walter Isaacson and Paul Elie narrate. Open Road calls it a "mini-documentary."
Walter Isaacson and "Uncle" Walker Percy (TRT: 0:48)
Twenty-five years after Walker Percy was the Jefferson Lecturer (see above), Walter Isaacson is similarly honored by the National Endowment for the Humanities. In 2014, Isaacson, a writer and biographer (author of Steve Jobs: A Biography), reminisces about his boyhood acquaintance with Percy. (NEH Website)
Related Mentions (Significant Parties)
Shelby Foote Interview (TRT: 3:02:21)
In this in-depth interview with Shelby Foote on C-SPAN on September 2, 2001, Foote talks about his background, his work, and his relationship with Walker Percy. Foote wrote six novels, but most of the Q&A in the video focuses on his writing and knowledge of the Civil War. Foote mentions Percy at 6:30, 12:30 (briefly), 19:20 (their friendship), 56:30 (William Alexander Percy), 2:24:45 (writing), and 2:46:30 (religion).