John C. Tibbetts is an Associate Professor in the Department of Theatre and Film at the University of Kansas, where he teaches courses in film history, media studies, and theory and aesthetics. He is an author, educator, broadcaster, as well as an artist and pianist. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Kansas in Multi-Disciplinary Studies (Art History, Theater, Photography and Film). As a broadcaster and journalist and scholar he has hosted his own television show in Kansas City, Missouri; worked as a news reporter/ commentator for CBS Television (KCTV) and National Public Radio; produced classical music programming for KXTR-FM radio; written (and illustrated) ten  books, more than 200 articles, and several short stories.  His most recent book is Composers in the Movies:  Studies in Musical Biography (2005, Yale University Press).  His current radio series are The World of Robert Schumann (currently being broadcast worldwise on the WFMT Radio Network) and Piano Portraits.
Among his recent awards is the 2008 Kansas Governor's Arts Award