Legendary director, KY Press author George Stevens Jr. receives Presidential Medal of Freedom
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 15, 2025) — George Stevens Jr., award-winning writer, director, author and playwright, is a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Presented by President Joe Biden, the Presidential Medal of Freedom is the nation’s highest civilian honor, bestowed to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values or security of the United States, world peace or other significant societal, public or private endeavors.
Stevens’ autobiography “My Place in the Sun: Life in the Golden Age of Hollywood and Washington” was published by University Press of Kentucky (KY Press) in 2022.
Stevens’s career has been dedicated to preserving and celebrating the best of American film and the performing arts, including the foundation of the American Film Institute and creation of the Kennedy Center Honors.
“In a career spanning seven decades, George’s creativity, vision has helped redeem the soul of a nation founded on the power of free expression,” said President Biden.
The son of celebrated Hollywood director George Stevens — known for “A Place in the Sun” (1951), “Shane” (1953), and “Giant” (1956) — George Stevens Jr. emerged from his father’s shadow to claim his place as a major force in American culture. In his autobiography Stevens Jr. tells an intimate and moving tale of his relationship with his Oscar-winning father and his own exciting career. His memoir shares his lifelong passion for film, commitment to the performing arts and his insider’s account of life in Washington as he collaborated with presidents, power brokers, media moguls and social activists.
The list of recipients of the 2025 Medal of Freedom includes such notables as José Andrés, Bono, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Robert Francis Kennedy (posthumous), Michael J. Fox, Jane Goodall and Denzel Washington.
“The recipients of the 2025 Presidential Medal of Freedom are great leaders who have made America and the world a better place and have made extraordinary contributions to their country and the world,” said President Biden.
About the University Press of Kentucky
The University Press of Kentucky the statewide nonprofit scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Serving all Kentucky state-sponsored institutions of higher learning as well as nine private colleges and Kentucky’s two major historical societies, it was organized in 1969 as successor to the University of Kentucky Press. The KY Press is dedicated to the publication of academic books of high scholarly merit as well as significant books about the history and culture of Kentucky, the Ohio Valley region, the Upper South and Appalachia.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.