A co-production of the Miller Center at the University of Virginia and VPM

The National WWII Museum is honored to present a special documentary screening and filmmaker conversation in commemoration of the dedication of its George H.W. Bush Aviation Gallery in the US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center.

George H.W. Bush learned about leadership at an early age as one of the youngest naval aviators in US history. He carried his WWII service and experiences with him as his career saw him advance to the highest reaches of government.

George H.W. Bush’s presidency occurred at a crucial turning point in modern history—the transition from the Cold War to the post-Cold War world, when heightened US-Soviet tensions gave way to delicate negotiations between the former adversaries. While the Cold War ended without a shot being fired, this peaceful outcome was far from certain at the time.

President Bush’s personal relationships with foreign leaders, his diplomatic skills, and his years of experience in national security affairs made him well suited to lead the nation through those uneasy and challenging times. He also assembled a team of experienced colleagues who had worked together in prior administrations. Together, they constituted a national security dream team, or—as General Colin Powell (USA, Ret.) called it—“a gang of professional killer angels.” His foreign policy team is known as the “gold standard” of national security apparatuses.

The screening, which is preceded by a reception, will be followed by a conversation between historians and filmmakers as well as a member from the Museum’s Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War and Democracy.