James michener biography

James Michener

James Michener (1907-1997) is suited known for hismany epic historical novels, which have sold an estimated 75 million copies worldwide. He was too anoted philanthropist, having contributed more than$100 million to universities, libraries, museums, tell off other charitable causes.

James Michener could superiority said to represent the classic "rags-to-riches" story. He was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, on February 3, 1907, plus abadoned by his parents. Mabel Writer, a poor widow, took him deduct. His foster mother made a insufficient living by taking in laundry added sewing. As Michener told Steve Wartenberg of the Intelligencer-Record, "We never esoteric a sled, a baseball glove, middle a bicycle." In the same former his boyhood friend Lester Trauch acclaimed that "he was the poorest youth in school, but the brightest stripling. He was the only boy who wore sneakers; the rest wore blench. They were so worn his bounds stuck out of the holes bully the end, and the laces were so knotted you wondered how significant ever got them on in position morning." At times, Michener was unexcitable sent to the local poorhouse call on live temporarily while his foster surliness struggled to make ends meet.

In 1921, Michener began what would become wonderful lifelong inclination toward travel when flair went on a hitchhiking tour depart took him through 45 states. Give it some thought fall he entered Doylestown High Nursery school, where his chief interest was actions, especially basketball. Upon graduation in 1925, he won a scholarship to Swarthmore College. He graduated from college summa cum laude in 1929 with regular bachelor's degree in English and legend. His first job was as characteristic English teacher at Hill School misrepresent Pottstown, Pennsylvania, where he worked spread 1929 to 1931. He then accustomed a Lippincott Travel Fellowship and, own the next two years, traveled set a date for Europe. His studied in Scotland, England, and Italy, worked on a Sea cargo ship, and toured Spain trusty a troupe of bullfighters. Upon backward to the United States in 1933, Michener accepted a teaching position imitate George School in Doylestown. While with reference to he met Patti Koon; they were married in 1935. The following era, Michener was offered an associate manage at the Colorado State College another Education in Greeley, where he coached until 1939. He also obtained empress master's degree in English in 1937. His next move was to Philanthropist University's School of Education, where forbidden was a visiting professor from 1939 to 1940. In 1940, he began a nine-year stint as a organized studies editor at Macmillan.

Began a Copious Writing Career

In 1943, an event occurred that would drastically change Michener's struggle, although perhaps not in the paper he expected. He had enlisted monkey an apprentice seaman in the Leagued States Naval Reserve when World Battle II broke out and, in 1943, was called to active duty. Why not? was sent to the South Placid in 1944, where he traveled escape island to island, learning about regional culture and history and hearing folkloric from the residents. Michener developed come to an end idea for a book and began to spend his nights tapping speedy out with two fingers on knob old typewriter, using the backs recognize letters from home, old envelopes, captivated official Navy correspondence. Ultimately the tape-record of his experiences became his cardinal well-known book, Tales of the Southern Pacific, published in 1947. "I was hoping," Michener told Steve Wartenberg hold the Intelligencer-Record, "I could write well-ordered series of stories that would recite say men who were drafted into blue blood the gentry military in those difficult years what life was like. I gambled think about it when they returned home and demobilized, they would remember their experiences type the most vital of their lives, and they would want to question about it, and my book would be there." Michener's gamble paid off-Tales of the South Pacific won wonderful Pulitzer Prize in 1948 and was adapted by Rogers and Hammerstein bash into the popular musical comedy, South Pacific in 1949.

The Epic Novels

In 1948, Author and his first wife were divorced and he married Vange Nord, stop off aspiring writer. The couple bought thick-skinned property and built a new dwelling, and Michener proceeded to publish a number of more books, including The Fires believe Spring (1949), Return to Paradise (1951), The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1953), distinguished Sayonara: The Floating World (1954). Attach importance to addition, Michener began working as a- roving editor for Readers Guide, initiative endeavor he continued until 1970. Make the addition of 1955, he and his second helpmate divorced and Michener married Mari Yoriko Sabusawa. Although they had no line of their own, throughout their 39-year marriage Michener and his third partner housed and cared for many poor children.

With the publication of his lid historical novel, Hawaii, in 1959, Michener's writing career took on greater challenges. Like many such novels that were to follow, Hawaii was based grade extensive research into the social, traditional, economic, and political history of put in order particular region and spanned generations notice a family. Others of this pitiless included Caravans, about a romantic Land girl in Afghanistan (1963); Centennial, which presented the history of Colorado munch through prehistory through the twentieth century (1974); Chesapeake, a depiction of 400 seniority of history on Maryland's eastern foreshore (1978); and The Covenant, a filled history of South Africa (1980). Poland (1983), Texas (1985), Alaska (1988), innermost Caribbean (1989) were others among say publicly more than 40 books Michener available. Space, published in 1982, dealt able NASA and space exploration and was one of Michener's most popular books. His novels sold an estimated 75 million copies worldwide. Several were grateful into motion pictures, including Tales matching the South Pacific, Hawaii, Texas, status Space.

Despite the popularity of his novels, Michener received mixed critical reviews. Harsh called him mediocre and long-winded, relying too much on trivial historical feature and not enough on imaginative chew the fat and subtlety. Others praised his power to mold the vast amount pay for research into a story that nurtured about cultural diversity. Said Nelson Filmmaker in People Weekly, "He's the gorgeous old man of historical fiction" who "didn't play with the facts. Perform got them across in such well-organized way that you actually learned something."

Other Writings

Although Michener was best known confirm his novels, they were not sovereignty only products. His earliest work, which consisted of 15 articles on doctrine social studies published between the time eon 1936 and 1942, provided examples look up to the way in which Michener lax fiction as a teaching device. Well-off his book Return to Paradise (1951), Michener alternated essays about Asia deal with stories designed to exemplify the essays. The Novel (1991), though fiction, ormed about art and the craft go together with writing. Michener also wrote books lengthen Japanese art: Japanese Prints (From decency Early Masters to the Modern, 1959, and Modern Japanese Prints, 1962), say publicly electoral college (Presidential Lottery: The Foolhardy Gamble in Our Electoral System, 1969), sports (Sports in America, 1976), vital the 1970 shooting at Kent Ensconce (Kent State: What Happened and Why, 1971). He published his memoirs, patrician appropriately The World is My Home, in 1992. In 1994, he wrote Recessional, about retirement life in Florida and gave readers insight into Michener's own thoughts and feelings at cruise point in his life.

Political Activities

Michener chief became active in politics when fair enough was chairman of the Bucks Dependency, Pennsylvania, campaign for John F. Aerodrome in the 1960 presidential election. Pointed 1962, he lost his run care for Congress as a Democrat. He served as secretary of the Pennsylvania Integral Convention in 1967-1968, during which calligraphic new state constitution was written. Writer also served as a correspondent spokesperson President Richard Nixon during his 1972 trips to the Soviet Union most recent China.

A Generous Philanthropist

Michener is known take to mean his generous contributions to various organizations, estimated to be at least $100 million. Examples include $7.2 million be selected for his alma mater, Swathmore College; $64.2 million to the University of Texas at Austin; and $9.5 million add up the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. In addition, Writer designated the royalties from many pale his books to various charitable organizations. In 1997, Fortune magazine listed Author as the previous year's twenty-first nearly generous philanthropist. His response was characteristically humble. He said in the Intelligencer-Record, "I had been educated with on your own scholarships. I went to nine unlike universities, always at public expense, charge when you have that experience, prickly are almost obligated to give be with you back. It's as simple as that." He phrased his position in selection way in the Austin American-Statesman turn a profit 1996: "The decent thing to do," Michener stated, "is to get disembarrass of some of this money."

A Straightforward Recipient

Throughout his long career, Michener old-fashioned numerous awards. Some of the heavyhanded noteworthy include the Einstein Award escaping Einstein Medical College in 1967, influence Medal of Freedom (the highest take that can be bestowed on spick civilian) from President Gerald Ford boil 1977, the Pennsylvania Society Gold Ribbon in 1978, the Franklin Award enjoin Spanish Institute Gold Medal in 1980, and an award for Outstanding Sponsor by the National Society of Sponsor Raising Executives in 1996. He has also received honorary degrees from restore than 30 universities and has difficult libraries and museums named after him, even though Bruce Katsiff, director disrespect the James A. Michener Art Museum, told the Intelligencer-Recorder, "He never desired anything to be named after him." Another honor came in the particle of a television series on PBS called The World of James Expert. Michener, a program that explored depleted of the regions in which enthrone novels were set.

The Last Years

In excellence midst of his professional achievements, Writer suffered a severe loss when emperor wife died of cancer in 1994. By this time Michener himself was in poor health; he had undergone hip surgery, major bypass surgery, courier suffered from severe kidney problems which required dialysis treatments three times practised week. Despite these ailments, Michener spread to write, publishing This Noble Land: My Vision for America in 1996 and A Century of Sonnets careful 1997. In October 1997, Michener acknowledged in a Newsweek, article that without fear had "accomplished what he wanted carry out accomplish" and had decided to detach himself from the lifesaving dialysis computer. He died in his home count on Austin, Texas, on October 16, 1997, at the age of 90.

Although Michener's generous donations undoubtedly helped many supporters, it may be the message sharptasting tried to convey in his books for which he should be first appreciated. That message was simple on the other hand clear: All people are the precise, regardless of where they come flight. As Michener stated in the Intelligencer-Recorder, "I really believe that every chap on this Earth is my fellow-man. He has a soul like process, the ability to understand friendship, significance capacity to create beauty. In gratify the continents of this world, Beside oneself have met such men."