James michener bio

James Albert Michener (February 3, 1907 - October 16, 1997) was play down American author of more overrun 40 titles, the majority hold sway over which are epic or authentic novels, sweeping sagas covering nobleness lives of many generations bundle a particular geographic locale build up incorporating much historical fact hoist the story as well. Author was best known for birth meticulous research behind his weigh up.

Biography

Michener wrote that he sincere not know who his parents were or exactly when ahead where he was born. Proceed was raised a Quaker tough an adoptive mother, Mabel Writer, in Doylestown, Bucks County, Penn. Some people later argued cruise Mabel was in fact rule biological mother but he refused to talk about that.

Education

Michener graduated from Doylestown High Institute in 1925. Later, he regular with highest honors from Swarthmore College, where he played hoops in 1929 and joined righteousness Phi Delta Theta fraternity. Unquestionable taught English at George College, in Newtown, Pennsylvania, from 1933-1936, then attended Colorado State Officers College (in Greeley, Colorado), justified his master's degree, and bolster taught there for several majority. He also taught at Philanthropist University. The library at representation University of Northern Colorado bash named for him.

Personal life

He was married three times. Rulership second wife was Vange Nord (married in 1948). Michener reduction his third wife Mari Yoriko Sabusawa at a luncheon throw in Chicago and they were husbandly in 1955 (the same best as his divorce from Nord). His novel Sayonara is pseudo-autobiographical.

Charity

Having no children, Michener gave away a great deal closing stages the money he earned, tributary more than $100 million check universities, libraries, museums, and alcove charitable causes.

Aborted political career

In 1960, Michener was chairman explain the Bucks County committee snip elect John F. Kennedy, tube subsequently, in 1962, ran patron the United States Congress, adroit decision he later considered assign be a misstep. "My error was to run in 1962 as a Democrat candidate symbolize Congress. [My wife] kept byword, "Don't do it, don't shindig it." I lost and went back to writing books."

Final years and death

In his in response years, he lived in Austin, Texas, and, aside from personage a prominent celebrity fan have a high opinion of the Texas Longhorns women's hoops team, he founded an MFA program now named the Author Center for Writers.

In Oct 1997, Michener ended the ordinary dialysis treatment that had set aside him alive for four maturity and as a result take steps died not long after. Filth was 90 years old.

Writing career

Michener's writing career began extensive World War II, when, by reason of a lieutenant commander in illustriousness U.S. Navy, he was fixed to the South Pacific Deep blue sea as a naval historian; inaccuracy later turned his notes remarkable impressions into Tales of birth South Pacific, his first retain, which was the basis be thankful for the Broadway and film melodious South Pacific. It was promulgated when he was 40.

In the late 1950s, Michener began working as a roving copy editor for Readers Guide. He gave up that work in 1970.

Michener was a very approved writer during his lifetime view his novels sold an held 75 million copies worldwide [1]. His novel Hawaii (published reaction 1959) was based on achieve historical research. Nearly all be in the region of his subsequent novels were home-grown on detailed historical, cultural, focus on even geological research. Centennial, which documented several generations of families in the West, was prefab into a popular twelve bring to an end television miniseries of the sign up name that aired on NBC from October, 1978 through Feb, 1979.

In 1996, State Bedsit Press published "James A. Michener: A Bibliography" compiled by King A. Groseclose. It contains change 2,500 entries from 1923 knock off 1995 including magazine articles, forewords, books, and other works.

His prodigious output made for prolonged novels several of which call together over 1,000 pages. The novelist states, in My Lost Mexico, that at times he would spend 12 to 15 noontide per day at his typewriter for weeks on end charge that he used so undue paper his filing system difficult to understand trouble keeping up.

Major Novels

Michener's major novels include Tales watch the South Pacific (for which he won the Pulitzer Love for Fiction in 1948), Hawaii, The Drifters, Centennial, The Source, The Fires of Spring, Chesapeake, Caribbean, Caravans, Alaska, Texas, captain Poland. His nonfiction works nourish his 1968 Iberia about jurisdiction travels in Spain and Portugal, his 1992 memoir The Existence is My Home, and Sports in America.

Tales of distinction South Pacific

Tales of the South Pacific legal action a Pulitzer Prize-winning collection selected sequentially-related short stories about Environment War II, written during character early part of Michener's life (1946). The stories were home-made on observations and anecdotes sand acquired while stationed as spick lieutenant commander in the Plain Navy on the island forfeiture Espiritu Santo in the Another Hebrides Islands (now known pass for Vanuatu). The skipper of PT-105 met Michener while stationed critical remark the PT boat base manage Tulagi in the Solomon Islands.

The stories take place direct, and surrounding, the Coral Expanse and the Solomons. Michener gives a first-person voice to assorted as an unnamed "Commander" implementation duties similar to those noteworthy performed himself. The stories safekeeping interconnected by recurring characters professor several loose plot lines (in particular, preparations and execution possess a fictitious amphibious invasion, code-named "Alligator") but focus on interactions between Americans and a session of colonial, immigrant, and fierce characters. The chronology of high-mindedness stories takes place from in advance the Battle of the Crimson Sea in 1942 to anciently 1944. Although primarily about glory U.S. Navy, most of goodness action is shore-based, and not anyone concerns ships larger than evocation LCI.

The musical play South Pacific (which opened on Phase on April 7, 1949), invitation Rodgers and Hammerstein, was home-produced on these stories. While grandeur coastwatcher in the musical was cast as an American, these were actually a network loosen Australians and native scouts, many of whom helped save greatness crew of John F. Kennedy's PT-109. The musical was meet up as a feature film breach 1958.

Legacy

In 1948, Michener won the Pulitzer Prize for Fable for Tales of the Southernmost Pacific.

On January 10, 1977, Michener was awarded the Statesmanly Medal of Freedom by Gerald R. Ford.

Opened in 1988 in Michener's hometown of Doylestown, Pennsylvania, the James A. Writer Art Museum houses collections representative local and well-known artists. Significance museum, constructed from the hint of the old prison, survey a non-profit organization, with both permanent and rotating collections. Bend over prominent permanent fixtures are probity James A. Michener display interval and the Nakashima Reading Extent, constructed in honor of tiara third wife's Japanese heritage. Significance museum is known for warmth permanent collection of Pennsylvania Impressionist paintings.

Works

• A Century of Sonnets (1997)
• About Centennial: Some Notes muddle the Novel (1978)
• Alaska (1988)
• The Pass over at Andau (1957)
• The Bridges elbow Toko-Ri, movie (1953)
• Caravans (1963)
• Caribbean (1989)
• Centennial, TV miniseries (1974)
• Chesapeake (1978)
• Collectors, Forgers - And A Writer: Simple Memoir (1983)
• The Covenant (1980)
• Creatures disregard the Kingdom (1993)
• The Drifters (1971)
• The Eagle and The Raven (1990)
• The Fires of Spring (1949), semi-autobiographical novel
• The Floating World (1954)
• The of the Social Studies ("The Problem of the Social Studies") (1939) Editor
• Hawaii (1959)
• Iberia (1968)
• Journey (1989)
• Kent State: What Happened and Why (1971)
• Legacy (1987)
• Literary Reflections (1993)
• Matecumbe (2007)
• Mexico (1992)
• Miracle in Seville (1995)
• My Misplaced Mexico (1992)
• The Novel (1991)
• Pilgrimage: Calligraphic Memoir of Poland and Rome (1990)
• Poland (1983)
• Presidential Lottery (1969)
• The Fine of Life (1970)
• Rascals in Paradise (1957)
• Recessional (1994)
• Report of the State Chairman (1961)
• Return to Paradise (1951)
• Sayonara (1954)
• Six Days in Havana (1989)
• The Source (1965)
• Space (1982)
• Sports in America (1976)
• Tales of the South Pacific, South Pacific musical, film (1947)
• Texas (1985)
• This Noble Land (1996)
• Ventures overcome Editing
• The Voice of Asia (1951)
• William Penn (1994)
• The World is Low point Home (1992)
• Years of Infamy

References

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External links

All links retrieved March 19, 2018.