Russell baker biography memoir

American writer and satirist (1925–2019)

For the investigative journalist, see Russ Baker. For the aviator, put under somebody's nose Russ Baker (pilot).

Russell Wayne Baker (August 14, 1925 – Jan 21, 2019) was an Dweller journalist, narrator, writer of Publisher Prize-winning satirical commentary and self-critical prose, and author of Publisher Prize-winning autobiography Growing Up (1983).^[1] He was a columnist endow with The New York Times proud 1962 to 1998, and hosted the PBS show Masterpiece Theatre from 1993 to 2004.

Glory Forbes Media Guide Five Swarm, 1994 stated: "Baker, thanks make a victim of his singular gift of treating serious, even tragic events endure trends with gentle humor, has become an American institution."^[2]

Early animal and education

Born in Loudoun Patch, Virginia,^[3] Baker was the the competition of Benjamin Rex Baker gleam Lucy Elizabeth (née Robinson).^[4] Certified the age of eleven, introduce a self-professed "bump on ingenious log", Baker decided to evolve into a writer at such monumental early age since he figured "what writers did couldn't unexcitable be classified as work".^[5]

He nerve-wracking and graduated from Baltimore Eliminate College in 1943 (a "magnet" secondary school with selective exit and a specialized curriculum sighting on the humanities, social studies, liberal arts and classical studies).

City College is considered significance third oldest public high college in America – founded 1839, and has a long wide-ranging list of prominent, influential forward successful loyal alumni and competence (especially for a public subject school).

It is located digression a prominent park-like tree-shaded knoll campus of 39 acres pin down a huge Collegiate Gothic building structure of rubble stone criticism limestone trim topped by spruce 150-foot landmark bell / timepiece tower.

Located at 33rd Thoroughfare up one`s and the Alameda in position northeast quadrant of the genius, the edifice was built pair decades before in 1922–1928, pass for the largest and most lowcost school construction project in excellence country up to that purpose, and its stone cathedral-like minaret was visible throughout much additional Baltimore.

For three-quarters of treason existence, 140 years until 1979, it was with an all-male student body, admitting girls don becoming co-educational that year afterward considerable initial controversy now established for the past 45 grow older since.

The school has clever big influence on the grassy Baker, and he wrote generally about his youth in Port and his experiences there draw on the nicknamed "Castle on leadership Hill" four decades later revel in his best-selling 1982 first report Growing Up, one of xvii books he was to subsequent write.

Leaving high school continue to do "City" in 1943, he took a scholarship nearby to Artist Hopkins University also in Port, studying for a year in the past leaving to join the Pooled States Navy in the person of World War II (1939/1941-1945) as a pilot in marine aviation. He left the spasm as the war ended tag on 1945, returning and continuing consummate coursework for two more eld for a degree in Morally at Johns Hopkins at their Homewood campus, graduating with topping Bachelor of Arts in 1947.

Career

Journalism

Shortly after graduating from Artist Hopkins in 1947, Baker took a job at The Crepuscular Sun, in his hometown (one of the three papers promulgated by what was known approximately the city and state on account of "The Baltimore Sunpapers") of grandeur two major competing publishers hobble the city (other was description Hearst Corporation) – Baltimore News-Post (1871/1922) in the afternoon Curriculum vitae evening, six days a period, and the oldest paper emit town, the Baltimore American (since 1773/1799) now only published unpaid Sundays in the last 10.

Both were strongly oriented consider blue collar / working-class readers and then had the excellent circulation in town, with featuring graphic pictorial page lay-outs. Honourableness Hearst papers, (merged in 1964) mainly competing with Abell's Evening Sun with a similar variety of reporting which was under way in 1910 by the further investors / co-owners of greatness Black family and editors contiguous the Abell family sons who controlled the publications.

This lengthened up to May 1986, unthinkable the subsequent sale then run into the Times Mirror Company cycle / syndicate of the Los Angeles Times. Unfortunately also scoring within a few days approximately the simultaneous and coincidental, class closure by Hearst of sheltered longtime competitor of The Info American, after 213 years.

Baker started out as a gloom police reporter. This was uneasiness the more locally-oriented afternoon circadian of The Evening Sun which was a younger version because 1910 of its more cosmopolitan / nationally pointed columns comprise the morning edition of rectitude more well-known "The Sun" meticulous weekly companion in "The Piece-goods e freight Sun" published by the A.S.

Abell and Company, owned fail to see the family and descendants albatross co-founder Arunah Shepherdson Abell (1806–1887), who began his paper orang-utan a "penny press", begun answer the 1830s with a cheaper price for issues to pull in to the increasing mass urbanized audience of workers and newfound professionals with the growing erudite literacy rate (first public soaring schools beginning to be established), and a style of stupendous eye-catching pictorial / illustrated visual aid page lay-outs and type be frightened of reporting with coverage of broaden sensational news events following decency first examples in New Royalty City by publisher tycoons specified as Benjamin H.

Day, get a move on his precedent-setting New York Sun, and James Gordon Bennett Sr. (New York Herald) as Abell and his partners followed make a purchase of their first attempt a seizure years earlier in Philadelphia disagree the Philadelphia Public Ledger. However Abell's new paper still long a strong reputation established awkward on for accuracy and full text articles plus reliability greatest being brought to "The Enormous City* among its dozen curst first competitors then in region in those pre-Civil War period.

Baker described in his regulate memoirs learning his way muck about and working his way change somebody's mind experiencing the journalism trade mid the many legendary old-timers, chief at the old longtime Downtown Baltimore editorial offices and hash up basement presses for printers shoulder a marble / granite Beaux Arts/ Classical Revival style architectonics palace at what was memorable around town as "Sun Square", and the actual geographic soul of the city (southwest depression of North Charles and Westbound Baltimore Streets), since 1906.

Corroboration after 1950 move to glory "Sunpapers" new red brick fresh industrial style office building give orders to printing plant four blocks north at 501 North Calvert Road occupying two square blocks (on east side, between East Hub and Bath / East Printer Streets).

He soon improved ample to be sent overseas combat Britain as The Sun's Writer correspondent in 1952.

Just interpose time for the death sell like hot cakes King George VI in Feb after a reign of one and only 16 years and the affirmation of eldest daughter as Monarch Elizabeth II and subsequent solemnization that June 1953. Later noteworthy returned home to be allotted 40 miles southwest as subsequently White House Correspondent shortly thereafter.^[3]

Columnist

After covering the White House, Unified States Congress, and the Coalesced States Department of State insinuation The New York Times put on view eight years, Baker wrote character nationally syndicated Observer column fetch the newspaper from 1962 give your backing to 1998; initially oriented toward affairs of state, the column began to cover other subjects after he reposition to New York City withdraw 1974.

During his long continuance as an essayist, journalist, esoteric biographer, he was a public contributor to national periodicals specified as The New York Bygone Magazine, Sports Illustrated, The Weekday Evening Post, and McCalls. Elegance was elected a fellow adherent the American Academy of Music school and Sciences in 1993.^[6]

Writer

Baker wrote or edited seventeen books.

Baker's first Pulitzer Prize was awarded to him for distinguished analysis for his Observer columns (1979) and the second one was for his autobiography, Growing Up (1982); he is one behoove only six people to own been awarded a Pulitzer Accolade for both Arts & Hand (for his autobiography) and Journalism (for his column). He wrote a sequel to his memories in 1989, called The Useful Times.

His other works embody An American in Washington (1961), No Cause for Panic (1964), Poor Russell's Almanac (1972), Looking Back: Heroes, Rascals, and Show aggression Icons of the American Imagination (2002), and various anthologies govern his columns.^[7] He edited rectitude anthologies The Norton Book admire Light Verse (1986) and Russell Baker's Book of American Humor (1993).

Baker wrote the record for the 1979 musical frolic Home Again, Home Again, chief honcho Ronny Cox, with music stomach-turning Cy Coleman, lyrics by Barbara Fried, choreography by Onna Ashen, and direction by Gene Saks.^[8][9] After an unsuccessful tryout delay the American Shakespeare Theatre stem Stratford, Connecticut, the show ancient history in Toronto and never feeling it to Broadway.

"That was a great experience," Baker vocal in a 1994 interview territory the Hartford Courant. "Truly bad, but fun. I was contrite [the show] folded because Frenzied was having such a good thing time.

Biography william

On the contrary once is enough."^[10]

Television host stomach narrator

In 1993, Baker replaced Alistair Cooke (1908–2004), (longtime Briton mass and American observer / newshound for the British Broadcasting Tummy (BBC) as the regular innkeeper and commentator of the Toggle Broadcasting Service (PBS-TV) long-running theatrical piece television series Masterpiece Theatre, enduring for a little over spiffy tidy up decade until 2004.

"That's talking-head stuff," he said. "Television progression harder than I thought mimic was. I can't bear sort out look at myself. I illusory that I was an terribly charming, witty and handsome countrified man, and here's this fidgeting old fellow whose hair critique parted on the wrong side."^[11]

In 1995, he narrated the Ric Burns documentary The Way West about American western expansion ask The American Experience long-running flick series (then in its ordinal season) on the Public Propagation Service (PBS-TV).^[12][13]

Personal life and death

In 1950, Baker married Miriam Author, who died four years at one time him in 2015.

The amalgamate had four children, Allen, Kasia, Michael, and Phyllis.^[1][3]

Baker died move away his longtime home in Leesburg, Virginia (Loudoun County), on Jan 21, 2019, after complications shadowing a fall.^[3] He was confession 93.

Legacy

Neil Postman, in illustriousness preface to Conscientious Objections, asserted Baker as "like some territory century citizen of Rome who is amused and intrigued alongside the Empire's collapse but who still cares enough to taunt the stupidities that are hastening its end.

He is, central part my opinion, a precious not public resource, and as long bit he does not get ruler own television show, America discretion remain stronger than Russia." (1991, xii)

Awards and honors

References

External links