Daniel J. Boorstin(1914-2004)
- Writer
Daniel J. Boorstin, the Pulitzer Prize-winning historian who served as
the Librarian of Congress from 1975 to 1987, was born on October 1,
1914 in Atlanta, Georgia but raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. After
graduating summa cum laude from Harvard College and receiving his
doctorate from Yale University, Boostin attended Balliol College at
Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. At Balliol, Boostin won a "double first" in
two law degrees and was admitted to the bar as a barrister at London's
Inner Temple. He also was admitted to the bar in the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts.
Boorstin taught history at the University of Chicago for 25-years,
where he held the chair as the Preston and Sterling Morton
Distinguished Service Professor of History. He also was a visiting
professor at the University of Rome, the University of Geneva, the
University of Kyoto and the University of Puerto Rico. At the Sorbonne,
Boorstin was the first holder of a chair in American History, while at
Cambridge University, he served as Pitt Professor and as a Fellow of
Trinity College.
An author of over 20 books, Boorstin was best known for his trilogy on
the American experience, beginning in 1959 with "The Americans: The
Colonial Experience," which won Columbia University's Bancroft Prize,
and continuing with "The Americans: The National Experience," which won
the Society of American Historians' Parkman Prize in 1966. The third
and last volume of his "Americans" trilogy, "The Americans: The
Democratic Experience," won him the Pulitzer Prize in history in 1973.
Boorstin's other books include "The Mysterious Science of the Law: An
Essay on Blackstone's Commentaries," "The Image: A Guide to Psuedo
Events in America," and "Hidden History: Exploring Our Secret Past."
"The Discoverers: A History of Man's Search to Know His World and
Himself," a survey of science, was a Book of the Month Club selection
and a best-seller, while its companion volume, "The Creators: A History
of Heroes of the Imagination," a survey of humankind's artistic
history, also was a popular success and a Book-of-the-Month Club
selection. He followed these books up with "The Seekers: The Story of
Man's Continuing Quest to Understand His World," a survey history of
holy men, philosophers, social scientists and other seekers of truth.
He was director of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of
History and Technology when President Gerald Ford nominated him to be
Librarian of Congress. While his nomination was supported by the
Authors League of America, the American Library Association opposed
Boorstin as he lacked a background in library administration. Despite
the ALA's opposition, the U.S. Senate confirmed Boorstin without
debate.
As Librarian of Congress, Boorstin oversaw the renovation of the Thomas
Jefferson Building to its original 1897 condition and established the
Center for the Book (now known as the Boorstin Center for the Book) to
encourage literacy. After retiring from his position, Boorstin was
named Librarian of Congress Emeritus on August 4, 1987. The Boorstin
Center for the Book Awards were inaugurated in 1997 and overseen by the
Librarian of Congress Emeritus himself.
Boorstin was the recipient of numerous honorary degrees as well as
decorations from the governments of Belgium, France, Japan, and
Portugal. Other notable awards and prizes he received during his
distinguished career were Phi Beta Kappa's Distinguished Service to the
Humanities Award, the National Endowment for the Humanities' Charles
Frankel Prize, and the National Book Foundation's National Book Award
for Distinguished Contributions to American Letters.
Daniel J. Boorstin died at the age of 89 in Washington, D.C. on
February 28, 2004 from pneumonia. He was survived by his widow, the
former Ruth Frankel, who was the editor of his works, and their three
sons.
the Librarian of Congress from 1975 to 1987, was born on October 1,
1914 in Atlanta, Georgia but raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. After
graduating summa cum laude from Harvard College and receiving his
doctorate from Yale University, Boostin attended Balliol College at
Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. At Balliol, Boostin won a "double first" in
two law degrees and was admitted to the bar as a barrister at London's
Inner Temple. He also was admitted to the bar in the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts.
Boorstin taught history at the University of Chicago for 25-years,
where he held the chair as the Preston and Sterling Morton
Distinguished Service Professor of History. He also was a visiting
professor at the University of Rome, the University of Geneva, the
University of Kyoto and the University of Puerto Rico. At the Sorbonne,
Boorstin was the first holder of a chair in American History, while at
Cambridge University, he served as Pitt Professor and as a Fellow of
Trinity College.
An author of over 20 books, Boorstin was best known for his trilogy on
the American experience, beginning in 1959 with "The Americans: The
Colonial Experience," which won Columbia University's Bancroft Prize,
and continuing with "The Americans: The National Experience," which won
the Society of American Historians' Parkman Prize in 1966. The third
and last volume of his "Americans" trilogy, "The Americans: The
Democratic Experience," won him the Pulitzer Prize in history in 1973.
Boorstin's other books include "The Mysterious Science of the Law: An
Essay on Blackstone's Commentaries," "The Image: A Guide to Psuedo
Events in America," and "Hidden History: Exploring Our Secret Past."
"The Discoverers: A History of Man's Search to Know His World and
Himself," a survey of science, was a Book of the Month Club selection
and a best-seller, while its companion volume, "The Creators: A History
of Heroes of the Imagination," a survey of humankind's artistic
history, also was a popular success and a Book-of-the-Month Club
selection. He followed these books up with "The Seekers: The Story of
Man's Continuing Quest to Understand His World," a survey history of
holy men, philosophers, social scientists and other seekers of truth.
He was director of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of
History and Technology when President Gerald Ford nominated him to be
Librarian of Congress. While his nomination was supported by the
Authors League of America, the American Library Association opposed
Boorstin as he lacked a background in library administration. Despite
the ALA's opposition, the U.S. Senate confirmed Boorstin without
debate.
As Librarian of Congress, Boorstin oversaw the renovation of the Thomas
Jefferson Building to its original 1897 condition and established the
Center for the Book (now known as the Boorstin Center for the Book) to
encourage literacy. After retiring from his position, Boorstin was
named Librarian of Congress Emeritus on August 4, 1987. The Boorstin
Center for the Book Awards were inaugurated in 1997 and overseen by the
Librarian of Congress Emeritus himself.
Boorstin was the recipient of numerous honorary degrees as well as
decorations from the governments of Belgium, France, Japan, and
Portugal. Other notable awards and prizes he received during his
distinguished career were Phi Beta Kappa's Distinguished Service to the
Humanities Award, the National Endowment for the Humanities' Charles
Frankel Prize, and the National Book Foundation's National Book Award
for Distinguished Contributions to American Letters.
Daniel J. Boorstin died at the age of 89 in Washington, D.C. on
February 28, 2004 from pneumonia. He was survived by his widow, the
former Ruth Frankel, who was the editor of his works, and their three
sons.