Douglas Brinkley
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Douglas Brinkley (born December 14,1960) is a prolific author and a professor of history at Tulane University, where he also serves as director of the Theodore Roosevelt Center for American Civilization. He is perhaps most famous for his John Kerry biography, Tour of Duty.
The late historian, Stephen E. Ambrose, once called Brinkley "the best of the new generation of American historians" [1].
During the early 1990's, Brinkley taught American Arts and Politics out of Hofstra University aboard the Majic Bus, a roving, transcontinental classroom, from which emerged the book, The Majic Bus: an American Odyssey, published in 1993. In 1993 he left Hofstra University to teach at the University of New Orleans, and taught this class again, using a natural-gas bus. He also worked with Stephen Ambrose, then Director of the Eisenhower Center at the University of New Orleans. Upon Stephen Ambrose's death, Brinkley became Director of the Eisenhower Center for a short period, before going to Tulane.
Brinkley the literary executor for his friend Hunter S. Thompson. He is also the editor of a three-volume collection of letters written by journalist-author Hunter S. Thompson:
- Volume 1: The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman, 1955-1967. Published April 7, 1998.
- Volume 2: Fear And Loathing In America: The Brutal Odyssey of an Outlaw Journalist. Published December 13, 2000.
- Volume 3: The Mutineer: Rants, Ravings, and Missives from the Mountaintop, 1977-2005. Scheduled to be released January 1, 2007.
As well, Brinkley is the authorized biographer for Beat author Jack Kerouac, and is editing Kerouac's diaries for publication.
In January 2006, Brinkley and fellow historian, Julie M. Fenster, released Parish Priest, a biography of Fr. Michael J. McGivney, the founder of the Knights of Columbus.
In May 2006, Brinkley released The Great Deluge: Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast, a record of the effects of Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast. Brinkley spoke about the book and his experiences during Hurricane Katrina on NPR's Fresh Air in September of 2005 [2]. He also appeared in Spike Lee's documentary about Hurricane Katrina, When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts.
Brinkley has at times been criticized as something of a media gadfly, as when Slate Magazine scrutinized his prolific and well-compensated presence in a range of media immediately following the death of his acquaintance John F. Kennedy Jr. in the summer of 1999. [3]
Brinkley lives in New Orleans with his wife and 3 children. He serves on the Board of Advisors of the Theodore Roosevelt Association, and on several other boards.
