Michael Beschloss
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Michael Beschloss (born November 30, 1955) is an American historian. A specialist in the United States presidency, he is the author of several books including:
- The Conquerors: Roosevelt, Truman and the Destruction of Hitler's Germany, 1941-1945 (2002)
- Taking Charge (1997) and Reaching for Glory (2001), edited transcripts of Lyndon Johnson's conversations, as captured by his taping system, with notes and commentary. A third Johnson volume is forthcoming.
- Kennedy and Roosevelt: The Uneasy Alliance (1980); started as a Senior Honors Thesis at Williams College.
- The Crisis Years: Kennedy and Khrushchev, 1960-1963 (1991)
- At the Highest Levels: The Inside Story of the End of the Cold War (1993); with Strobe Talbott.
- Eisenhower: A Centennial Life (1990)
- Mayday: Eisenhower, Khrushchev and the U-2 Affair (1986)
Beschloss was born in Chicago and was educated at Andover, Williams College and Harvard University. He does not hold any history degrees; he majored in political science at Williams and earned an MBA at Harvard Business School.
Beschloss appears frequently on PBS and ABC. He is the NBC News Presidential Historian. Some have criticized Beschloss for being a "celebrity historian" who is more concerned with media appearances than true scholarship. Others, however, have strongly defended Beschloss, saying that his scholarship is very impressive and that no historians have truly criticized its quality while pointing out that most of the criticism seems to stem from the fact that Beschloss' most advanced degree is a MBA and not a Ph.D.
Beschloss is married to Afsaneh Mashayekhi Beschloss, who is President and CEO of the The Rock Creek Group, a Washington DC hedge fund, and former CEO of the asset management division of the Carlyle Group.
