Dead is David McCullough. His Pulitzer Prize-winning biographies of Harry Truman and John Adams, as well as his work as a public television host and the narrator of well-known films and documentaries, such as Ken Burns’ The Civil War, added to the brilliance of this historian and public intellectual. His best-selling accounts of American achievement were also enhanced by his work.
According to his publishers Simon and Schuster, McCullough passed away on Sunday at his home in Hingham, Massachusetts. Age-wise, he was 89.
The topics McCullough covered were enormous. the construction of the Panama Canal and the Brooklyn Bridge. how the Declaration of Independence was drafted in 1776. From Theodore Roosevelt to the Wright Brothers, he wrote about historical characters. McCullough didn’t appear intimidated by his themes; he found them amusing, and he made them fascinating for readers. Truman’s biography by McCullough, which was a publishing sensation in 1992, may have been the only one to feature at the top of the New York Times best-seller list for almost a full year.
David McCullough was up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and attended Yale University to study English literature. While there, he made friends with playwright Thorton Wilder, who is most known for writing the Americana classic Our Town. McCullough initially considered becoming a playwright as well, but while working in magazines in the 1950s, he discovered a passion for research.
McCullough narrated the 2003 movie Seabiscuit in addition to penning a number of highly regarded history books. He twice took home the National Book Award, and in 2006, he was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.
