Biographers International Organization

In this week’s episode, we interview three-time biographer David Michaelis, author of Eleanor, a new single-volume biography of first lady Eleanor Roosevelt released by Simon and Schuster in October 2020. Michaelis was interviewed in his home in Westchester County, New York, on February 11, 2021, via Zoom, by writer and BIO member Lisa Napoli.

In this week’s episode, we interview Leslie Brody, author of Sometimes You Have to Lie: The Life and Times of Louise Fitzhugh, Renegade Author of Harriet the Spy, published in December, 2020 by Seal Press. Brody was interviewed in her home in southern California via Zoom on December 23, 2020, by writer and BIO member Lisa Napoli.

We’re back…and we wish nothing but the best for you in 2021! In this week’s episode, we interview Philip Clark, author of Dave Brubeck: A Life in Time, a biography of jazz pianist, Dave Brubeck. Clark was interviewed by writer and BIO member Lisa Napoli via Zoom on December 10th, 2020.

This week we feature an archived presentation from the City University of New York’s Leon Levy Center for Biography. In October 2013, distinguished historian and two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Levering Lewis delivered the sixth annual Leon Levy Biography Lecture. Levering Lewis is the author of critically acclaimed biographies of W.E.B. DuBois and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

This week we feature an archived interview from the City University of New York’s Leon Levy Center for Biography. Author Silvana Paternostro was interviewed by editor Cristobal Pena about her book, Solitude & Company: The Life of Gabriel Garcia Marquez Told with Help From His Friends, Family, Fans, Arguers, Pranksters, Drunks and a Few Respectable Souls. Published by Seven Stories Press in 2019, Paternostro’s biography explores the life and relationships of Garcia Marquez, author of the landmark novel One Hundred Years of Solitude. This interviewed was recorded in the Levy Center in February 2019. Photo by Marcela Garcia

This week we feature an interview with veteran journalist Jonathan Alter. Alter’s fourth presidential biography, His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, A Life, was published by Simon & Schuster in October 2020. It’s the first full-length biography of the oldest living president in American history. Alter is a long-time contributor and political analyst for NBC and MSNBC, and recently he was interviewed by fellow biographer David Greenberg via Zoom.

This week we feature an archived “live” presentation from the City University of New York’s (CUNY) Leon Levy Center for Biography. On September 25, 2019, historian David Nasaw, an award-winning author of biographies about Joseph P. Kennedy, William Randolph Hearst, and Andrew Carnegie, delivered the Levy Center’s 12th Annual Lecture. Nasaw’s engaging presentation was titled My Three Moguls.

This week we feature an archival interview from the City University of New York’s (CUNY) Leon Levy Center for Biography. Pulitzer Prize-winning authors Jeffrey C. Stewart and David Levering Lewis discussed Stewart’s biography, The New Negro: The Life of Alain Locke, published by Oxford University Press in December 2017. This interview was recorded on September 21, 2018. Jeffrey C. Stewart David Levering Lewis

This week we feature an archival interview from the City University of New York’s (CUNY) Leon Levy Center for Biography. Hermione Lee, distinguished British biographer, former president of Oxford University’s Wolfson College, and winner of the 2020 BIO Award, was interviewed by fellow award-winning author Gary Giddins. Lee’s books include biographies of writers Willa Cather, Edith Wharton, Penelope Fitzgerald, and Virginia Woolf. This interview was recorded in front of a Levy Center audience on March 25, 2013.

This week we feature an archival interview from the City University of New York’s (CUNY) Leon Levy Center for Biography. Distinguished author and Yale University professor David Blight was interviewed by author and CUNY history professor James Oakes. Blight’s Pultizer Prize-winning book, Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom, was published by Simon and Schuster in 2018. This interview was recorded in front of a Levy Center audience on April 15, 2019.

In this week’s episode, we feature an archival interview from the City University of New York’s Leon Levy Center for Biography. Author Bridgett M. Davis was interviewed by author and Columbia University professor Farah Jasmine Griffin about Davis’s book, The World According to Fannie Davis: My Mother’s Life in the Detroit Numbers. This interview was recorded in front of a live Levy Center audience on February 15, 2019. Bridget M. Davis; photo by Nina Subin Farah Jasmine Griffin

In this week’s episode, we interview Peniel E. Joseph, distinguished University of Texas at Austin history professor and of author of The Sword and the Shield: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. (Basic Books, 2020) – a biography that explores the lives and philosophies of two iconic African American leaders. This interview was recorded via an online Zoom session in July 2020. Photo by Kelvin Ma

In this week’s episode, we interview David O. Stewart, a versatile novelist and biographer who has examined the political lives of President Andrew Johnson, Aaron Burr, and James Madison. He is currently working on a biography of President George Washington. This interview was recorded in December 2019 in Washington, D.C.

In this week’s episode, listen to the second part of our interview with veteran biographer Kitty Kelley. She has written biographies of Oprah Winfrey, the British Royal Family, and Nancy Reagan—just to name a few. Kelley spoke with BIO member John A. Farrell in February 2020 in Washington, D.C. Photo by Philip Bermingham

In this week’s episode, we present the first of a two-part interview with veteran biographer, Kitty Kelley. She has written bestselling biographies of Frank Sinatra, the George Herbert Walker Bush family, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and Elizabeth Taylor—just to name a few. Kelley spoke with BIO member John A. Farrell in February 2020 in Washington, D.C. Photo by Philip Bermingham

In this week’s episode, we interview James H. Johnston, author of From Slave Ship to Harvard: Yarrow Mamout and the History of an African American Family (Fordham University Press, 2015). This interview was recorded in December 2019 in Washington, D.C.

In this week’s episode, we interview Lisa Napoli, author of her third book, Up All Night: Ted Turner, CNN and the Birth of 24 Hour News (Abrams Press, 2020). This interview was recorded via an online Zoom session in May 2020.

In this week’s episode, we interview Eric K. Washington, first-time biographer and author of Boss of the Grips: The Life of James H. Williams and the Red Caps of Grand Central Terminal (Liveright, 2019). This interview was recorded via an online Zoom session in June 2020.

This week’s podcast features Ash Carter and Sam Kashner, co-authors of Life Isn’t Everything: Mike Nichols, as Remembered by 150 of His Closest Friends. The episode was recorded in November 2019 in Santa Monica, California. This is our last podcast of the year. Look for new episodes in early 2020.    

In this week’s episode, we interview journalist Eugene Meyer, author of Five for Freedom: The African American Solders in John Brown’s Army. This interview was recorded in October 2019 in Washington, DC.

In this week’s episode, we interview Danny Fingeroth, author of A Marvelous Life: The Amazing Story of Stan Lee. This interview was recorded in Sherman Oaks, California, in November 2019.

In this week’s episode, we interview Pamela Newkirk, award-winning author of Spectacle: The Astonishing Life of Ota Benga (2015). Her latest book, published this year, is Diversity, Inc.: The Failed Promise of a Billion-Dollar Business. This interview was recorded in November 2019 in Washington, DC.

In this week’s episode, we interview Andrew Marble, author of Boy on the Bridge: The Story of John Shalikashvili’s American Success. This interview was recorded in Washington, DC, in October 2019.

In this week’s episode, we interview Holly Van Leuven, author of Ray Bolger: More Than a Scarecrow. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode, fellow biographer and BIO member John “Jack” Farrell interviews Michael Kranish, author of The World’s Fastest Man: The Extraordinary Life of Cyclist Major Taylor; America’s First Black Sports Hero. This interview was recorded in Washington, DC in September 2019.

In this week’s episode, we interview Julie Dobrow, author of After Emily: Two Remarkable Women and the Legacy of America’s Greatest Poet. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode, we interview Catherine Reef, author of Mary Shelley: The Strange True Tale of Frankenstein’s Creator. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode, we interview Marcia Biederman, author of Popovers and Candlelight: Patricia Murphy and the Rise and Fall of a Restaurant Empire. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.  

In this week’s episode we interview Nigel Hamilton and Hans Renders, authors The ABC of Modern Biography. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City. Photo by Mannus van der Laan

In this week’s episode we interview BIO board member Anne Boyd Rioux, author of Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women and Why It Still Matters. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode we interview John Kaag, author of Walking with Nietzsche: On Becoming Who You Are. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.  

Honoring The Life Of an Acclaimed Biographer James Atlas March 22,1949-September 4, 2019 In this week’s episode, we interview James Atlas, author of The Shadow in the Garden: A Biographer’s Tale. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2018 annual conference in New York City.

This week’s episode features highlights of a panel from the 2019 BIO Conference, “Fact and Speculation,” with moderator James McGrath Morris and panelists Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina, Michael Hainey, and Stacy Schiff.  

This week’s episode features highlights of a panel from the 2019 BIO Conference, “Promoting Your Biography,” with moderator Ruth Franklin and panelists Dan Blank, Melinda Ponder, and Declan Taintor.  

This week’s episode features highlights from a panel from the 2019 BIO Conference, “Fire Up Your Narrative,” with moderator Linda Leavell and panelists John A. Farrell, Ruth Franklin, Caroline Fraser, and Tom Reiss.

This week’s episode features highlights from a panel from the 2019 BIO Conference, “Telling Life Stories in These Chaotic Times,” with moderator John A. Farrell and panelist Sarah Burnes, Tim Duggan, and Katherine Flynn.

This week’s episode features David Remnick, Stacy Schiff, and Judith Thurman in conversation during the plenary session at BIO’s 10th annual conference in New York City on May 18, 2019. Photo by Brian Jay Jones

This week’s episode pays tribute to author and BIO co-founder James McGrath Morris. At BIO’s 10th annual conference in New York City, Morris accepted BIO’s Biographers Award with an inspiring address on May 18, 2019.  

In this week’s episode we interview Kavita Das, first-time biographer and author of Poignant Song: The Life and Music of Lakshmi Shankar. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode we interview Tonya Bolden, experienced young adult and children’s biographer, and author of Facing Frederick: The Life of Frederick Douglass, a Monumental American Man and No Small Potatoes: Junius G. Groves and His Kingdom in Kansas. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.

This week enjoy a special episode that highlights the work of biographers from around the country and the world. Recorded on May 17, 2019, at BIO’s annual conference in New York City, each of the featured biographers read a three-minute excerpt from their latest book.

In this week’s episode, we interview Imani Perry, Princeton University professor and author of Looking for Lorraine: The Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine Hansberry and May We Forever Stand: A History of the Black National Anthem. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.  

In this week’s episode, we interview veteran biographer Brian Jay Jones, author of Becoming Dr. Seuss: Theodore Geisel and the Making of an American Imagination. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode, we interview Monica Szurmuk, author of Las Vocación Desmurada: Una Biografia de Alberto Gerchunoff. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2019 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode, we interview veteran writer Marc Leepson, author of Ballad of the Green Beret: The Life and Wars of Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler, From the Vietnam War and Pop Stardom to Murder and an Unsolved, Violent Death. This interview was recorded in May 2019 in Washington, DC.  

In this week’s episode, we interview investigative journalist and biographer John A. Farrell, author of Richard Nixon: The . This interview was recorded in May 2019 in Washington, DC.

In this week’s episode, we interview Grammy Award winning writer Anthony DeCurtis, author of Lou Reed: A Life. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2018 annual conference in New York City. Photo by Deborah Feingold

In this week’s episode, we interview book designer and first-time biographer Bruce Kennett, author of W. A. Dwiggins: A Life in Design. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2018 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode, we interview Yale University lecturer and writer Karin Roffman, author of The Songs We Know Best: John Ashbery’s Early Life. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2018 annual conference in New York City.

In this week’s episode, we interview Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer William Taubman, author of Gorbachev: His Life and Times. This interview was recorded during BIO’s May 2018 annual conference in New York City.