THEODORE H. WHITE - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 05/13/1981 - HFSID 185883

THEODORE H. WHITE
The author who wrote about the United States Presidential elections signed this typed letter
TLS: "Theo White", 1p, 7¼x10½. New York, N.Y., 1981 May 13. On his personal letterhead to Mr. Bob Hemminger, St. Marys, Ga. In full: "I'm sorry I could not be more responsive. But I'm in the middle of a book and pressed for every minute of time. I've signed the excerpts you sent me and I tried to make a doodle. But I think the doodle stinks. Throw it away if it displeases you. I cherish teachers who try to make children come awake. Keep trying. Good luck with your classes." Enclosures not present. The book that White mentions in this letter was likely America in Search of Itself: The Making of the President 1956-1980, which was published in 1982. Twenty years earlier, in 1962, Theodore H. White (1915-1986) won the Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction for The Making of the President, 1960. Published in 1961, the book was the first of a series that discussed the primary and general elections for the Oval Office that election season. By writing about political trends and personality traits of the candidates alongside each other, White captured the attention of the entire country. He continued the series with each election to win the White House through the 1980 election, excluding the 1976 election. After the Watergate Scandal, the journalist chose to publish a book titled Breach of Faith: The Fall of Richard Nixon (1975). Following John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963, Jacqueline Kennedy famously called White to Hyannis Port and requested that he write a piece that would frame Kennedy's short-lived time in the Oval Office in a positive light, specifically paralleling him with King Arthur and Camelot. White agreed to do the job and it was published in Life. Years later, White admitted that the article was a “misreading of history”. As a young man, White first became a notable newsman as a correspondent based out of China for Time during WWII. Slightly creased. Otherwise, fine condition.