Richard Goldstein

I was 10 years old on an autumn evening in 1952 when the drama of national politics and the sweep of American history first touched me. I caught a glimpse of President Truman's motorcade as he sped to a rally for Adlai Stevenson, the Democratic presidential nominee, at the Eastern Parkway Arena in Brooklyn. Stevenson would be trounced by Dwight D. Eisenhower that November, but the excitement of that moment left an enduring impression. I began to read history and I joined my high school newspaper, the first step toward a career in journalism. After receiving a B.A. from Brooklyn College and an M.A. from the University of Michigan, concentrating in political science and history, I worked at The New York Daily News, Newsday, United Press International, and, for the past three decades, as an editor and writer at The New York Times. I left full-time daily journalism in 2007 but I continue to write obituary profiles for The Times, mostly on figures from the military, sports and journalism. As a non-fiction author, I have focused on historical themes. I told of the Normandy invasion in "America at D-Day." I looked to convey the whole of American life through the eyes of unforgettable men and women in "Mine Eyes Have Seen: A First Person History of the Events That Shaped America." I recalled a memorable disaster at sea in "Desperate Hours: The Epic Rescue of the Andrea Doria." I turned to baseball history in "Spartan Seasons: How Baseball Survived the Second World War," "Superstars and Screwballs: 100 Years of Brooklyn Baseball" and "An American Journey," written with Jerry Coleman. I looked at sporting traditions in "Ivy League Autumns: An Illustrated History of College Football's Grand Old Rivalries." Now, melding my fascination with New York City history and with the Second World War, I have written "Helluva Town: The Story of New York City During World War II." I live in White Plains, New York, with my wife, Dr. Nancy Lubell, a clinical psychologist.