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Ron Chernow

American writer and historian (born 1949)

Ronald Chernow (/ˈtʃɜːrnaʊ/; born March 3, 1949) is an American writer, journalist, popular historian, and biographer. He has written bestselling historical non-fiction biographies.

He won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Biography and the 2011 American History Book Prize for his 2010 book Washington: A Life. He is also the recipient of the National Book Award for Nonfiction for his 1990 book The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance. His biographies of Alexander Hamilton (2004) and John D. Rockefeller (1998) were both nominated for National Book Critics Circle Awards, while the former served as the inspiration for the popular Hamilton musical, for which Chernow worked as a historical consultant. Another book, The Warburgs: The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family, was honored with the 1993 George S. Eccles Prize for Excellence in Economic Writing. As a freelance journalist, he has written over sixty articles in national publications.

Contents

  • 1 Personal background
  • 2 Professional background
    • 2.1 Business and finance
      • 2.1.1 The House of Morgan
      • 2.1.2 The Warburgs
      • 2.1.3 The Death of the Banker
      • 2.1.4 *an: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.
    • 2.2 American politics
      • 2.2.1 Alexander Hamilton
      • 2.2.2 George Washington
      • 2.2.3 Ulysses S. Grant
  • 3 Board memberships
  • 4 Honors and awards
  • 5 Published works
    • 5.1 Books
    • 5.2 Articles
  • 6 Filmography
  • 7 References
  • 8 Further reading
  • 9 External links

Personal background

Ronald Chernow was born on March 3, 1949, in Brooklyn, New York. His father Israel was the owner of a discount store and creator of a stock brokerage firm; his mother Ruth was a bookkeeper. He is brother to Bart Chernow and uncle to Shandee Chernow. Chernow was voted "Most Likely to Succeed", and was Cl* President and Valedictorian when he graduated in 1966 from Forest Hills High School in Queens, New York. Chernow graduated summa * laude from Yale University in 1970 and Pembroke College at Cambridge University with degrees in English literature. He began but did not finish a PhD program. He says that in politics he is a "disgruntled Democrat" and gives his religion as "Jewish, though more in the breach than the observance."

He married Valerie Stearn in 1979; she died in January 2006. Valerie S. Chernow was an *istant professor of languages and social sciences at the New York City College of Technology.

Ron Chernow has received honorary degrees from Long Island University, Marymount Manhattan College, Hamilton College, Washington College, and Skidmore College.

Professional background

Chernow began his career as a freelance journalist. He wrote more than 60 articles in national newspapers and magazines from 1973 to 1982. In the mid-1980s, he put his writing pursuits aside when he began serving as the director of financial policy studies with the Twentieth Century Fund, which is based in New York City. In 1986, he left the organization and refocused his efforts on writing. In addition to his background in writing nonfiction and biographies, Chernow continues to contribute articles to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. He has also provided commentary on business, politics, and finance on national radio and television shows, while also appearing as an expert in do*entary films.

Business and finance

The House of Morgan

In 1990, Chernow published his first book, The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance, which traces the history of four generations of the J.P. Morgan financial empire. The reviewer for The New York Times Book Review said, "As a portrait of finance, politics and the world of avarice and ambition on Wall Street, the book has the movement and tension of an epic novel. It is, quite simply, a tour de force." The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance was honored with the National Book Award for Nonfiction.

The Warburgs

In 1993, Chernow published The Warburgs: The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family, which is an account of the Warburg family, who immigrated to the US from Germany in 1938. The Warburg family was a prominent financial dynasty of German Jewish descent, known for their accomplishments in physics, cl*ical music, art history, pharmacology, physiology, finance, private equity and philanthropy. The book was awarded the Columbia Business School's George S. Eccles Prize for Excellence in Economic Writing. It was additionally named as one of the year's ten best works by the American Library *ociation and a Notable Book by The New York Times.

The Death of the Banker

Chernow's 1997 collection of essays, The Death of the Banker, touched upon his earlier writings and chronicled "the decline and fall of the great financial dynasties and the triumph of the small investor".

*an: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.

In 1998, Chernow published the 774-page *an: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr., which was selected by Time and The New York Times as one of the year's ten best books. A prominent figure in American business history, Rockefeller was an industrialist, philanthropist, and the founder of the Standard Oil Company. The book reflected Chernow's continued interest in financial history, especially when shaped by compelling and influential individuals. The book remained on The New York Times Best Seller list for 16 weeks. Time called it "one of the great American biographies".

American politics

Alexander Hamilton

In 2004, Chernow published Alexander Hamilton. The biography was nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award and was named as the winner of the inaugural George Washington Book Prize for early American history. It remained on The New York Times Best Seller list for three months. In his review for the Journal of American History, Stephen B. Presser, who is professor of business law emeritus at Northwestern University wrote:

This book is one of those happy rarities: a popular biography that should also delight scholars. ...This is the kind of synthetic narrative history and biography that is rarely done to such high standards and is clearly one of the best introductions to the American formative era available. Moreover, the way Chernow integrates international affairs, domestic politics, economic and cons*utional theory, and astute psychological *ysis is nothing short of wondrous.

The biography was adapted into a Tony award-winning musical, Hamilton, by Lin-Manuel Miranda, which opened on Broadway in August 2015. Chernow served as historical consultant to the production.

George Washington

Chernow's 904-page Washington: A Life was released on October 5, 2010 (ISBN:978-1594202667). It won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography and the American History Book Prize. Professor Gordon S. Wood, renowned scholar of the Founding era, wrote:

he best, most comprehensive, and most balanced single-volume biography of Washington ever written.... One comes away from the book feeling that Washington has finally become comprehensible.... understanding of human nature is extraordinary and that is what makes his biography so powerful.

Ulysses S. Grant

In 2011, Chernow signed a deal to write a comprehensive biography on Ulysses S. Grant. Chernow explained his transition from writing about George Washington to Grant: "Makes some sense as progression. Towering general of Revolution to towering general of Civil War. Both two-term presidents, though with very different results." Grant was released on October 10, 2017, and the biography strongly argues against the conventional wisdom that Grant was an "adequate president, a dull companion and a roaring drunk." The book received overwhelmingly positive reviews and was named by The New York Times as one of the 10 Best Books of 2017.

Board memberships

In 1990, Chernow became a member of the PEN American Center. In 2006, he was named as the President of the Board of Trustees, succeeding novelist Salman Rushdie.

Honors and awards

  • 1990: National Book Award for Nonfiction for The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance (winner)
  • 1993: George S. Eccles Prize for Excellence in Economic Writing for The Warburgs: The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family (winner)
  • 1998: National Book Critics Circle Award for *an: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. (nominated)
  • 2004: George Washington Book Prize for Alexander Hamilton (winner)
  • 2004: National Book Critics Circle Award for Alexander Hamilton (nominated)
  • 2011: Pulitzer Prize for Biography for Washington: A Life (winner)
  • 2011: American History Book Prize for Washington: A Life (winner)
  • 2013: BIO Award from Biographers International Organization for advancing the art and craft of biography.
  • 2015: National Humanities Medal
  • 2016: Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site Advancing American Democracy (winner)
  • 2017: Gold Medal Honoree from the National Ins*ute of Social Sciences
  • 2018: American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal in Biography
  • 2019: Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement

Published works

Books

  • Chernow, Ron (1990). The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance. Simon & Schuster. ISBN:9780671710316.
  • ———— (1995). The Warburgs: A Family Saga. Pimlico. ISBN:9780712662109.
  • ———— (1997). The Death of the Banker: The Decline and Fall of the Great Financial Dynasties and the Triumph of the Small Investor. Vintage Books. ISBN:9780375700378.
  • ———— (1998). *an: The Life of John D. Rockefeller. Warner. ISBN:9780751526677.
  • ———— (2005). Alexander Hamilton. Penguin Press. ISBN:9781101200858.
  • ———— (2010). Washington: A Life. Penguin Press. ISBN:9781101444184.
  • ———— (2017). Grant. Penguin Books. ISBN:9781594204876.

Articles

  • Chernow, Ron (April 1974). "John Ford: The Last Frontiersman". Ramparts. Vol.:12. pp.:45–48.

Filmography

  • 1996: Biography, "J. Pierpont Morgan: Emperor of Wall Street" (do*entary), as himself
  • 2000: The American Experience, "The Rockefellers: Part 1" (do*entary), as advisor
  • 2000: The American Experience, "The Rockefellers: Part 2" (do*entary), as advisor
  • 2007: The American Experience, "Alexander Hamilton" (do*entary), as advisor
  • 2010: Tavis Smiley, "October 12, 2010 episode" (talk show), as guest
  • 2010: Rediscovering Alexander Hamilton (do*entary), as himself/historian
  • 2020: Grant, as writer

References

    Further reading

    • "Ron Chernow" in Contemporary Authors Online (Gale, 2011)
    • "Ron Chernow: By the Book". New York Times Book Review. October 26, 2017.

    External links

    • Ron Chernow at IMDb
    • Ron Chernow at the Internet Broadway Database
    • Ron Chernow at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
    • Ron Chernow at Penguin Group website
    • The Founding Fathers Versus the Tea Party by Ron Chernow
    • Appearances on C-SPAN
      • Booknotes interview with Chernow on *an: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr., June 21, 1998
      • Part one of C-SPAN Q&A interview with Chernow on Washington: A Life, October 3, 2010
      • Part two of C-SPAN Q&A interview with Chernow on Washington: A Life, October 10, 2010
    • Ron Chernow remarks at the Washington Press Corps Dinner 2019
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