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Ron Powers

ロン・パワーズ

Ron Pāwāzu

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1941-11-18 （Hannibal, Missouri, United States）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Hannibal, Missouri, United States (birthplace) → Chicago, Illinois, United States (worked at Chicago Sun-Times) → Middlebury, Vermont, United States (taught at Middlebury College) → Castleton, Vermont, United States (residence)

Career

Occupations
journalist, novelist, non-fiction writer
Active Years
1965-
Affiliations
Chicago Sun-Times, CBS News Sunday Morning, Bread Loaf Writers' Conference, Salzburg Seminar, Middlebury College
Influenced By
Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)

Awards

Pulitzer Prize for Criticism
1973
Work: Critical writing about television for the Chicago Sun-Times (1972)
Organization: Pulitzer Prize Board
Result: 受賞
Emmy Award
1985
Work: Work on CBS News Sunday Morning
Organization: Emmy Awards
Result: 受賞
Colby Award
2001
Work: Flags of Our Fathers (co-authored)
Result: 受賞
National Book Critics Circle Award (Finalist)
2005
Work: Mark Twain: A Life
Organization: National Book Critics Circle
Result: 最終候補
PEN/E. O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award (Finalist)
2018
Work: No One Cares About Crazy People
Organization: PEN America
Result: 最終候補
Washington Post Notable Book
2018
Work: No One Cares About Crazy People
Organization: The Washington Post
Result: 選出
People Top Ten Books of the Year
2018
Work: No One Cares About Crazy People
Organization: People (magazine)
Result: 選出

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Newscasters: The News Business As Show Business

1977 Journalism/Media criticism

A non-fiction analysis of television news and newscasters as show business, discussing commercialization and the performative aspects of media.

media criticismtelevisionnews reportingcommercialization

Face Value

1979 Novel

A novel exploring themes of appearance and identity.

identityappearanceprivate vs public

Toot-Toot-Tootsie, Good-Bye

1981 Novel

One of his early fiction works, addressing urban culture and personal change.

urban lifepersonal change

Supertube: The Rise of Television Sports

1984 Non-fiction / Media studies

A critical non-fiction study of the development and commercialization of televised sports.

sportsmediacommercialization

White Town Drowsing: Journeys to Hannibal

1986 Essays / Travel

An essay collection about his hometown Hannibal, reflecting on memories, Mark Twain, and the town's history.

HannibalmemoryMark Twainnostalgia

Dangerous Water: A Biography of the Boy Who Became Mark Twain

1999 Biography

A biography focusing on Mark Twain's boyhood and the formative experiences that shaped him.

Mark Twainbiographyboyhood

Tom and Huck Don't Live Here Anymore: Childhood and Murder in the Heart of America

2001 Non-fiction / True crime

A non-fiction account of real-life murders in Hannibal, exploring community and changes to childhood.

crimecommunitychildhoodHannibal

Mark Twain: A Life

2005 Biography

A comprehensive biography of Mark Twain based on extensive research; it was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award.

biographyAmerican literatureMark Twain

Flags of Our Fathers (co-authored with James Bradley)

2000 History / Memoir

A historical/memoir account of the Iwo Jima flag raisers. It became a #1 New York Times bestseller and was later adapted into a film.

World War IIIwo Jimamemoirwar memory
Adaptations
  • [Film] Flags of Our Fathers / Clint Eastwood (2006)

No One Cares About Crazy People: My Family and the Heartbreak of Mental Illness in America

2018 Non-fiction / Memoir

A memoir chronicling his sons' schizophrenia and the family's struggle, critically examining the American mental health system.

mental illnessfamilyhealthcare systemmemoir

Bibliography

  • The Newscasters: The News Business As Show Business (1977)
  • Face Value (1979)
  • Toot-Toot-Tootsie, Good-Bye (1981)
  • Supertube: The Rise of Television Sports (1984)
  • White Town Drowsing: Journeys to Hannibal (1986)
  • The Beast, the Eunuch, and the Glass-Eyed Child: Television in the '80s (1990)
  • Far From Home: Life and Loss in Two American Towns (1991)
  • The Cruel Radiance: Notes of a Prosewriter in a Visual Age (1994)
  • Dangerous Water: A Biography of the Boy Who Became Mark Twain (1999)
  • Tom and Huck Don't Live Here Anymore: Childhood and Murder in the Heart of America (2001)
  • Mark Twain: A Life (2005)
  • Flags of Our Fathers (co-authored with James Bradley) (2000)
  • The Man Who Flew the Memphis Belle: Memoir of a WWII Bomber Pilot (co-authored with Robert Morgan) (2001)
  • Last Flag Down: The Epic Journey of the Last Confederate Warship (co-authored with John Baldwin) (2007)
  • True Compass (co-authored with Edward M. Kennedy) (2009)
  • No One Cares About Crazy People: My Family and the Heartbreak of Mental Illness in America (2018)

Adaptations

  • Flags of Our Fathers (book adapted into film, 2006, directed by Clint Eastwood)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
narrative non-fiction stylebiographical writinginvestigative/journalistic approachreflective/essayistic narration
Recurring Motifs
Mark Twain and Hannibalmemory of the American Midwestmedia and television culturefamily and mental illness

Legacy

Ron Powers is known as the first television critic to win the Pulitzer Prize, for his media criticism, and for his biographies of Mark Twain, his memoir on family mental illness, and as co-author of 'Flags of Our Fathers.' He is respected for contributions to journalism and biographical literature.

Academic Societies

  • Bread Loaf Writers' Conference
  • Middlebury College (teaching/affiliation)

In Popular Culture

  • Film adaptation of 'Flags of Our Fathers' (2006, directed by Clint Eastwood)
  • Major media appearances such as C-SPAN 'In Depth' (2006) and NPR 'Fresh Air'

Quotes

  • "When I was a little boy in Hannibal, he was a mystic figure to me. His pictures and books and images were all over (my friend) Dulany Winkler's house, and I spent a lot of time there. I just wanted to reach out and touch him. Eventually I was able to."
    Source: The Hannibal Courier (interview, quoted) (1999)

Trivia

  • He was the first television critic to win the Pulitzer Prize.
  • Co-authored 'Flags of Our Fathers', which became a #1 New York Times bestseller and was adapted into a 2006 film.
  • 'No One Cares About Crazy People' chronicles his sons' schizophrenia and the family's struggle.
  • A planned biography of Jim Henson was not published after objections from the Henson family.
  • His wife, Honoree Fleming, was reported murdered in October 2023.