A Life in Biography
Carl Rollyson
Talks and interviews about the life of biography as experienced by a biographer over forty years and fourteen biographies, dealing with subjects ranging from Sylvia Plath to William Faulkner, Marilyn Monroe to Susan Sontag, and much more.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Sep 18, 2021 • 40min
A talk about a great figure in the Civil Rights movement, Fannie Lou Hamer.
A talk about a great figure in the Civil Rights movement, Fannie Lou Hamer, with a master biographer, Kate Clifford Larson
Sep 11, 2021 • 36min
What’s New in Biography, Part 2
Introductions to five new biographies of miscreants and saints: Louis Lorax, Mary Todd Lincoln, Robert Maxwell, Simone Weil, and Queen Victoria
Sep 4, 2021 • 26min
Part 1: What’s New In Biography
Brief forays into six biographies of Monica Jones and Philip Larkin, D. H. Lawrence, Alfred Hitchcock, Helen Frankenthaler, William Blake, and Napoleon
Aug 28, 2021 • 11min
Season 2, Episode 1: A Preview of Coming Attractions
More interviews with biographers, biographical novelists, discussions of issues that concern biographers and readers, and my take on several new biographies published in 2021.
Aug 20, 2021 • 59min
Part 5 of my conversation with Tim Christian and Carol Sklenicka about the business of biography
Part 5 of a long-running series about the principles, practices, and mechanics of biography. This episode concentrates on the business of biography.
Aug 14, 2021 • 56min
Part 4 of a discussion of the principles, practices and mechanics of biography
Part 4 of a discussion of the principles, practices, and mechanics of biography with Tim Christian, biographer of Mary Hemingway, and Carol Sklenicka, biographer of Raymond Carver and Alice Adams
Aug 7, 2021 • 47min
A conversation with Susan Ronald about her new biography about Joseph Kennedy, The Ambassador
Susan Ronald explains why FDR chose Joseph Kennedy, a man without diplomatic skills, to be ambassador to Great Britain between 1938 and 1940
Aug 4, 2021 • 31min
Talking with Connie Palmen about her biographical novel, written in the voice of Ted Hughes
Talking with Connie Palmen about her biographical novel written in the voice of Ted Hughes: Your Story, My Story. We discuss the principles, practices, and mechanics of biographical fiction.
Aug 1, 2021 • 45min
A talk with Jerome Charyn about his novel, Sergeant Salinger, and the aims of biographical fiction.
Think there is a sharp dividing line between biography and biographical fiction? Jerome Charyn disagrees.
Jul 31, 2021 • 55min
Part 3 of our discussion on the principles, practices, and mechanics of biography
A special treat in this episode: Tim Christian reads from his forthcoming biography of Mary Hemingway.
