Joseph persico fdr biography

The Library lost a dear friend and favorite researcher last week. Joseph Persico, best-selling author, historian and speechwriter for Gov. Nelson Rockefeller died at the age of 84. Persico wrote 12 books, including biographies of Rockefeller, Edward R. Murrow, CIA director William Casey and Franklin Roosevelt. He was selected to write the words etched in granite at the National World War II Memorial: “Here we mark the price of freedom.”

Of Persico’s writing career, Eric Sevaried described his Edward R. Murrow: An American Original as “the definitive” biography of the broadcast pioneer. The New York Times said of Persico’s The Imperial Rockefeller, “No one has written a book like this about Nelson Rockefeller before.” His Nuremberg: Infamy on Trial was described by the broadcast journalist, Howard K. Smith, as “Simply the best account of the trial.” This book was adapted by Turner Network Television as a miniseries that won

•

Joseph E. Persico

American author and military historian

Joseph Edward Persico (July 19, 1930 – August 30, 2014) was an author and American military historian. From 1974 to 1977, he was primary speechwriter to Vice PresidentNelson Rockefeller. At the time of his death, he lived in Guilderland, New York.^[1] His book Nuremberg: Infamy on Trial tells the story of the Nuremberg Trials; it was adapted for television as the docudrama Nuremberg.

Early life

[edit]

Joseph Edward Persico was born in Gloversville, New York on July 19, 1930, to Thomas Persico and Bianca Perrone.^[2] In 1952 he received a Bachelor of Arts grad in English and Political Science from the New York State College for Teachers (now the University at Albany). Following graduation, he joined the U.S. Navy where he served as a Lieutenant (junior grade) aboard a minesweeper and also worked at NATO Headquarters Naples, Italy.^[3]

Political career

[edit]

After thr

•

Joseph Persico: Historian and biographer who chronicled both the public and secret lives of Franklin D Roosevelt

Joseph Persico was a best-selling historian and biographer who wrote about espionage during the Second World War and the leadership and romantic inclinations of Franklin D Roosevelt, and who co-wrote Colin Powell's autobiography. He also served as chief speechwriter for Nelson Rockefeller, New York governor and later vice president.

Among his dozen books, Persico published three popular and well-received studies of Roosevelt, examining his roles as presidential leader, military commander and keeper of secrets, both tjänsteman and private. In his 2008 book Franklin & Lucy, Persico offered persuasive evidence that the president carried on a decades-long affair with Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd, a former secretary to Eleanor Roosevelt.

The romance continued during Roosevelt's presidency, Persico believed. Rutherfurd visited the White House more than 40 times under an assumed name