Eric Burns is a former correspondent for NBC News and the Today show. For ten years, he was the host of Fox News Watch, and he won an Emmy for media criticism. He is the author of several books, including 1920: The Year That Made the Decade Roar, Infamous Scribblers, The Spirits of America, and The Smoke of the Gods, the latter two of which were named "Best of the Best" by the American Library Association. He resides in Norwalk, Connecticut.
. . . the clear message of [1957] is that the center wasn't
holding. The Western escapism on TV (Gunsmoke) and re-litigation of
World War II glories in theaters (The Bridge on the River Kwai)
belied emerging ideological fault lines that would widen in the
coming decades.Ingeniously, Burns connects chapters about Billy
Graham's 97-day run at New York stadiums with the publication of
Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged, twin milestones for evangelicals and
libertarians. . . . Burns's casual look beneath the surface reveals
a host of disintegrations and delayed reckonings, ones that have
lasted to this day.-- "AIR MAIL"
A densely written, fact-packed account of a pivotal period in U.S.
history.-- "Washington Independent Review of Books"
Eric Burns' fast-paced cultural history spotlights 1957 - a pivotal
year in Eisenhower's America. Burns connects the dots to show how
Sputnik, the Little Rock Nine, the McClellan Committee, Jack
Kerouac, Billy Graham, Walter O'Malley, West Side Story, the '57
Chevy, rock & roll, and more helped shape modern America. --Richard
Aquila, Professor Emeritus of History, Penn State University, the
Behrend College
In 1957: The Year That Launched the American Future, a fascinating,
fast-paced chronicle manifested by articulately rendered,
thought-provocative chapter-length essays, author and journalist
Eric Burns reminds us of what a pivotal year that proved to be, not
only by kindling that first contest to dominate space, but in
multiple other arenas of the social, political, and cultural, much
that is only apparent in retrospect.-- "Regarp Book Blog"
4.5/5 Stars. 1957 offers a candid view of an eventful year in a
decade of ups and downs. From mad bombers to mad hatters, the book
maintains a consistency of captivating chapters . . . The past is
reanimated with a passionate fervor for the masses to enjoy.--
"Manhattan Book Review"
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