Nicholas von Hoffman
Nicholas von Hoffman | |
---|---|
Born | Nicholas von Hoffman October 16, 1929 New York City, U.S. |
Died | February 1, 2018 | (aged 88)
Nationality | American |
Occupation | Journalist |
Known for | 60 Minutes Point/Counterpoint |
Nicholas von Hoffman (October 16, 1929 – February 1, 2018) was an American
Life and career
A native New Yorker of
Beginning in 1979 and continuing through the 1980s, von Hoffman recorded over two-hundred radio commentaries, audio op-eds in the sardonic style he used on 60 Minutes. These commentaries were broadcast on the nationally syndicated daily radio program, Byline, which was sponsored by the Cato Institute. Subjects of von Hoffman's audio op-eds included the 1984 Democratic primary candidates, the Reagan administration's foreign policy in Central America and the Middle East, and the cynical, self-serving misuse of language by politicians.
Von Hoffman wrote more than a dozen books, notably: Capitalist Fools: Tales of American Business, from Carnegie to Forbes to the Milken Gang (1992), Citizen Cohn (1988), a biography of
Von Hoffman was fired by Don Hewitt for referring to President Richard Nixon, at the height of the Watergate scandal, as "the dead mouse on the kitchen floor of America, and the only question now is who's going to pick him up by his tail and throw him in the garbage." His collaborations, both literary and otherwise, with Doonesbury cartoonist Garry Trudeau are worth noting, in particular the 1976 book Tales From the Margaret Mead Taproom. In this book, he recounted his adventures in American Samoa with Trudeau and actress Elizabeth Ashley, as they and several others experienced life in the American territory, which Trudeau had lampooned in a series of Doonesbury strips involving Uncle Duke's adventures as the territory's appointed governor. He also wrote for the Architectural Digest.
Von Hoffman died on February 1, 2018, and was survived by three sons: Alexander von Hoffman, a noted historian; Aristodemos, who works in intelligence; and Constantine, also a journalist.
Works
(partial list)
- The Multiversity: A Personal Report on What Happens to Today's Students at American Universities
- We Are the People Our Parents Warned Us Against
- Mississippi Notebook
- Two, Three, Many More
- Organized Crimes
- Citizen Cohn (Doubleday, 1988)
- Capitalist Fools: Tales of American Business, from Carnegie to Forbes to the Milken Gang
- Hoax: Why Americans Are Suckered by White House Lies
- Geneva (play)[10]
- Radical: A Portrait of Saul Alinsky (Nation Books, July 2010)
In popular culture
In 1988, fictional presidential candidate Jack Tanner named von Hoffman as his pick for
.References
- ^ Nicholas von Hoffman, Radical: A Portrait of Saul Alinsky (Nation Books, 2010), pp. 1, 213.
- ^ "Biography in Context – Document: "Nicholas von Hoffman"". ic.galegroup.com. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
- ^ McFadden, Robert D. (February 1, 2018). "Nicholas von Hoffman, Provocative Journalist and author, Dies at 88". The New York Times. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
- ^ "Anna L. Bruenn, dentist, Mother Of Columnist". The Washington Post. May 5, 1978. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
- S.I. Hayakawa, ed., Our Language and Our World: Selections from ETC.: A Review of General Semantics (NY: Harper & Brothers, 1959), 65
- ^ Sherman, Scott. "Washington 2002: Donald Graham's Washington Post". Columbia Journalism Review. No. 5: September/October 2002. Archived from the original on November 24, 2003. Retrieved November 24, 2003.
- ^ "Lending Lunacy Can't Be Repeated". Observer. February 12, 2008. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
- ^ "Soak the Rich to Pay for Bush's War". Observer. April 24, 2007. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
- ^ "Nicholas von Hoffman". Observer. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
- ^ "Biography in Context – Document: "Turning a black businesswoman into a token in a debut effort"". ic.galegroup.com. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
Further reading
- Roberts, Chalmers M. (1977). The Washington Post: The First 100 Years. Boston, MA: Houghton.
External links
- "Index of von Hoffman columns". The New York Observer. Archived from the original on December 11, 2004.
- "Articles by von Hoffman". New York Review of Books.
- "The Big Lie (excerpt from Hoax)". Archived from the original on October 30, 2004.
- "Commenting on the Clinton-Dole Segments on 60 Minutes and describing his "dead mouse" comment".
- "Commenting on David Brooks". The Nation.
- "Nicholas Von Hoffman articles". The Nation.
- "Nicholas Von Hoffman's blog". HuffPost.
- C-SPAN Q&A interview with von Hoffman, September 12, 2010
- Incomplete Collection of Nicholas von Hoffman commentaries on CBS Radio Spectrum, 1972–1973
- Nicholas von Hoffman, Post Reporter and Columnist with a Literary Flair, dies at 88