Synopses & Reviews
Bill Gutman has been a freelance writer for more than three decades. In that time, he has written more than 200 books for children and adults, the majority of them in the sports field with an emphasis on biography and sports history. After graduating from Washington College in 1965, Mr. Gutman did graduate work at the University of Bridgeport (Connecticut), then took his first writing job with the Greenwich Time, a daily newspaper in Greenwich, Connecticut. He began as a reporter and feature writer in 1967, later becoming the paper's sports editor. After a short stint in the advertising world, Mr. Gutman returned to writing as a full time freelancer in 1972. His first book was a Grosset & Dunlap adult-level biography of former basketball great, Pistol Pete Maravich, published in 1972. Pistol was a Sports Illustrated Sports Book-of-the-Month Club alternate selection. Since that time, Gutman has written biographies of a wide variety of sports stars. Gutman has penned numerous biographies for the elementary and middle group readers, while the subjects of his recent young adult biographies, written for Pocket Books, include Michael Jordan, Bo Jackson, Shaquille O'Neal, Grant Hill, David Robinson, Tiger Woods, Ken Griffey, Jr., Brett Favre, Sammy Sosa, and Marion Jones. Among Bill Gutman's non-sports books are biographies of former New York Jets football coach, Bill Parcells, Parcells: A Biography, and a biography of former president Andrew Jackson.In the course of publicizing his books, Bill Gutman has appeared on numerous radio programs as well as several television shows, including "A Current Affair," Chet Coppock's "NewSporTalk," and "Sportstalk Live with Brian Kenny." He was recently interviewed for an HBO documentary on Bobby Thomson's 1951 epic home run, a film being produced by Black Canyon Productions and scheduled for airing in July of 2001.
Description
Edward Kennedy `Duke` Ellington was one of jazz`s greatest innovators. Join Bill Gutman as he explores the fascinating life of this legend from his birth at the turn of the century to his death at the age of seventy-five. Interviewing Duke`s friends, fans and fellow musicians, Gutman documents the progression of a man who dedicated his life to crafting the ever-changing sound of jazz. Gutman plunges into the history of jazz from its origin in the black America honky-tonk sounds of the Ragtime Era to the serious form enjoyed by young and old of every age, color, and musical taste. Jazz has evolved through the years to become one of the most popular forms of music with Duke Ellington as chief spokesperson. Gutman`s account of Ellington`s life as it parallels the history of jazz provides a fascinating history for both jazz veterans and newcomers to the genre.