Authors
-
Robert J. Begiebing
Southern NH University
Author
-
Ray Elliott
Author
-
J. Michael Lennon
Wilkes University
Author
-
Warren Mason
Plymouth State University
Author
Keywords:
World War II literature, literary legacy, public intellectualism, literary canon and teaching, cultural relevance, New Journalism, panel discussion
Abstract
A panel and discussion took place on November 11, 2011, in the Prothro Theatre of the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas, Austin, during the joint conference of the James Jones and Norman Mailer Societies. The panel discussed the contemporary relevance of Norman Mailer and James Jones.
Author Biographies
-
Robert J. Begiebing, Southern NH University
Robert J. Begiebing is the author of seven books, a play, and thirty articles and stories. His books include two studies of Norman Mailer and a trilogy of novels spanning 1648–1850. His novel Rebecca Wentworth’s Distraction won the Langum Prize for historical fiction. The Strange Death of Mistress Coffin was chosen as a Main Selection for the Mystery and Literary Guild Book Clubs. His fiction writing has been supported by grants from the Wallace Foundation and the New Hampshire Council for the Arts. In 2007, Governor John Lynch appointed Begiebing to the Council for the Arts. In 2009 he served both as one of the inaugural faculty members at the Norman Mailer Writers’ Colony and as finalist judge for the Langum Prize. He is Professor Emeritus and founding director of the Low-Residency MFA in Fiction and Nonfiction at Southern NH University.
-
Ray Elliott
Ray Elliott is a director and three-time past president of the James Jones Literary Society. He is an author of historical fiction pertaining to World War II and has published numerous works of nonfiction by other writers. He was a longtime educator in English and journalism at both the secondary and collegiate level. Currently, he serves as communications director for the Iwo Jima Association of America and editor of the Fifth Marine Division Association’s publication, The Spearhead. Ray grew up in the same region of the country as author James Jones and, like Jones, has helped inspire young writers to develop their craft.
-
J. Michael Lennon, Wilkes University
J. Michael Lennon is Emeritus Professor of English at Wilkes University and co-authored with Mailer On God: An Uncommon Conversation. He has recently edited Mailer’s Marilyn for Taschen Books, and is currently writing Mailer’s authorized biography for publication by Simon and Schuster in 2013.
-
Warren Mason, Plymouth State University
Warren Mason is a Professor of Corporate & Professional Communication in the College of Business Administration and Department of Communication Studies at Plymouth State University, Plymouth, New Hampshire. He is the recipient of PSU’s Distinguished Graduate Teaching Award. Dr. Mason is active in the Public Relations Society of America and the Association for Business Communication, and he regularly advises organizations on public relations and media issues. He is also an officer and member of the James Jones Literary Society’s Board of Directors.
