Civil War authority Shelby Foote dead

AP via CNN.com ^ | 28 June 2005 | Unattributed

[Moose4]

MEMPHIS, Tennessee (AP) -- Novelist and Civil War historian Shelby Foote, whose appearances on a PBS-TV documentary series helped America better understand one of the most defining periods of its past, has died, his family said Tuesday.

Foote's widow, Gwen, said her husband, who was 88, died Monday night.

[Names Ash Housewares]

Sad to hear. The PBS Civl War documentary with his insight was one of the best things I have ever seen on TV.

[danno3150]

The story goes that Burns was just supposed to talk to Foote for a couple of hours. Foote was so good, that Burns ended up with 11 hours of usable footage. Frankly, I would pay more to see the uneditted footage than I would for Burns' stilted, agenda driven finished product.

Godspeed, Mr. Foote.

[DarthDilbert]

This is very sad news for me. I was fortunate to meet him a couple of times over the years. He was always very kind. When I was a kid, he lived just a short distance from my family outside Memphis. Rest in peace Mr. Foote.

[Molly Pitcher]

A loss...Foote MADE that Burns Civil War series.

[petitfour]

Mississippi ping

[BansheeBill]

I saw him once on CSpans booktalk. I believe he wrote all his books longhand, using an old "dip" fountain pen, where he had to dip the pen's nib in an inkwell everytime, after writing out just a few words.

[ladtx]

RIP Mr. Foote.

[awelliott]

Frankly, I would pay more to see the uneditted footage than I would for Burns' stilted, agenda driven finished product.


Agreed. Mr. Foote was the only thing that kept me from throwing my TV out in the front yard while watching Burns' "historical" epic...

[danno3150]

I've read all three volumes of Foote's Civil War chronicles and I got the sense that ol' Shelby thought that the wrong side had won the war. It sort of amused me that Burns, given his agenda, completely missed that and made Foote a focal point of his piece.

[Non-Sequitur]

That works out to 1000 words per volume. Doesn't seem like a lot. :-) Leave it to CNN.

It was a 3,000 page trilogy. Maybe the CNN version has an abridged version with really, really big print?

[bourbon]

BIG MS PING.

[PMCarey]

"his shorter Civil War books like "Stars in Their Courses: The Gettysburg Campaign."

I believe that book is an extended excerpt from Volume 2 of his Civil War trilogy.

[Non-Sequitur]

ACW Bump

[mware]

I fell in love the with old guy during Ken Burn's,The Civil War.

RIP to a Southern Gentleman.

[onyx]

Oh my goodness. I think husband has some of his books.

[bourbon]

Nope. That'd be a Mississippi Delta accent.

Link to obit in the Clarion-Ledger.

[mware]

Some of my favorite commentary from Foote was when he was talking about the men both North and South who fought in that war. It was as if he personally knew them.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Sad...

His "The Stars in their Courses" and "The Beleagured City" are a must buy in audiobook.... read by the author of course.

[RightWhale]

That was the golden era of PBS.

[4everontheRight]

"I fell in love the with old guy during Ken Burns,The Civil War."......

You and me both. I bought his books for my ex and when we divorced, he took them! Funny, he never fought for custody of our son. I'm not sure if that says more about my ex or about Mr. Foote's books!
He was a true Southern gentleman and there are not that many of those left...suave demeanor, draw-you-in-accent, dashing manner, quaint and respectful. Class all the way!

[superiorslots]

Quote: But, O Sarah! If the dead can come back to this earth and flit unseen around those they loved, I shall always be near you; in the gladdest days and in the darkest nights . . . always, always, and if there be a soft breeze upon your cheek, it shall be my breath, as the cool air fans your throbbing temple, it shall be my spirit passing by. Sarah do not mourn me dead; think I am gone and wait for thee, for we shall meet again . . .




(2005 version)
Yo S Wazzzz up? Almost got my balls almost got shot off today....

P.S. This is not a cutdown on todays soldiers but our corsening and lowering of society in general.

[Physicist]

Bibliopath ping.

[Ditto]

This is very sad news for me. I was fortunate to meet him a couple of times over the years.

I understand he was very much the gentleman but did not care for the limelight and that he wouldn't sign autographs, even of his own books.

[EllaMinnow]

I believe that book is an extended excerpt from Volume 2 of his Civil War trilogy.

You're right, they are excerpts. We bought "Stars in Their Courses" on our last trip to Gettysburg, and "The Beleaguered City" on our last trip to Vicksburg. They make better travel companions than their over-800-page predecessor.

[RadioAstronomer]

I am sorry to read this. :-(

[ARCADIA]

His three book series on the Civil War was excellent. He will be missed.

[giant sable]

Did an hour with him for PBS when the Civil War miniseries premiered. Met him at a studio near his house in Memphis. A small, soft-spoken and courtly gentleman, spoke just the way he did in the series. Very, very smart too, with the mind of novelist, which he was first and foremost. He got teary-eared only once, when we talked about his life-long best friend, the late Walker Percy, an even greater novelist.
Shelby invited me to go out and get some barbecue after the shoot, and I had to decline because my crew wanted to see Graceland. I still regret that one.
But at least I do have some correspondence from him, written in his elegant hand with a dipped pen . . .

[mware]

I understand he was very much the gentleman but did not care for the limelight and that he wouldn't sign autographs, even of his own books.

Actually I find this to be the act of a gentleman.

He wishes his privacy to be respected.

I always found it somewhat rude to approach someone famous and take their photograph or autography

[Tijeras_Slim]

They make better travel companions than their over-800-page predecessor.

See my post 68, they're even better for travelling.

[Bombardier]

He was an artillery officer in WWII, a talented novelist, and a great historian. I very consciously modeled my style of researching history on his Narrative History of the Civil War. Coming just a few days after my grandfather died, this hurts almost as much.

Thank you, Mr. Foote for rekindling my interest in the War Between the States and for showing me the value of learning the details and the funny little anecdotes that humanize history. I'll never forget you.

[LilDarlin]

Now this is a real loss. A mind like that and the ability to put words to paper come along far too rarely.

Rest in peace, good sir. You've earned it.

[Bombardier]

When did Brian die??????? Damn....this week is sucking more and more all the time......

[Steelerfan]

Enjoyed his work tremendously. He will be missed.

[The Citizen Soldier]

His 3-book history of the Civil War is a must-read for anybody serious about history.

I have two copies of his three-part history (one for reading, one for the bookshelf), and the MP3 version, which I believe runs about 160 hours.

Certainly my favorite Civil War historian.

RIP

[Tax-chick]

Couple of weeks ago?

[Ditto]

Interesting Interview with Shelby Foote.

[ravinson]

I've read his trilogy over and over again, and found only one error, where he puts Spencer carbines in the hands of John Buford's troops as they held off Ewell's corps west of town. Buford's guys carried mostly Sharps carbines. The Spencer carbine didn't get in the hands of the troops until the following October.

There has certainly been a lot of confusion about whether Buford's men had single shot carbines or Spencer repeating rifles (as I learned in researching my ancestors' 8th IL Cav). It's too bad Foote never cleared it up in later printings or speeches.

Nevertheless, his writing and speaking style was superb, and the fact that he spent 20 years researching and writing his three volume narrative is impressive.

[Bombardier]

Damn.....I was in line of battle a couple times with his 5th NY Zouaves. Man, this week is just getting better and better..... /sarc

[teacherwoes]

"..we have death so constantly before our eyes that it loses it terrors, and the question with us is not so much whether we shall die or not, but how we shall die and among what surroundings."

Capt. William Wheeler, 13th NY Light Artillery
Sept. 5, 1863, Catlett's Station, VA
killed in action June 22, 1864 at Kolb's Farm, GA

so long Mr. Foote.

[Tax-chick]

I'm so sorry for your loss ... much more personal for you than for those of us who've only seen a person on television.

[Bombardier]

Reenacting is a small world. Some of the people I met and came to call friends have been fairly well known. But Brian as well.....dang.....

[Ditto]

I always found it somewhat rude to approach someone famous and take their photograph or autography

I agree. I have met a number of "famous" people and have never once asked for an autograph. I do think it rude, and also I really have no interest in having their signature on a sheet of paper (with the exception of perhaps a blank check. ;~)).

But if I ever had the pleasure of meeting Foote, and if I had one of his books at hand, I probably would have been tempted to ask him to sign.

[Tax-chick]

I'm very sorry.

[Braak]

Amen to that, first Brian Pohanka, and now Mr. Foote. It's a tough time to be in the Civil War historical community.

[Graymatter]

I wore out several editions of his books. RIP, old companion of my gray matter.

[ladtx]

I had not heard that Brian Pohanka died. You are right, it is a tough time for the Civil War historical community.

[mware]

I do have some signed copies of books, but always obtained them at book signings. The only autograph I have is of Dr. Jonas Salk, and that hangs on the hall of my study.

[ariamne]

I don't know that he thought the wrong side won the war, but unlike some of the other historians on the Burns piece, with their clear northern bias, he showed reverence and respect for the men on both sides. I remember him saying he admired most Lincoln, Lee, and Nathan B. Forrest (not necessarily in that order!)

A truly wonderful American..we need more like him.

[billnaz]

Some of the confusion might come from the fact that members of Custer's Michigan Brigade on the eastern side of the battlefield carried Spencer repeating rifles, or so I've heard.

Hats off to your brave ancestors in the 8th Illinois Cavalry. I understand that a few of my ancestors were in Ewell's corps opposing them.

[muleskinner]

His appearance in the PBS documentary was one of the highlights of that production. Mr. Foote's audio book "Stars in Their Courses", is superb.

Thank you, Mr. Foote