David McCullough

Is a two time winner of the Pulitzer Prize, for his biographies "Truman" and "John Adams".

Attended Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

He was the 2009 Commencement Speaker at the University of Oklahoma.

Favorite actor is James Stewart.

Grew up with a love of movies, and aspired to become an actor.

Was good friends with the late Ted Kennedy who was his Senator.

Does his writing in a small shack outside his home with no phone, TV, or computer. He prefers the privacy and lack of distractions.

Part of the 2009 Commencement speech: There is no such thing as a,self-made man or woman. Never was, never will be. We are all, as were,those in whose footsteps we follow shaped by the influence and examples,of countless other-parents, grandparents, friends, rivals. And by those,who wrote the music that moves us to our souls, those whose performance,on stage or on the playing field took our breaths away, those who wrote,the great charters which are the bedrock of our system of,self-government. And so many who, to our benefit, struggled and,suffered many times of trouble and grave uncertainty. And by,teachers. . . I want to stress as emphatically as I can the immeasurable,importance of teachers.

Let the children have their night of fun and laughter. Let the gifts of Father Christmas delight their play. Let us grown-ups share to the full in their unstinted pleasures before we turn again to the stern task and the formidable years that lie before us, resolved that, by our sacrifice and daring, these same children shall not be robbed of their inheritance or denied their right to live in a free and decent world. " Winston Churchill Christmas Eve Message, 1941 as printed in "In the Dark Streets Shineth.

Any nation that expects to be ignorant and free," Jefferson said, "expects what never was and never will be. " And if the gap between the educated and the uneducated in America continues to grow as it is in our time, as fast as or faster than the gap between the rich and the poor, the gap between the educated and the uneducated is going to be of greater consequence and the more serious threat to our way of life. We must not, by any means, misunderstand that.

The more Adams thought about the future of his country, the more convinced he became that it rested on education. Before any great things are accomplished, he wrote to a correspondent, a memorable change must be made in the system of education and knowledge must become so general as to raise the lower ranks of society nearer to the higher. The education of a nation instead of being confined to a few schools and universities for the instruction of the few, must become the national care and expense for the formation of the many.

Nothing ever invented provides such sustenance, such infinite reward for time spent, as a good book.

Remove yourself, sir!,Indeed, bribery, favoritism, and corruption in a great variety of forms were rampant not only in politics, but in all levels of society.

Those for whom things came easily usually made less of an effort, not more.

. . . it is always easier to deal with things than with men, and no one can direct his life entirely as he would choose. -Wilbur Wright, 1911,We who are residing in a foreign country, away from the immediate scene of action, perhaps can feel more deeply than those at home the evil effects of the present distracted condition of our country.

There was no opiate like a French pillow.

All the money anyone needs is just enough to prevent one from being a burden to others. -Bishop Milton Wright,To be unable to read was the ultimate measure of wretchedness.

A man who will steal for me will steal from me. " Theodore Roosevelt, dismissing on the spot one of his best cowhands who was about to claim for his boss an unmarked animal.

The source of our suffering has been our timidity. We have been afraid to think. . . . Let us dare to read, think, speak, write.

Government is nothing more than the combined force of society or the united power of the multitude for the peace, order, safety, good, and happiness of the people. . . There is no king or queen bee distinguished from all the others by size or figure or beauty and variety of colors in the human hive. No man has yet produced any revelation from heaven in his favor, any divine communication to govern his fellow men. Nature throws us all into the world equal and alike. . . The preservation of liberty depends upon the intellectual and moral character of the people. As long as knowledge and virtue are diffused generally among the body of a nation it is impossible they should be enslaved. Ambition is one of the more ungovernable passions of the human heart. The love of power is insatiable and uncontrollable. . . There is a danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living wth power to endanger public liberty.

A veteran artist counsels a less experienced one to start a painting using colors in the middle range so that the painter can move to more extreme colors as the work progresses.

Our obligations to our country never cease but with our lives. - John Adams,The reason is, because it’s of more importance to community, that innocence should be protected, than it is, that guilt should be punished.

On a medical school professor noted for slowly, carefully interviewing the patient: "He taught the love of truth.

The author perceptively outlines what might be an underrated aspect of his subject and of many others whose public achievements are of note – a "gift for friendship". McCullough says Adams, despite his towering intellect and curmudgeonly demeanor, had a soft heart for other people and a genuine interest in their particulars.

Rather than literally burning the midnight oil, which he judged to be unhealthy, John Adams advised his son to make the most of college by developing an inquisitive outlook that would prompt him to get to know the most exceptional scholars and question them closely. "Ask them about their tutors, manner of teaching. Observe what books lie on their tables. Fall into questions of literature, science, or what you will.

In America, applause is won only by physical exertion.

History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. History is who we are and why we are the way we are.

Real success is finding you lifework in the work that you love. .