Stephen b oates biography of mahatma

No writer, historian, or filmmaker ever took me nearly as close to Abraham Lincoln, the man, as did Stephen B. I have always been indebted to him for that. He was average height but very slim, yet he had a voice that projected without amplification to the farthest reaches of a lecture hall.

Stephen B. Oates discusses his book "Let the Trumpets Sound: A Biography of Martin Luther King;" 2 short excerpts played during the program: one of Terkel.

Elegantly attired, usually in a three-piece suit, and meticulously prepared for every class, Dr. Stephen B. Oates, a former professor of history at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, passed away August 20, , at the age of He had a number of health issues in his later years, most recently cancer, which ultimately stilled that twangy though authoritative voice.

He brought these figures back to life with an inimitable style that was as far from academically arid in tone as one could imagine. He also published lives of William Faulkner and Clara Barton, and a pair of books that covered the breadth of the Civil War with the key players themselves providing first-person narratives not unlike what the late Michael Shaara did in The Killer Angels.

He lived in Amherst for many years during and after his tenure at UMass, right up to his death.

Oates' most recommended books.

I was fortunate enough to be one of his students. The latter was the first time he had taught a course on the subject to undergraduates, and he handpicked the students. We became friendly, and I maintained a correspondence with Oates for several years after I graduated in When I encountered a statue of Lincoln in Quito, Ecuador, I sent him a photo with a note saying I had bumped into a mutual friend.

When a new edition of one of his books came out, he would invariably send me a signed copy. Regretfully, it had been several years since we were in touch. I have a very strong memory of Oates lecturing.