Hardcover: 736 pages
Publisher: Random House; 1st edition (March 4, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0394576284
ISBN-13: 978-0394576282
Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 2.2 x 9.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #703,420 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #479 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Professionals & Academics > Lawyers & Judges #3820 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Leaders & Notable People > Political #13853 in Books > Law
This book will probably stand as the definitive examination of William O. Douglas as a person. Having undertaken over a decade of research, Murphy has produced an exhaustive (though not exhausting) account of Douglas' personal life, from his boyhood in eastern Washington through his early years as a lawyer, law school professor, and New Deal administrator, to his years on the Court. While the basic details have been known for nearly a quarter century, thanks to James Simon's earlier biography of the justice, Independent journey: The life of William O. Douglas, Murphy provides many new details gleaned from his research in the Douglas papers (which were closed when Simon wrote his book) and his extensive interviews with people who knew the justice offer several illustrative anecdotes. The result is an important corrective to the idealized image Douglas constructed of himself in his many autobiographical accounts, recounting his womanizing, his politicking, and his terrible treatment of his staff with considerable thoroughness. Murphy's descriptions of Douglas's failed campaigns to become the Democratic nominee for president are particularly fascinating, and alone justify the price of the book.In his effort to debunk the Douglas myths, though, the author adopts an excessively negative interpretation of the facts. Murphy claims, for example, that contrary to Douglas's assertions he did not suffer polio as a child, yet without definitive medical evidence to the contrary, such a topic can only remain an open question at best.
Wild Bill: The Legend and Life of William O. Douglas The Bill Evans Trio - Volume 1 (1959-1961): Featuring Transcriptions of Bill Evans (Piano), Scott LaFaro (Bass) and Paul Motian (Drums) Big Bill Blues: William Broonzy's Story William Shakespeare's Tragedy of the Sith's Revenge: Star Wars Part the Third (William Shakespeare's Star Wars) William Shakespeare's The Clone Army Attacketh: Star Wars Part the Second (William Shakespeare's Star Wars) Stella Adler on America's Master Playwrights: Eugene O'Neill, Thornton Wilder, Clifford Odets, William Saroyan, Tennessee Williams, William Inge, Arthur Miller, Edward Albee Edible Wild Plants: Wild Foods From Dirt To Plate (The Wild Food Adventure Series, Book 1) Wild Bill Sullivan: King of the Hollow Final Light: The Life and Art of V. Douglas Snow The Lost Tudor Princess: The Life of Lady Margaret Douglas After the Last Dog Died : The True-Life, Hair-Raising Adventure of Douglas Mawson's 1912 Antarctic Expedition Legend of the Mantamaji: Book 1 (Legend of Mantamaji): A Sci-Fi, Fantasy Graphic Novel Legend (A Legend Novel, Book 1) The Legend: Book 2 - The Truth about the Myth: The Mystery of Herobrine (The Legend: The Mystery of Herobrine) LIFE The Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton: Expanded, Commemorative Edition (Life (Life Books)) Mandell, Douglas and Bennett's Infectious Disease Essentials, 1e (Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases) The Nazi and the Psychiatrist: Hermann Göring, Dr. Douglas M. Kelley, and a Fatal Meeting of Minds at the End of WWII HBR's 10 Must Reads on Teams (with featured article The Discipline of Teams, by Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith) War at the End of the World: Douglas MacArthur and the Forgotten Fight for New Guinea 1942-1945 The Fab Five: Jordyn Wieber, Gabby Douglas, and the U.S. Women's Gymnastics Team (GymnStars Book 3)