Typed Letter Signed
1965.
Typed, signed letter from United States Senator and Minority Leader Everett Dirksen to Washington Post columnist Tom Shales. Written on US Senate letterhead in 1965, Dirksen thanks Shales "...for your note. No Doubt the resolution referred to in you letter will received favorable attention". The resolution mentioned is likely the Voting Rights Act that Dirksen heavily championed and introduced the "Dirksen Amendment," which sought to exempt state legislatures from the "one-man, one-vote" rule. Tom Shales wrote extensively about American political culture and the broadcast era, occasionally likening the oratorical, behind-the-scenes style of modern politicians to the legendary Senator Dirksen.
Everett McKinley Dirksen was an American politician. A Republican, he represented Illinois in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate. As Senate Minority Leader from 1959 until his death in 1969, he played a highly visible and key role in the politics of the 1960s. He helped write and pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968, both landmark pieces of legislation during the civil rights movement. He was also one of the Senate's strongest supporters of the Vietnam War. A talented orator with a florid style and a notably rich bass voice, he delivered flamboyant speeches that caused his detractors to refer to him as "The Wizard of Ooze".
This item is from the collection of Television critic Tom Shales (1944 - 2024). Shales was an incisively funny Washington Post columnist, he earned the nickname Terrible Tom and had the clout to make or break shows. Shales won the Pulitzer Prize for criticism in 1988. During his three-decade career those in the industry considered him both a kingmaker and a high executioner in an era when network television's hold on American culture was at it's peak. Time magazine called him "brilliant, thoughtful, incisive and screamingly funny...also, vicious, infuriating, cruel and unfair". His thrice-weekly Washington Post TV column, 'On the Air,' syndicated in 59 other newspapers. The Tom Shales collection includes letters, cards and correspondence from celebrated television and entertainment legends, newscasters and politicians, including letters from Norman Lear, David Letterman, Johnny Carson, Conan O'Brien, Garry Shandling, Fred Rogers, Carol Burnett, David Brinkley, Dan Rather, Tom Brokaw, Edward Kennedy, Nancy Reagan and many more. Please inquire for more information. Binding: Unbound
Language: English
Price: $200.00
Item #337545