Profile: Michael Lewis

A look at some of the personalities at TW Fest

Michael Lewis went to Newman. I didn't know that, but in New Orleans where you went to high school trumps all; it probably means more, locally, than the fact that he went to Princeton and then the London School of Economics. He hit the big time with Liar's Poker, which was one of the big three 1980s go-go greedfest stories that seemed to sum up the decade (along with The Bonfire of the Vanities and Oliver Stone's Wall Street).

Fortunately for readers, he left Salomon Brothers and followed a writing career; he's now a contributor to the New York Times Sunday Magazine, and he's written a slew of books, including The New New Thing (a look at Silicon Valley) and Moneyball (about the hapless but somehow successful Oakland A's). Right now Michael lives in Berkeley and Paris with his family.

Oh, and remember Tabitha Soren, the anchor from MTV News back in the day? His wife.

Thu., Mar. 29, 3:15 pm:
"Michael Lewis: Behind the Zeitgeist" (master class)
Sat., Mar. 31, 1 pm:
"Politics as Theater/Theater as Politics"

The Times-Picayune on the Fest

Susan Larson, longtime book editor of The Times-Picayune, has a short article up about this year's Fest. There's sure to be more coverage at nola.com before Mar. 25.

Profile: Yusef Komunyakaa

A look at some of the personalities at the TW Fest

Yusef Komunyakaa was born in Bogalusa, La. (a couple hours' drive north from New Orleans) and served in the Army during the Vietnam War--two experiences that inform his Pulitzer Prize-winning poetry (he won in 1994 for his collection Neon Vernacular: New and Selected Poems). One of his most famous poems, "Facing It," is a meditation on the Vietnam Veterans' War Memorial in Washington, D.C. He is currently a professor at Princetown University.

Komunyakaa is credited with bringing the syncopations of jazz and Southern music into poetry; he is supposed to be a terrific speaker and a mesmerizing reader. The Academy of American Poets says:

Komunyakaa has long been inspired by the black musicians of the 1950s and 1960s who overcame obstacles of prejudice, crossed color lines in their choice of bandmates, and were embraced by the population as a whole, despite ongoing racism in the culture. To Komunyakaa, their careers demonstrate the ability of music to humanize and unite people, evidence of "democracy in action."

Click here to hear Yusef Komunyakaa read his poem "My Father's Love Letters."

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Fri., Mar. 30, 3:15 pm:
"Yusef Komunyakaa: All That Jazz" (master class)

Sat., Apr. 1, 2:30 pm:
"A Conversation with Yusef Komunyakaa"

Profile: Calvin Trillin

A look at some of the personalities at the TW Fest

Calvin Trillin is a staff writer at The New Yorker, with more than 25 books to his credit (the ones I've read have been about family and food - he's a great food writer). His first book, published in 1964, was a look at the integration of the University of Georgia; his latest book, About Alice, is a look back at his late wife, partner, and inspiration, and it's gotten rave reviews everywhere. Trillin is also a syndicated columnist, and has written more articles for The Nation than any other writer.

Here's a fascinating interview with Mr. Trillin on salon.com, which includes the following factoid:

But despite publishing 16 books (including two novels and a volume of short stories), Trillin didn't debut on the bestseller list until 1993, with Remembering Denny.

Sad for Mr. Trillin, but that should be inspirational to any writer: keep plugging.


Sun., Apr. 1, 10 am:
"Writing From Memory: An Insider's Look at Autobiography"

Sun., Apr. 1, 2:30 pm:
"A Conversation with Calvin Trillin"

Fest in the press

Patti Nickell, another New Orleans expatriate, has a nice story in the Lexington Herald-Leader about this year's TW Fest. She's scheduled to be there too.

Festival schedule is set

The official Fest schedule came out today - you can download a copy here.

And it looks great! Besides the panel discussions, there's a lot of theater this year, as well as food events, parties, etc.

I'm still going through it, but a few quick first impressions...

THU. MAR. 29 - Master classes with Barry Gifford and Michael Lewis. Gifford has written more than any three authors you could name - plus he collaborated with David Lynch on the movies Wild at Heart and Lost Highway. And Lewis "blogged" the 1996 presidential campaign before there were blogs in his very funny Trail Fever.

FRI. MAR. 30 - The first big day of the Fest. There are big conversations with Sharyn McCrumb and Richard Ford, two plays, the Scholar's Conference, and a lot of panels. One that I won't miss is "Southern Culture on the Skids?" (1 pm), which has two very funny men: Chris Rose, the columnist for The Times-Picayune, and my old neighbor Mike Swindle, who's like Hunter S. Thompson back when he was still good (and alive, I suppose).

SAT. MAR. 31 - More panels: first novelists, coastal erosion issues, "Noir: New Orleans Style" (another can't-miss), Grace Zabriskie performing The Last Madam (directed by my old friend Carl Walker), talking cooking with chef John Besh, and talking Tennessee with Kenneth Holditch and John Waters....and quite a bit more.

SUN. APR. 1 - "An Insider's Look at Autobiography," with Calvin Trillin and Haven Kimmel? I'm there. Same with the desserts panel (and tasting) at the Ritz-Carlton, featuring one of New Orleans' real culinary treasures, Mrs. Leah Chase. And at 4 pm, the annual Stanley/Stella Shouting Contest in Jackson Square (by which time a number of participants will be drunk, or nursing hangovers) - perfect for April Fool's Day.

That's just some of it - read the whole catalog...