American novelist (1931–2014)
Brock Brower
Born Brock Hendrickson Brower
(1931-11-27 ) November 27, 1931Died April 16, 2014(2014-04-16) (aged 82) Nationality American Occupation(s) Journalist, author Years active 1959–2006 Known for Esquire magazine profilesNotable work The Late Great Creature (1972)Spouse Ann Montgomery (married 1956-2014) Children 5
Brock Hendrickson Brower (November 27, 1931 – April 16, 2014) was an American novelist, magazine journalist, and TV writer of various magazines, including Esquire , Life , Harper’s Magazine , and The New York Times Magazine .[ 1] [ 2] [ 3]
Background
The son of Charles H. Brower , Brock Hendrickson Brower was born in Plainfield, New Jersey , and raised in Westfield, New Jersey . In 1953, he graduated from Dartmouth College , where he served as managing editor for The Dartmouth .[ 4] He then attended Harvard Law School but left to study English literature for his MA as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University 's Merton College .[ 1] [ 2] [ 5]
Career
From 1956 to 1958, Brower served two years in the U.S. Army in intelligence at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.[ 2]
In 1959, he joined Esquire ], for which he wrote profiles of Alger Hiss , Norman Mailer , and Mary McCarthy .[ 1]
He also wrote profiles of Vice Presidents Spiro T. Agnew and Walter F. Mondale . He profiled presidential candidates including Hubert Humphrey , Richard Nixon , George W. Romney , and Eugene McCarthy . He was writing about Ted Kennedy just before the Chappaquiddick incident in 1969.[ 1] [ 2]
In the late 1970s, he "helped originate" the ABC News program 20/20 for Hugh Downs and for 3-2-1 Contact (a science show produced by the Children’s Television Workshop ).[ 1] [ 2]
From 1989 to 1991, he was a speechwriter for Attorney General Richard Thornburgh .[ 1] [ 2]
From 1996 to 2006, he taught journalism at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, and was a writer-in-residence at Princeton University .[ 1] [ 2] [ 6]
Personal life and death
In 1956, he married Ann Montgomery, an American fashion model, in Paris.[ 1] [ 2]
Brower died of cancer in Santa Barbara, California , on April 16, 2014, at age 82.[ 1] [ 2]
Survivors include his wife, five children (Monty, Emily, Elizabeth, Margaret, and Alison ), brother Charles, and five grandchildren. He was predeceased by Anne C. Brower, bone radiologist and Episcopal priest.[ 1] [ 2]
Awards
Awards made to Brower include:[ 2]
His 1972 comedic novel The Late Great Creature was nominated for the National Book Award for Fiction .[ 1] [ 2]
Works
Books:
Debris (1967)
The Inchworm War and the Butterfly Peace (1970)
The Late Great Creature (1972, 2011)[ 7]
Putting America’s House in Order (1996) with co-author David M. Abshire
Blue Dog, Green River (2005)
Articles for Esquire :
"The Art of Fiction CXI" (December 1959)[ 8]
"A Lament for Old-Time Radio" (April 1960)[ 9]
"The Great Bubble Gum War" (September 1960)[ 10]
"The Problems of Alger Hiss" (December 1960)[ 11]
"Who's in Among the Analysts" (July 1961)[ 12]
"Fraternities" (October 1961)[ 13]
"The Abraham Lincoln Brigade Revisited" (March 1962)[ 14]
"Mary McCarthyism" (July 1962)[ 15]
"The Brothers Cassini" (February 1963)[ 16]
"The Vulgarization of American Demonology" (June 1964)[ 17]
"Rockabye" (April 1968)[ 18]
"Dylan’s Boathouse" (January 1971)[ 19]
"Play It Again, Sam, Bogie, Harry, Wendell, Claude" (November 1971)[ 20]
"The Conscience of Leon Jaworski" (February 1975)[ 21]
References
^ a b c d e f g h i j k
Bernstein, Albert (29 April 2014). "Brock Brower, magazine journalist, novelist and TV writer, dies at 82" . Washington Post . Retrieved 2 September 2016 .
^ a b c d e f g h i j k l
"Obituaries 4/30/14" . Town Topics. 30 April 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2016 .
^
"Obituaries" . Rhodes Trust. Archived from the original on 26 August 2016. Retrieved 2 September 2016 .
^ "Alums of The Dartmouth make their mark in journalism" . The Dartmouth. 16 April 1999. Retrieved 2 September 2016 .
^ Levens, R.G.C., ed. (1964). Merton College Register 1900–1964 . Oxford: Basil Blackwell. p. 453.
^
"Brower, Brock, 1931–" . Library of Congress. Retrieved 2 September 2016 .
^
Olmsted, Larry (22 September 2011). "40 Years Later, Acclaimed Novel Back From Dead" . Forbes . Retrieved 2 September 2016 .
^
Brower, Brock (December 1959). "The Art of Fiction CXI: A posthumous interview with Wm. Shakespeare" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (April 1960). "A Lament for Old-Time Radio: Those dear dead old radio days beyond recall" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (September 1960). "The Great Bubble Gum War: Mighty industries clash in the struggle to fill the mandibles of card-carrying children" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (December 1960). "The Problems of Alger Hiss: The past, the small jobs and a certain notoriety" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (July 1961). "Who's in Among the Analysts: Or how to tell one from the other before you settle for the couch" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (October 1961). "Fraternities: It's national vs. local in this civil war" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (March 1962). "The Abraham Lincoln Brigade Revisited: They have another bridgehead now" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (March 1962). "Mary McCarthyism: The lady is pretty and nice and smart. Smarter than you are, probably" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (February 1963). "The Brothers Cassini: Oleg and Igor: the Clothes and the Column" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (June 1964). "The Vulgarization of American Demonology: What was once, monster-wise, noble and true and frightening has become no more than a comic shadow of its former self" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (April 1968). "Rockabye: If at last you don't succeed, die, die, die again" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (January 1971). "Dylan's Boathouse: For sale: chrmg wterside cottge w/slp-in quartrs for the Muse" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (November 1971). "Play It Again, Sam, Bogie, Harry, Wendell, Claude: One more time, those good old Forties' blues" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
^
Brower, Brock (February 1975). "The Conscience of Leon Jaworski: Never underestimate it; those who did are very, very sorry" . Esquire . Retrieved 7 February 2018 .
External links