At the age of 87, Mike Wallace is a legendary figure in broadcast journalism. Now, after 60 years of reporting on important events around the world, he shares his personal stories about the incredible range of celebrities, newsmakers, criminals, and world leaders who have subjected themselves to his unique brand of questioning.Through Wallace's intimate observations about these figures, we experience afresh the pivotal events that have shaped our world. Here, we meet the guilt-racked Secret Service agent assigned to John F. Kennedy's car in Dallas. We learn about the candid moment when President Nixon revealed an unexpected softer side. We witness the underpinnings of the century's greatest social movement through Wallace's eyes as he manages to earn the trust of major civil rights leaders, and we see the trauma Wallace experienced while covering the conflict in Israel. These off-camera anecdotes and fascinating excerpts from Wallace's interviews — with everyone from Eleanor Roosevelt to all the presidents of the last half century, from Frank Lloyd Wright to Johnny Carson, from Margaret Sanger to Malcom X — give us a new perspective on some of the greatest lives and minds of our time.
With a reporter's eye for detail, Wallace mingles laughter, tragedy, and revelatory insight in a memoir unlike any other. For anyone who's ever wondered what it's like to make history for a living, this is a must-read.
A leading force behind 60 Minutes, CBS's seminal newsmagazine, Mike Wallace has won countless awards for his work (including the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award, three Alfred I. Dupont Columbia University Awards, three George Foster Peabody Awards, a Robert E. Sherwood Award, and a Distinguished Achievement Award from the University of Southern California School of Journalism) and has been inducted into the TV Hall of Fame. Wallace is the co-author, with Gary Paul Gates, of Close Encounters, a 1984 national bestseller. He lives in New York City.