He will always be Father Gannon to me. I still remember him trying to keep order during the Race and Viet Nam riots.
Jerry From: gatorn...@googlegroups.com [mailto:gatorn...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Shane Ford Sent: Wednesday, March 24, 2010 9:05 AM To: gatorn...@googlegroups.com Subject: [gatornews] [SUN]: Gannon to get Florida literary award [Unger] Gannon to get Florida literary award The historian and Gainesville resident will be honored by Gov. Crist. <http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=GS&Date=20100324&Categ ory=ARTICLES&ArtNo=3241003&Ref=AR&Profile=1118&MaxW=600&border=0> Erica Brough/Staff photographer Buy <http://reprints.gainesville.com/cgi-bin/fotobroker.cgi?c=latest.htm&a=&op_b y_line=contains&by_line=Brough&b=photo_db&s=&t=&show=3-4> photo Michael Gannon, 82, a renowned scholar and writer known as the dean of Florida historians for his work spanning more than four decades, has won the inaugural Florida Lifetime Literary Achievement Award, shown Monday, March 22, 2010 at Emerson Alumni Hall at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Fla. By Julie Unger Gainesville SUN Correspondent Published: Wednesday, March 24, 2010 at 6:01 a.m. Last Modified: Tuesday, March 23, 2010 at 10:52 p.m. For more than 40 years, historian Michael Gannon has chronicled the storied past of his adopted Sunshine State, from its Spanish colonial roots through its wartime sacrifices to its critical role in the exploration of space. Today, Gov. Charlie Crist will honor the 82-year-old distinguished service professor of history emeritus at the University of Florida by awarding him the first Florida Lifetime Literary Achievement Award. Gannon was the unanimous choice of a five-judge panel selected by the Florida Humanities Council. He was nominated for the inaugural honor along with Patrick Smith, Stetson Kennedy, Harry Kersey, Robert Olen Butler, David Kirby and Connie Mae Fowler. Crist will host a luncheon today at the Governor's Mansion honoring Gannon and other authors as part of the Tallahassee Festival of Books & Authors Conference, said Janine Farver, executive director of the Florida Humanities Council. "He lives and breathes Florida history," Farver said of Gannon. "He has been a very distinguished Florida historian for several decades. He's probably written some of the most important historical books on Florida." Among Gannon's books on Florida are "Rebel Bishop," published in 1964, and "The Cross in the Sand," published in 1965, both of which deal with the Catholic Church's early influence in the state, and the more recent "Michael Gannon's History of Florida in 40 Minutes." Gannon also has been hailed nationally as a World War II historian, with his most recent book, "Pearl Harbor Betrayed," published in 2001, revisiting the decisions and circumstances behind the Japanese attack of Dec. 7, 1941. Joseph F. Spillane, associate professor and chair of UF's history department, said Gannon richly deserves the state's first lifetime achievement award. "That's as it should be. He's about as closely identified with the history of Florida as anybody," Spillane said. Only Gannon is not originally from Florida. After Gannon's father died unexpectedly in 1939, his mother moved him and his two brothers from Oklahoma to Florida. Gannon said his mother was going to keep driving in Florida until they found a town they liked, which they found in St. Augustine. It was in the nation's oldest city that Gannon's literary career began, as a sports writer. He also would become a war correspondent in Vietnam as well as a Catholic priest. "Even though I haven't lived there since 1967, I still call St. Augustine home," Gannon said in a recent interview at the Emerson Alumni Hall across from the University of Florida campus. Gainesville has been Gannon's residence since 1967, when he joined the faculty in UF's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in the history and religion departments. He retired from the active faculty in 2003. "For somebody in his early 80s, he's still publishing, still lecturing," Spillane said. "Not only does he write beautifully, but he's an incredible lecturer as well. There are few writers, much less historians, that have spent time traveling the length and breadth of the state of Florida giving lectures." Gannon, who often can be found on the UF campus carrying a wide-ruled yellow pad and a fine-line ballpoint pen, said he and his wife of 30 years, Genevieve Haugen, are enjoying their retirement. "They say that a historian never really retires; he or she simply changes workplaces. So I'm doing much the same thing now - doing research and writing - that I did when I was active as a faculty member. The only thing I'm not doing now is teaching," he said. In total, Gannon has either authored, edited or written in association with others 11 book titles. He has written dozens of articles, mostly in academic journals. Gannon said his favorite book he authored is "Operation Drumbeat," published in 1990, which is a history of Germany's first U-boat operations along the American coast during World War II. "I wrote it the way I would like to read a great sea story," he said. On Tuesday, "My Friend Zelma: The Trial of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings," a play by Gannon, opens in St. Augustine at the Limelight Theatre's Studio. The play uses court transcripts from one of the best-known trials in Gainesville, Gannon said. Gannon's books, articles, and teachings have touched the lives of many in the Gainesville community, including former student Kathleen Deagan. Deagan, distinguished research curator of archeology and Lockwood professor of Florida and Caribbean archeology at UF, took a history class with Gannon in 1966. Gannon was on Deagan's graduate committee, and "we've been colleagues and friends ever since." "He really embodies Florida history," Deagan says on the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences' Web site. "He is the guy who does Florida history throughout the state. He has taught so many people who have gone on to lead Florida in so many areas: politics, academics, law, business." But Gannon's greatest asset might be the accessibility of his writing. "He writes for a general audience and, among other things, makes Florida history very accessible to people," Spillane said. -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us To unsubscribe from this group, send email to gatornews+unsubscribegooglegroups.com or reply to this email with the words "REMOVE ME" as the subject. -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us To unsubscribe from this group, send email to gatortalk+unsubscribegooglegroups.com or reply to this email with the words "REMOVE ME" as the subject.
