NCPA Author Series
Richard Beeman
Constitutional expert, scholar & author
WHEN: Thursday, June 25, 2009
WHERE: Haynes & Boone Ballroom, Belo Mansion, 2101 Ross Avenue.
TOPIC: Richard Beeman will be discussing his latest book, Plain Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution
Individual registration: $25
(Seating is limited to the first 50 paid registrants. Buffet lunch included in price)
"The fullest and most authoritative account of the Constitutional Convention ever written."
Gordon S. Wood, author of The Radicalism of the American Revolution
"In sprightly, engaging prose and with a sure, steady scholarly hand, Rick Beeman has given us a vivid account of the most vital chapter of our early history: the making of the Constitution. This is a terrific book."
John Meacham, author of American Lion and Franklin and Winston
"Beeman eschews the heroic version of the story in favor of a hard-eyed narrative that in no way diminishes the Framer's achievement … In a motion-by-motion, day-by-day, debate-by-debate fashion, he re-creates the hard bargaining … Masterfully told American history for the scholar and general reader alike."
Kirkus – Starred Review
Richard Beeman is a professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania and the author of six books and several dozen articles on the history of revolutionary America. His biography of Patrick Henry was a finalist for the National Book award.
His most recent book, Plain, Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution is the most comprehensive account of the Constitutional Convention to appear in the past half century, and takes readers behind the scenes and beyond the debate to show how the world's most enduring constitution was forged through conflict, compromise, and eventually, fragile consensus.
Dr. Beeman is a member of the Board of Trustees of the National Constitution Center and is Chair of the Constitution Center's Committee on Programs, Exhibits, and Education. He serves as Vice-Chair of the Distinguished Scholars Panel of the Constitution Center and as a member of the scholarly advisory board of the American Revolution Center. He has received numerous awards, including fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, and the Huntington Library. He has served as a Fulbright Professor in the United Kingdom and as Vyvian Harmsworth Distinguished Professor of American History at Oxford University.
Dr. Beeman will sign copies of his book, which will be available for purchase at the event.
The National Center for Policy Analysis is a public policy research institute founded in 1983 and internationally known for its studies on public policy issues. The NCPA is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, with an office in Washington, D.C.