David Grann Explained

David Grann
Birth Date:10 March 1967
Birth Name:David Elliot Grann
Education:Connecticut College (BA)
Tufts University (MA)
Boston University (MFA)
Children:2
Occupation:Staff writer, book author, journalist
Notableworks:The Lost City of Z
The Devil and Sherlock Holmes
Killers of the Flower Moon
The White Darkness
The Wager
Awards:Thomas J. Watson Fellowship
George Polk Awards

David Elliot Grann (born March 10, 1967) is an American journalist, a staff writer for The New Yorker, and author.

His first book, The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon, was published by Doubleday in February 2009. After its first week of publication, it debuted on The New York Times bestseller list at #4[1] and later reached #1.[2] Grann's articles have been collected in several anthologies, including What We Saw: The Events of September 11, 2001, The Best American Crime Writing of 2004 and 2005, and The Best American Sports Writing of 2003 and 2006. He has written for The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Weekly Standard.

According to a profile in Slate, Grann has a reputation as a "workhorse reporter", which has made him a popular journalist who "inspires a devotion in readers that can border on the obsessive."[3]

Early life

Grann was born on March 10, 1967, to Phyllis E. Grann and Victor Grann. His mother is the former CEO of Putnam Penguin and the first woman CEO of a major publishing firm.[4] His father is an oncologist and Director of the Bennett Cancer Center in Stamford, Connecticut. Grann has two siblings, Edward and Alison.[5]

Career

He graduated from Connecticut College in 1989 with a B.A. in Government.[6] While still in college, Grann received a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship and conducted research in Mexico, where he began his career as a freelance journalist.

He received a master's degree in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in 1993.[7] [8] At that point primarily interested in fiction, Grann hoped to develop a career as a novelist.[9]

In 1994 he was hired as a copy editor at The Hill, a Washington, D.C.-based newspaper covering the United States Congress. The same year, Grann earned a master's degree in creative writing from Boston University, where he taught courses in creative writing and fiction. He was named The Hill's executive editor in 1995. In 1996, Grann became a senior editor at The New Republic. He joined The New Yorker in 2003 as a staff writer. He was a finalist for the Michael Kelly Award in 2005.[10]

In 2009, he received both the George Polk Award and Sigma Delta Chi Award for his New Yorker piece "Trial By Fire", about Cameron Todd Willingham. Another New Yorker investigative article, "The Mark of a Masterpiece", raised questions about the methods of Peter Paul Biro, who claimed to use fingerprints to help authenticate lost masterpieces.[11] Biro sued Grann and The New Yorker for libel,[12] [13] but the case was summarily dismissed.[14] [15] The article was a finalist for the 2010 National Magazine Award.[16]

The Lost City of Z

Grann's 2009 non-fiction book The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon recounts the odyssey of the notable British explorer, Captain Percy Fawcett who, in 1925, disappeared with his son in the Amazon while looking for the Lost City of Z. For decades, explorers and scientists have tried to find evidence of both his party and the Lost City of Z. Grann also trekked into the Amazon. In his book, he reveals new evidence about how Fawcett died and shows that "Z" may have existed.[17] [18] [19]

Killers of the Flower Moon

In March 2014, Grann said he was working on a new book about the Osage Indian murders, considered "one of the most sinister crimes in American history."[20] His book Killers of the Flower Moon: An American Crime and the Birth of the FBI was published in 2017, chronicling "a tale of murder, betrayal, heroism and a nation's struggle to leave its frontier culture behind and enter the modern world."[21] It was a finalist for the 2017 National Book Award[22] and later became #1 on The New York Times bestseller list.[23]

The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder

Grann's latest book, , was published in April 2023. It debuted at #1 on The New York Times bestseller list and stayed on the list for 26 weeks.[24] A reviewer in The Guardian wrote, “The Wager is one of the finest nonfiction books I've ever read. I can only offer the highest praise a writer can give: endless envy, as deep and salty as the sea."[25] Former President Barack Obama selected The Wager as one of his summer reading books, a popular booklist he shares annually.[26]

Other books

An anthology of twelve previously published Grann essays, The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession, was published in March 2010.

Another book, The White Darkness, was published in October, 2018.

Personal life

Grann has two children. As of 2017 he resided in New York.[27]

Bibliography

Articles

Collections:

"The Old Man and the Gun: Forrest Tucker had a long career robbing banks, and he wasn't willing to retire", "True Crime: A postmodern murder mystery", "The Chameleon: The many lives of Frédéric Bourdin"

Books

Adaptations

Forthcoming:

Apple TV+ announced in April 2022 that Grann's book The White Darkness would be developed into a new limited series starring Tom Hiddleston. The series will be developed by Soo Hugh and co-produced by Apple Studios and UCP.[39]

In July 2022, Scorsese and DiCaprio also acquired the rights to Grann's 2023 non-fiction book, .[40]

Awards

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Hardcover Non-fiction Bestsellers. https://archive.today/20120906112433/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/15/books/bestseller/besthardnonfiction.html. September 6, 2012. The New York Times. March 6, 2009. March 9, 2009. live. mdy-all.
  2. Web site: Paperback Non-fiction Bestsellers. The New York Times. February 21, 2010. February 21, 2010.
  3. Web site: The Storyteller's Storyteller . . Jonah Weiner . April 11, 2011 . July 8, 2014.
  4. Web site: Now for the Grann Finale. Maneker. Marion. January 1, 2001. New York Magazine. 2018-05-22.
  5. Web site: Now for the Grann Finale. Maneker. Marion. January 1, 2002. New York Magazine. May 19, 2023.
  6. https://www.newyorker.com/contributors/david-grann "Contributors: David Grann."
  7. http://rolfpotts.com/david-grann/ Potts, Rolf and Grann, David. "David Grann", RolfPotts.com (March 2009)
  8. News: Weddings; Kyra Darnton, David Grann. The New York Times. July 2, 2000. August 22, 2020.
  9. http://www.niemanstoryboard.org/2010/04/05/david-grann-on-murder-madness-and-writing-for-the-new-yorker/ "David Grann on murder, madness and writing for The New Yorker"
  10. http://kellyaward.com/mk_award_popup/pdf/press_release_2005.htm Press release: The 2005 Michael Kelly Award
  11. Web site: The Secret History of Art. Interview on Art Security Technology. https://web.archive.org/web/20120514091848/http://blogs.artinfo.com/secrethistoryofart/2011/09/16/interview-on-art-security-technology. May 14, 2012. Noah. Charney. Artinfo International Edition. September 16, 2011.
  12. http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/07/01/37847.htm "Art Analyst Sues The New Yorker"
  13. http://www.adweek.com/news/press/forensic-art-expert-sues-new-yorker-author-133109 "Forensic Art Expert Sues New Yorker – Author Wants $2 million for defamation over David Grann piece"
  14. http://www.nysd.uscourts.gov/cases/show.php?db=special&id=312 11 Civ. 4442 (JPO) Peter Paul Biro v. ... David Grann ...
  15. http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2013/08/peter_paul_biro_loses_suit_new_yorker.php "Art Authenticator Loses Defamation Suit Against the New Yorker
  16. http://flavorwire.com/167769/2011-national-magazine-awards-fnalist "Check Out ASME's National Magazine Awards Finalists"
  17. [Michael Heckenberger|Heckenberger, Michael]
  18. Heckenberger, Michael J.; Kuikuro, Afukaka; Kuikuro, Urissapá Tabata; Russell, J. Christian; Schmidt, Morgan; Fausto, Carlos; and Franchetto, Bruna. "Amazonia 1492: Pristine Forest or Cultural Parkland?" Science. April 25, 2003
  19. Heckenberger, Michael J. "Manioc Agriculture and Sedentism in Amazonia: The Upper Xingu Example." Antiquity. September 1998.
  20. Web site: I am David Grann. . . March 2014 . July 7, 2014 . And right now I'm working on a new book about a historical mystery. It's about the Osage Indians in Oklahoma. In the 1920s they became the richest people in the world after oil was discovered under their reservation. Then they began to be mysteriously murdered off — poisoned, shot, bombed — in one of the most sinister crimes in American history..
  21. Sean Woods, "'Killers of the Flower Moon': Inside David Grann's New True-Crime Epic," Rolling Stone, April 17, 2017.
  22. Web site: Nationalbook.org . July 5, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180705062730/http://www.nationalbook.org/nba2017-finalists-release.pdf . July 5, 2018 . dead .
  23. Web site: Books Best Sellers: Combined Print and E-Book Nonfiction . New York Times. April 22, 2018.
  24. News: Hardcover Nonfiction Books - Best Sellers - Books - the New York Times . New York Times. October 29, 2023 .
  25. Web site: The Wager review: David Grann's magnificent shipwreck epic | Books | the Guardian. |title=The Wager Review
  26. News: 2023-07-20 . All the books Barack Obama is reading this summer . 2023-11-29 . Washington Post . en.
  27. News: David Grann: Killers of the Flower Moon. Fall 2017. 49. 3. Prologue Magazine. Keith. Donohue.
  28. Siegel, Tatiana. "Paramount, Brad Pitt Find 'Lost City'," Variety (March 31, 2008).
  29. News: Edward . Davis . December 27, 2014 . Sienna Miller joins James Gray's 'Lost City Of Z'; shooting may happen Summer 2015 . . February 1, 2017.
  30. Michael . Fleming . December 9, 2009 . James Gray, Brad Pitt find lost city . . August 12, 2015.
  31. News: Michael . Nordine . September 1, 2016 . Amazon Studios acquires James Gray's rainforest drama 'The Lost City of Z' starring Charlie Hunnam . . October 14, 2016.
  32. Chang, Justin. "James Gray's hauntingly beautiful 'The Lost City of Z' is Charlie Hunnam's finest performance," Los Angeles Times (April 13, 2017).
  33. Web site: Vikram. Murthi. Robert Redford Announces Retirement From Acting . . Penske Media Corporation. Los Angeles, California. November 11, 2016. July 29, 2018.
  34. Web site: McClintock . Pamela . Edward Zwick's 'Trial by Fire' Lands Early Summer Release Date From Roadside . The Hollywood Reporter . 25 February 2019.
  35. News: Everything We Know About Martin Scorsese And Leonardo DiCaprio's Next Project, 'Killers Of The Flower Moon'. 2017-07-17. Esquire. 2018-10-25. en-GB.
  36. Web site: World. Michael Smith Tulsa. What we know so far about the 'Killers of the Flower Moon' movie set in Oklahoma. 2020-10-10. Tulsa World. en. 2020-08-09. https://web.archive.org/web/20200809172429/https://tulsaworld.com/entertainment/what-we-know-so-far-about-the-killers-of-the-flower-moon-movie-set-in/collection_8eb7017e-3c38-5c4f-b871-c0540553a305.html. live.
  37. Web site: Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio's 'Killers of the Flower Moon' to Release in 2023. Variety. July 26, 2022. Clayton Davis. July 29, 2022.
  38. Web site: Apple Partners With Paramount on Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio's 'Killers of the Flower Moon' . Mike Jr. . Fleming . . May 27, 2020 . May 27, 2020 . May 28, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200528002737/https://deadline.com/2020/05/killers-of-the-flower-moon-martin-scorsese-leonardo-dicaprio-robert-de-niro-apple-paramount-1202904816/ . live .
  39. Web site: Tom Hiddleston to star in and executive produce new Apple Original limited series "The White Darkness". Apple. April 7, 2022. July 29, 2022.
  40. Web site: Leonardo DiCaprio, Martin Scorsese Tackling Naval Survival Tale 'The Wager' for Apple, Imperative (Exclusive). Hollywood Reporter. July 29, 2022. Borys Kit. July 29, 2022.
  41. https://www.nypl.org/press/new-york-public-librarys-dorothy-and-lewis-b-cullman-center-scholars-and-writers-announces-1 "The New York Public Library's Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers Announces 2013-2014 Fellows: David Grann, Téa Obreht, Anthony Grafton, Uwem Akpan among 2013-14 Cullman Center Fellows,"