Curtis Bill Pepper facts for kids

Curtis Bill Pepper (born August 30, 1917 – died April 4, 2014) was an American journalist and author. He wrote many books during his life. He was known for his work as the main reporter for Newsweek magazine in Rome, Italy, from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s.

He also worked for CBS and United Press, covering important events like those at the Vatican. One of his most famous books was Leonardo, a story about the life of the famous artist Leonardo da Vinci. He got the idea for this book after studying the Italian Renaissance in Italy.

Early Life and Education

Curtis Bill Pepper was born on August 30, 1917, in Huntington, West Virginia. He grew up in places like Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Champaign, Illinois. He went to the University of Illinois.

At college, he studied art and architecture. He also wrote for the student newspaper, The Daily Illini. During his summer breaks, he worked for big newspapers like the New York Post and the New York World-Telegram. He even reported from Europe while cycling! Later, he interviewed famous actors and worked as an editor for a newspaper in California.

Military Service in World War II

During World War II, Curtis Bill Pepper joined a special military group called MIS-X. This group helped soldiers escape and avoid capture. He even wrote a manual for the U.S. Army on these topics.

He was sent to Italy and worked with a unit that secretly helped pilots and prisoners of war get to safety behind enemy lines. He was recognized twice for his brave actions. The U.S. Army also gave him a Bronze Star medal for his service during the war.

After the war ended, he stayed in Italy. He led a team that looked into serious actions that happened during the war involving U.S. Army and Air Corps members. He finished his military service with the rank of major.

A Career in Writing

After the war, Pepper went back to Italy. He studied the Italian Renaissance at the University of Florence. He also started writing magazine articles and movie scripts.

In 1951, he joined United Press in Rome. A few years later, he moved to CBS, where he reported for Edward R. Murrow, a very famous journalist. In 1956, he became the chief reporter for Newsweek magazine in Rome.

For Newsweek, he wrote important stories about Italian leaders, movie stars, and directors. He also covered the deaths and elections of three popes and the Second Vatican Council. He traveled to many countries like Jordan, Greece, and Egypt to write about their leaders.

In 1966, he left Newsweek to focus on writing his own books.

Famous Books by Curtis Bill Pepper

His first book, The Pope's Backyard, came out in 1966. His second book, An Artist and the Pope (1968), told the story of the friendship between Pope John XXIII and a sculptor named Giacomo Manzù. Manzù created new doors for St. Peter's Basilica and even made a sculpture of Pope John. This book was very popular and was published in many languages.

His third book, Christiaan Barnard: One Life (1969), was about the South African surgeon who performed the first human heart transplant. This book was also very successful. He wrote a novel called Marco (1977) and a book about kidnappings in Italy called Kidnapped! (1978).

Another important book was We The Victors (1984). For this book, he studied 100 people who had survived cancer. He explored what helped them survive and how it changed their lives. This book was even featured on the cover of The New York Times Sunday Magazine.

His last book, Leonardo (2012), was a story about the life of Leonardo da Vinci. It explored Leonardo's childhood and how he became such a brilliant artist and thinker.

Personal Life

Curtis Bill Pepper married a sculptor named Beverly Pepper in 1948. They were married until his death. They had two children: Jorie Graham, who became a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, and John Randolph Pepper, who is a photographer, director, and actor.

Curtis Bill Pepper spent his time living between Umbria in Italy and New York City. He passed away on April 4, 2014.

Books

• The Pope's Backyard, Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1966. .
• An Artist and the Pope, Grosset & Dunlap, 1968. .
• Christiaan Barnard: One Life—George, G. Harrap, 1970.
• Marco, Rawson Associates, 1977. ISBN: 0-89256-027-4.
• Kidnapped!: 17 Days of Terror, Harmony Books, 1978. ISBN: 9780517534380.
• L'enfant de la nuit, P. Belfond, 1978. ISBN: 9782714411846.
• We the Victors, Doubleday, 1984. ISBN: 0-385-19122-7.
• Leonardo, Alan C. Hood, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-911469-36-3.
• Happines. Fragments of Happiness in the Lives of the Famous and Others Among Us,Gli Ori, 2014 ISBN: 8873365442.