Merle Miller facts for kids
Merle Dale Miller (born May 17, 1919 – died June 10, 1986) was an American writer and novelist. He is well-known for his best-selling book about Harry S. Truman. Miller was also a leader in the early movement for gay rights.
In 1971, Miller wrote an important article for the New York Times Magazine called "What It Means to Be a Homosexual." This article helped many people understand what it was like to be gay. The newspaper received over 2,000 letters about it, which was more than they had ever gotten before. Because of this, the article was turned into a book later that year.
Merle Miller's Life and Career
Merle Miller was born in Montour, Iowa, and grew up in Marshalltown, Iowa. He studied at the University of Iowa and the London School of Economics. Before World War II, he worked as a reporter in Washington. During the war, Miller served as a war correspondent and editor for Yank, The Army Weekly in both the Pacific and Europe.
After the war, he worked as an editor for Harper and Time magazines. He also wrote book reviews for The Saturday Review of Literature. His articles often appeared in the New York Times Magazine.
Miller wrote many novels during his career. One of his most famous was That Winter (1948). Other novels include Island 49 (1945) and A Gay and Melancholy Sound (1961).
He also wrote non-fiction books. These include We Dropped the A-Bomb (1946), which was about the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Another important non-fiction book was On Being Different: What It Means To Be a Homosexual (1971). This book further explored the topic of his earlier article.
In 1967, Miller joined the "Writers and Editors War Tax Protest." He promised not to pay taxes that would be used to fund the Vietnam War.
Miller wrote many television plays and screenplays for movies. He wrote "The Rains of Ranchiphur" (1955), which starred Richard Burton and Lana Turner. He also wrote "Kings Go Forth" (1958), featuring Frank Sinatra and Natalie Wood. His work in television was stopped for a while because of Senator Joseph McCarthy. Miller was put on the Hollywood blacklist, which meant he couldn't work in TV until the late 1950s.
After his successful book Plain Speaking, Miller wrote two more biographies. These were Lyndon, A Biography of President Lyndon Baines Johnson and Ike the Soldier, about General Dwight David Eisenhower. He planned to write a second book about Eisenhower, but he passed away after finishing the first one.
Merle Miller died on June 10, 1986, in Connecticut. His interviews, research, and notes are kept in special collections. You can find them at presidential libraries and universities.
Plain Speaking: A Book About Harry S. Truman
In 1962, Merle Miller was hired to interview former President Harry Truman. He spent many hours talking with Truman in Missouri and New York. The plan was to create a TV series about the former president. However, major TV networks were not interested in the series. Miller thought that maybe people were not ready to look back at Truman's time. He also believed that being on the Hollywood blacklist might have been a reason the series was not shown.
Truman passed away in 1972. Miller was then asked to share some stories about Truman on television. Someone suggested he should write a book using these stories. Miller still had his tapes and notes from their conversations. He put together a proposal for a book. Several publishers turned it down before G. P. Putnam's Sons decided to publish it.
Plain Speaking is a book based on Miller's conversations with the 33rd President of the United States. It also includes talks with others who knew Truman. The book was praised for showing President Truman in a very complete way.
In 1974, Miller visited Independence, Missouri, to promote his book. The mayor gave him the key to the city. The mayor said Miller had "captured the spirit of Harry S. Truman." The book received many good reviews.
Soon after it was published, Plain Speaking became the number one best-selling book on the New York Times list. It stayed there for over a year. The book remained in print for many years.
In 1976, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) made Plain Speaking into a television show. Ed Flanders won an Emmy Award for playing Truman in the show.
