Kenneth Silverman (1) (1936–2017)

Ten months before his death in 1872, Samuel Finley Breese Morse was treated to a unique honor: an informal “Samuel Morse Day” held in New York City. Organized by a group of Western Union employees, it involved a parade, a boat ride in New York Harbor, and the unveiling of a statue of the man in Central Park. The celebration culminated that evening at the Academy of Music, where in the presence of Morse himself a series of testimonials were delivered. At the end, the original telegraphic apparatus was wheeled out, giving Morse the opportunity to send out a final message through the network – one that he ended by tapping out his own name in the code that he had devised in order to communicate on it.

For Morse the celebrations were not just a touching tribute but a public confirmation of his status as the “father of the telegraph.” In this respect it was a fitting coda for the last part of his life, one that was consumed with Morse’s determination to receive the sole credit for the invention of the electric telegraph. The description of this quest takes up much of the latter part of Kenneth Silverman’s fluid and engrossing biography of the man, which shows not just how intently Morse worked to secure his place in history, but how that quest overshadowed many other aspects of his long and accomplished life.

The descendant of Puritan settlers, Morse was born in Massachusetts in 1789. His father Jedediah was a minister at a Congregationalist church in Charlestown and the author of several popular geographies and travel guides. Consumed with his work, he had little time for his son, who at the age of eight was packed off to be educated at a series of boarding schools. Though an indifferent student, young Morse discovered a gift for drawing, which soon evolved into a budding career as an artist. After graduating from Yale in 1810 he convinced his parents to support his interest in becoming an artist, which entailed traveling to London as the understudy of Washington Allston, then emerging as one of the leading artists of the young republic.

Morse returned in 1815 determined to revisit Europe at the earliest opportunity. Instead, he settled into the routine of a portrait painter and started a family with his new wife Lucretia. These were years of struggle for Morse, as his remunerative work painting portraits of planters and preachers in Charleston and New England did not measure up to his aspirations of greatness. Silverman notes that Morse’s classical style of painting was increasingly out of step with the more Romantic approach then in vogue, which caused his work to be eclipsed by other artists. While Morse did much to improve the standing of American art, this was through his efforts to organize the National Academy of Design, which offered lectures that Silverman credits with introducing the American public to more sophisticated ways of evaluating American art. Yet Morse’s efforts to earn money by showing his own epic paintings failed to recoup their expenses, while the death of his wife left him adrift. Frustrated both professionally and personally, Morse decided to return to Europe, where he toured the major art galleries for another two years.

This second trip proved momentous in a number of respects. Witnessing the turmoil of European politics during the revolutionary year of 1830 confirmed many of Morse’s prejudices against Catholicism and the Roman Catholic Church, and led him to begin his occasional engagement with American politics. It was on his return voyage, though, that Morse began contemplating how to send messages electrically over long distances. Though telegraphs existed in a number of places, these were semaphores requiring towers of arms and flaps to relay messages. Morse envisioned sending messages using electrical current, and by the time the ship returning him to America in 1832 had docked he claimed to have worked out the basics for such as system. This Silverman qualifies by noting the contributions of others who Morse consulted and employed, all of whom furthered his understanding of the operation of such a telegraph and helped him establish the basic apparatus for it. By 1838 Morse was demonstrating his invention in the hope of gaining government funding for a network.

Morse spent the better part of a decade winning support for his telegraph. This involved him in the grubby world of lobbying and business, for which he had little affinity. Silverman sees Morse’s partnership with Amos Kendall, a former postmaster general in Andrew Jackson’s administration, which proved key to the telegraph’s success. By the end of the 1840s the telegraph was establishing itself rapidly throughout the country, with Morse beginning to enjoy the fruits of his labors. Nevertheless, the battles establishing credit for the telegraph – which were vital to the questions of patents and profit – consumed much of his attention in his later years, with the lawsuits from former associates and the public relations battles with their families fueling a sense in Morse of a life accursed.

As an award-wining biographer, Silverman is well-versed in the art. His skills are on full display in this book, which weaves his arguments into a lively study that strikes a good balance between narrative and analysis, though occasionally favoring the former at the expense of the latter. His portrayal of Morse is sympathetic, yet one that acknowledges freely Morse’s many flaws, most notably his alienating pettiness, his lamentable politics, and his neglectful parenting of his children. It’s an admirable study of the man and his accomplishments, one that is a good starting point for anyone seeking to learn about Morse and the full range of his many achievements.… (plus d'informations)

This book was published just shy of 30 years ago. The biographical account about a famous 19th century storyteller brings a time of long ago to life. Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance is by Kenneth Silverman. It was published in 1991 by Harper Perennial, and is full of rich detail about the writer and poet who lived from January 1809 until October 1849. Many memorable short stories as well as poetry came from the skilled genius's pen. He also just happened to be a flawed man of his time. In the course of his career, he also critiqued other writers and was an editor.

Eliza and David were actors. The mother, Eliza already performed on stage by the age of nine. It is revealed that the father skipped out on Edgar's mother. The reason is not known, and apparently Silverman never learned what became of the biological dad.

Eliza Poe died at the young age of 24. The boy was a toddler. He was then adopted by John Allan, whose last name became the boy's middle name. Edgar was only six when Allan and his wife Frances sailed with the child to England. We're told that Edgar's London schooldays were unhappy. But after the stepfather lost his money the Allan family didn't stay long. They crossed the pond back to Richmond, Virginia.

There are many things about Edgar's life that indicate serious character flaws. We learn that when he undertook a pursuit, he often didn't finish it. Thanks to his stepfather, he was fortunate enough to be able to attend the University of Virginia. In the very early days of the existence of that new school, it was the most expensive higher education facility in the country. When times became tough for Edgar, Allan was pretty good at caving in and sending financial assistance. However, there was not much indication of appreciation being expressed for such generosity. The lad soured on higher learning at the university and moved away.

Edgar started but never finished a West Point stint. He attended the military academy for a mere 18 months before being expelled. Another failure in his life was running a publication called the Broadway Journal. The newspaper folded shortly after he purchased it. The reason it failed was the owner's drunkenness.

Heavy drinking was surely Poe's biggest character flaw. This weakness would eventually get the best of him. It started early in his career and continued until he died. He attempted to cover it up, even going so far on one occasion as to claim that he never drank anything stronger than water. He was known to have attributed his own shortcoming to his stepfather. Edgar once stated that John was “not often very sober.”

Edgar's brother Henry also was an alcoholic. The younger brother died at 24 like their mother. So perhaps there was a genetic predisposition for the heavy drinking. Or maybe it was a similar environment that led to imbibing in spirits. However we must remember that the two did not live together during adulthood. There's no indication that sister Rosalie was ever a heavy drinker. The youngest of Eliza and David's children survived into her 80s, far outliving both of her brothers.

The writer had swing periods of moderate to heavy use of alcohol. When troubled, he became highly inebriated. Such was the case after he was fired in 1837 from The Southern Literary Messenger in Richmond. Another such instance was when his wife Virginia was dying of tuberculosis.

There are some takeaways that I gleaned from this book. It is reasonable to conclude that his obsession with death and morbidity contributed greatly to the author's spellbinding literary works. Characters in Edgar's fiction are often depicted as being under the influence of opium or alcohol. Sober men would not seem likely to come up with that kind of thing. It was not easy to make good money as a writer in those times. That surely was one factor in frequent moves from one job to the next. On the other hand his demeanor certainly can't be discounted as having contributed to him not staying long in any one place.

As I read through this work of 447 paperback pages, I could foresee heartbreak long before it ended.. Death came in a Baltimore hospital in the fall of 1849. He had been taken there semiconscious and in great distress. He was found in such a state at a tavern. Silverman's colorful language states that Edgar was “flooded with drink.” The subject of the book authored many famous works. “The Pit and the Pendulum,” “The Fall of the House of Usher,” “The Tell-Tale Heart,” and of course the eternally famous poem, “The Raven.” In the end though, this man who would become much more famous in death than in life died extremely depressed. His final words were, “Lord help my poor soul.”… (plus d'informations)

For readers who don't already know much about John Cage or new music generally, Kenneth Silverman's book may be an adequate introduction to a modern composer who is often mentioned but little understood. Silverman brings together information from many previous published sources as well as some fresh biographical insights drawn from many interviews. The writing style is rather dull, but if you're just looking for the basics, this book might do the trick.

I'm sorry to report though, as someone who has worked in the field for many years, that I was hoping for a lot more. The discussions of specific compositions by Cage often lack depth and are at times so simplified that they're inaccurate. And given the number of people who Silverman lists as being interviewed for the book, there just doesn't seem to be enough news here.

This last point is especially sad. Cage himself would have been 100 years old in September 2012, and many peers from the early stages of his career are no longer alive. There are many composers, performers, and artists now in their 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s who had crucial relationships with Cage that Silverman doesn't seem to have talked with. By the time someone else attempts another general biography of John Cage, many of these people younger than Cage may be dead as well.… (plus d'informations)