PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN 2008 WATCH:

• Primary Season Election Results - NYT
• David Greenberg: An Obama-Clinton ticket could work - Slate, 5-22-08

BIGGEST STORIES:

• Caroline Janney: Says we need to rewrite history of Memorial Day - Press Release, 5-20-08

HNN STATS THIS WEEK:

• Most Popular Article: Robert S. McElvaine:"HNN Poll: 61% of Historians Rate the Bush Presidency Worst" - - 4-1-08
• Most Popular Blog Entry: Kenneth R. Gregg: "America's First Revolutionary" Liberty & Power: Group Blog, 2-6-06
• Hottest Topic: About the History of Iraq
• Most Popular Feature: Ferenc M. Szasz:"Quotes About History"
• All-Time Favorite:"What Is the Difference Between Sunni and Shiite Muslims--and Why Does It Matter?" 9-9-02

THIS WEEK IN HISTORY:

On This Day in History....

• 05-26-1521 - Martin Luther's writings were banned by the Edict of Worms.
• 05-26-1868 - President Andrew Johnson avoided conviction for impeachment charges of"high crimes and misdemeanors" by one vote.
• 05-26-1940 - Allied troops began the massive naval evacuation of troops from Dunkirk, France, during World War II.
• 05-26-2003 - Rwandans voted to approve a new constitution that instituted a balance of power between Hutu and Tutsi.
• 05-27-1647 - The first recorded execution of a witch reportedly took place in Massachusetts when Achsah Young was hanged.
• 05-27-1703 - St. Petersburg was founded by Czar Peter the Great.
• 05-27-1936 - The Queen Mary left England on its maiden voyage, arriving in France four hours later.
• 05-27-1937 - Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco opened.
• 05-27-1941 - British ships sank the German battleship Bismarck off the coast of France, resulting in the loss of 2,300 lives.
• 05-27-1996 - After a year and a half of bloodshed, Russian President Boris Yeltsin met with the leader of the Chechen rebels and negotiated a cease-fire.
• 05-27-1999 - Slobodan Milosevic was indicted by the International War Crimes Tribunal at the Hague for crimes against humanity.
• 05-28-1754 - Lieutenant Colonel George Washington begins the Seven Years' War
• 05-28-1863 - Robert Gould Shaw, leading the first northern all-black regiment, leaves Boston for the Civil War.
• 05-28-1918 - U.S. troops score victory at Cantigny
• 05-28-1937 - Golden Gate Bridge opens
• 05-28-1940 - Belgium surrenders unconditionally
• 05-28-1969 - U.S. troops abandon"Hamburger Hill"
• 05-28-1987 - Mathias Rust, a 19-year-old pilot from West Germany, landed his private plane in Moscow's Red Square. He was arrested and sentenced to four years in a labor camp, but was released after just one.
• 05-28-2003 - Pres. Bush signed a $350 billion tax cut into law; the third largest tax cut in U.S. history.
• 05-29-1780 - Tarleton gives"quarter" in South Carolina
• 05-28-1765 - Patrick Henry bitterly denounced the Stamp Act in the Virginia House of Burgesses.
• 05-28-1790 - Rhode Island became the 13th state in the United States, the last of the original colonies to ratify the Constitution.
• 05-29-1843 - Fremont begins his second western expedition
• 05-29-1848 - Wisconsin became the 30th state in the United States.
• 05-29-1864 - Union troops reach Totopotomoy Creek, Virginia
• 05-29-1865 - President Andrew Johnson issues general amnesty for all Confederates
• 05-29-1917 - John F. Kennedy was born in Brookline, Mass.
• 05-29-1942 - Jews in Paris are forced to sew a yellow star on their coats
• 05-29-1942 - Bing Crosby recorded his version of"White Christmas." It would go on to sell over 30 million copies.
• 05-29-1988 - Reagan arrives in Moscow for summit talks
• 05-29-1990 - Boris Yeltsin was elected president of the Russian republic by the parliament.
• 05-30-1431 - Joan of Arc was burned at the stake as a heretic.
• 05-30-1536 - King Henry VIII of England married his 3rd wife, Jane Seymour, 11 days after he had his 2nd wife, Anne Boleyn executed.
• 05-30-1806 - Patriot and future President Andrew Jackson kills Charles Dickinson in a duel
• 05-30-1861 - Union troops occupy Grafton, Virginia
• 05-30-1862 - Confederates evacuate Corinth, Mississippi
• 05-30-1864 - Confederates attack at Bethesda Church, Virginia
• 05-30-1922 - The Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, was dedicated by Chief Justice William Howard Taft.
• 05-31-1775 - Mecklenburg Resolutions reject the power of the British in North Carolina
• 05-31-1790 - The first U.S. Copyright Law was enacted, protecting books, maps, and other original materials.
• 05-31-1859 - Big Ben goes into operation in London
• 05-31-1889 - Heavy rains caused the South Fork Dam to collapse, sending 20 million tons of water into Johnstown, Pa. Over 2,200 people were killed and the town was nearly destroyed.
• 05-31-1911 - The hull of the Titanic was launched in Belfast. At the ceremony, a White Star Line employee claimed,"Not even God himself could sink this ship."
• 05-31-1962 - Former Gestapo official Adolf Eichmann was hanged in Israel.
• 05-31-2004 - Alberta Martin, 97, one of the last widows of a U.S. Civil War veteran, died. She had married Confederate veteran William Martin in 1927 when she was 21 and he was 81.
• 06-01-1792 - Kentucky became the 15th state in the United States.
• 06-01-1796 - Tennessee became the 16th state in the United States.
• 06-01-1958 - General Charles De Gaulle became the premier of France.
• 06-01-1980 - Cable News Network (CNN) debuted.

IN THE NEWS:

• Deborah Lipstadt: Her NYT Op-Ed Spurs Federal Legislation on Libel Tourism - Press Release--Emory University, 5-23-08
• Philip Zelikow: Supporters cite more errors in Philip Shenon's book about the 9-11 Commission - Special to HNN, 5-18-08
• H.R. McMaster: Speculation he'll finally make general in the army - Victor Davis Hanson in National Review, 5-22-08
• Ed Renehan: Pleads guilty to stealing GW and Lincoln letters - NY Post, 5-21-08

REVIEWED AND FIRST CHAPTERS:

• Linda Bridges and John R. Coyne Jr.: In Search of Buckley Through two new books, a view of William F. Buckley's transideological conservatism FLYING HIGH Remembering Barry Goldwater, STRICTLY RIGHT William F. Buckley Jr. and the American Conservative Movement - NYT, 5-25-08
• J. PETER SCOBLIC: Never Mind the ‘Neo’ J. Peter Scoblic asserts that conservatism - not neoconservatism - is the true impetus behind Bush foreign policy 'U.S. vs. Them' How a Half Century of Conservatism Has Undermined America’s Security - NYT, 5-25-08
• BONNIE YOCHELSON and DANIEL CZITROM: The Other Half A new look at the groundbreaking journalism and advocacy of Jacob Riis' Rediscovering Jacob Riis' Exposure Journalism and Photography in Turn-of-the-Century New York - NYT, 5-25-08
• Ruth Brandon: Poor, Obscure, Plain and Little' GOVERNESS The Lives and Times of the Real Jane Eyres - NYT, 5-25-08
• Heather Cox Richardson on Walter A. McDougall: HISTORY | UNITED STATES The American Character A historian argues that self-deception is a constant in U.S. history The American Civil War Era, 1829-1877 - WaPo, 5-25-08
• H.W. Brands on Matthew Parker, Adam Clymer: The Great Divide How the Panama Canal was carved out of a continent -- and what it meant PANAMA FEVER The Epic Story of One of the Greatest Human Achievements of All Time -- The Building of the Panama Canal, DRAWING THE LINE AT THE BIG DITCH The Panama Canal Treaties and the Rise of the Right WaPo, 5-25-08
• Ginger Strand: HISTORY An Unnatural Wonder The world's largest waterfall is sublime and sullied, fake and beautifully real INVENTING NIAGARA Beauty, Power, and Lies - WaPo, 5-25-08
• Joseph Needham: The biography by Simon Winchester oversimplifies Chinese history - Jonathan Dresner at Froginawell.et, 5-21-08
• Hugh Trevor-Roper: Eminent historian debunks Scottish history as largely fabrication - Times (UK), 5-18-08

OP-EDs:

• Stan Katz: Tenure and Teaching - Chronicle of Higher Ed., 5-23-08
• Walter McDougall: Throes of Democracy ... The American Civil War Era, 1829 – 1877 - Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI), 5-1-08
• Benny Morris: Says his research is being misused by Israel haters - Benny Morris in a letter to the Irish Times, 5-1-08
• Jill Lepore: Prior Convictions Did the Founders want us to be faithful to their faith? - New Yorker, 4-14-08

BLOGS:

• Sean Wilentz: Barack Obama and the Unmaking of the Democratic Party - Huffington Post (Blog), 5-23-08
• Historians taken to task for their anti-Bush bias - Larry Elders at PatriotPost.us, 5-22-08

PROFILED:

• Tony Judt: How he has changed our view of postwar Europe, challenged liberal America and provoked controversy with his criticism of Israel - Paul Laity in the Guardian, 5-17-08
• New Yorker profiles history major turned jazz obsessive - David Remnick in the New Yorker, 5-19-08
• Joseph Needham: Eccentric scholar devoted his life to documenting the brilliant innovations of Chinese civilization Andrew Leonard in Salon, 5-19-08

INTERVIEWS:

• Richard Brookhiser: America's Original 'CEO President' - NPR, 5-25-08
• Rick Perlstein: Interviewed by National Review - National Review Online, 5-23-08
• Rick Perlstein: 'Nixonland' Explores America in Flux - NPR, 5-21-08
• Rick Perlstein: We're still in Nixonland (Interview) - Jon Wiener blog at the Nation, 5-18-08

FEATURES:

• Smart as a Whip Can Indiana Jones teach kids about history? - Slate, 5-22-08

QUOTED:

• Michael Gannon on"War e-mails offer immediacy, but sacrifice eloquence":"Every new means of communication limits a historian's ability to pull together the truth of a particular event," said Michael Gannon, a retired University of Florida history professor who has written extensively about World War II."And now with e-mail, we're in a particularly precarious position." - St Petersburg Times, 5-25-08
• R .J. Q. Adams, a professor of history at Texas A.& M. University and an expert on Britain on"":"It was one thing to redraw the lines of Europe. It was another thing to give up a piece of the empire. He would have drawn the line there." - NYT, 5-25-08

HONORED, AWARDED, APPOINTED:

• Michael Honey: Wins Robert F. Kennedy Book Award - Press Release, 5-22-08
• Historian Tyler Stovall named Berkley L&S undergraduate dean - UC Berkeley, CA, 5-22-08
• Angus McLaren Wins Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prize - Government of Canada Newsroom (press release), Canada, 5-21-08

SPOTTED:

• David McCullough urges Boston College grads to treasure learning - Boston Globe, 5-19-08

CALENDAR:

• May-September 2008: Elizabeth Brand Monroe, Deborah A. Lee, Lectures Showcase Leesburg's History for 250th Anniversary - WaPo, 1-18-08
• David Zabecki: Hooks up with Stephen Ambrose Tours / Zabecki will lead the 14-day tour to visit historic World War II sites in Gdansk, Krakow, Warsaw and Berlin from May 16-30, 2008.- Press Release--Stephen Ambrose Tours, 1-10-08

ON TV: History Listings This Week

• C-Span2, BookTV: Ronald Reagan: An American Hero Author: Nancy Reagan - Monday, May 25 @ 5:30pm ET - C-Span2, BookTV
• C-Span2, BookTV: History Understanding America: The Anatomy of an Exceptional Nation Authors: Peter Schuck; James Wilson - Monday, May 26 @ 8:30am ET - C-Span2, BookTV
• C-Span2, BookTV: History Dear First Lady: Letters to the White House Author: Dwight Young and Margaret Johnson - Monday, May 26 @ 6:00pm ET - C-Span2, BookTV
• C-Span2, BookTV: History 1776 Author: David McCullough - Monday, May 26 @ 6:30pm ET - C-Span2, BookTV
• History Channel:"Indiana Jones and the Ultimate Quest," Sunday, May 25, @ 8pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"MonsterQuest", Marathon, Monday, May 26, @ 2pm - 8pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Journey to 10,000 BC," Monday, May 26, @ 8pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Clash of the Cavemen," Monday, May 26, @ 10pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"The Hunt for John Wilkes Booth," Tuesday, May 27, @ 2pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Conspiracy? :Lincoln Assassination," Tuesday, May 27, @ 4pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Battlefield Detectives :The Civil War: Antietam," Tuesday, May 27, @ 5pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Wild West Tech :Vigilante Tech," Tuesday, May 27, @ 6pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Crucifixion," Wednesday, May 28, @ 2pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Lost Worlds," Wednesday, May 28, @ 4pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"The Bible Code: Predicting Armageddon," Wednesday, May 28, @ 5pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Behind The Da Vinci Code," Wednesday, May 28, @ 6pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Blood Diamonds," Thursday, May 29, @ 2pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Ben Franklin," Friday, May 30, @ 2pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"The Revolution :06 - Forging an Army," Friday, May 30, @ 4pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"The Revolution :07 - Treason & Betrayal," Friday, May 30, @ 5pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"The Revolution :08 - The War Heads South," Friday, May 30, @ 6pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Modern Marvels :Pirate Tech," Friday, May 30, @ 7pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Shockwave," Marathon, Saturday, May 31, @ 2pm - pm ET/PT
• History Channel:"Indiana Jones and the Ultimate Quest," Saturday, May 31, @ 5pm ET/PT

SELLING BIG (NYT):

• Cokie Roberts: LADIES OF LIBERTY #11 -- (6 weeks on list)- 6-1-08
• Ted Sorensen: COUNSELOR #13 -- (1 week on list)- 6-1-08
• Tony Horwitz: A VOYAGE LONG AND STRANGE #18 - 6-1-08
• Kenneth C. Davis: AMERICA'S HIDDEN HISTORY #27 - 6-1-08
• Rick Perlstein: NIXONLAND #29 - 6-1-08

FUTURE RELEASES:

• Thurston Clarke: The Last Campaign: Robert F. Kennedy and the 82 Days that Inspired America, May 27, 2008
• Amity Shlaes: Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression (Reprint), May 27, 2008
• Patrick J. Buchanan: Churchill, Hitler, and the Unnecessary War: How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World, May 27, 2008
• John S. Eisenhower: Zachary Taylor: The 12th President, 1849-1850, May 27, 2008
• Paul Finkelman (Editor): Congress and the Emergence of Sectionalism: From the Missouri Compromise to the Age of Jackson, May 28, 2008
• Michael Dobbs: One Minute to Midnight: Kennedy, Khrushchev, and Castro on the Brink of Nuclear War, June 3, 2008
• Yuan-Tsung Chen: Return to the Middle Kingdom: One Family, Three Revolutionaries, and the Birth of Modern China, June 3, 2008
• Shane O'Sullivan: Who Killed Bobby?, June 3, 2008
• Gavin Menzies: 1434: The Year a Magnificent Chinese Fleet Sailed to Italy and Ignited the Renaissance, June 3, 2008
• Gil Troy: Leading from the Center, June 9, 2008
• Robert F. Dorr: Hell Hawks!: The Untold Story of the American Fliers Who Savaged Hitler's Wehrmacht, June 15, 2008
• Robert Dallek: Harry S. Truman (REV), September 2, 2008

DEPARTED:

• J. C. Hurewitz: 93, Dies; Scholar of the Middle East - NYT, 5-23-08
• Brett Melendy, San Jose State historian, dies - San Francisco Chronicle, 5-21-08