I am posting the following press release on behalf of The Mark Twain
House. K.B.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Mark Twain House
351 Farmington Ave.
Hartford, CT 06105

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release
Media Contact: Joe Fazzino, 860-247-0998 ext. 29
Public Information: 860-247-0998 ext. 26
www.marktwainhouse.org


THE MARK TWAIN HOUSE TO SPONSOR
'NEVER AN UNINTERESTING LIFE' SYMPOSIUM
Three Pulitzer Prize-winning authors among panelists
examining the art of biography

"There was never yet an uninteresting life.  Such a thing is an
impossibility.  Inside the dullest exterior there is a drama, a comedy, and
a tragedy." - Mark Twain

HARTFORD, CT - Mark Twain was fascinated with the comedy, drama and tragedy
of life.  The bulk of his works were biographical in nature, and one of his
most famous, albeit most costly, business endeavors was financial support
for the publication of Ulysses S. Grant's _Personal Memoirs_.

To commemorate Twain's interest in biography, The Mark Twain House will
sponsor "Never an Uninteresting Life: The Art of Biography," a day-long
symposium focusing on the art and craft of the biography and featuring
nationally recognized authors, including three recipients of the Pulitzer
Prize.

The symposium, which will examine the role of the biographer in creating,
interpreting and defining the popular image of public figures, will be held
on Saturday, October 5 in the Wallace Stevens Theater at The Hartford
Financial Services Group, 690 Asylum Avenue, Hartford.

Speakers and panelists will include Pulitzer Prize-winning biographers
Justin Kaplan (_Mr. Clemens and Mark Twain_), William McFeely (_Grant: A
Biography_), and Edmund Morris (_The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt_ and the
current bestseller _Theodore Rex_).

Other panelists will be: James Atlas, a former editor and associate editor
for several publications including _The New York Times Book Review_ and
_Atlantic Monthly_; Boston University Department of History Professor Robert
Dallek, the author of _Franklin D. Roosevelt and American Foreign Policy_
and _Lone Star Rising: Lyndon Johnson and His Times_; Michael Eric Dyson,
author of  _I May Not Get There With You: The True Martin Luther King Jr._,
and _Holler If You Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur_; William Lee Miller,
Scholar in Ethics and Institutions at the Miller Center of Public Affairs at
the University of Virginia and author of _Lincoln's Virtues: An Ethical
Biography_; and Sylvia Jukes Morris, author of _Edith Kermit Roosevelt:
Portrait of a First Lady_ and _A Rage for Fame: The Ascent of Clare Boothe
Luce_.

Lewis Lapham, editor of _Harpers Magazine_, will be a moderator for one of
the two panels during the day.

John V. Boyer, Executive Director of The Mark Twain House, noted that even
though Twain loved the comedy and drama of a person's life, Twain also
believed that "biographies are but the clothes and buttons of the man-the
biography of the man himself cannot be written."

"We're a nation of people fascinated with the public icons of popular
culture and national identity," Boyer said.  "That's why we've assembled
this panel of distinguished authors who can explore the role of the
biographer in creating a work that Twain suggested could not be written."

The symposium will feature a keynote address from Kaplan followed by two
panels, a morning session with the authors discussing "Biography of Cultural
Icons," and an afternoon panel about presidential biographies.  The events
will begin at 9:15 a.m. and conclude at 5 p.m.  Lunch and morning
refreshments are included in the registration fee.

General tickets are $45; $40 for seniors; $35 for members of The Mark Twain
House; and $10 for high school and college students, with proper ID.  The
program is eligible for 0.6 CEU credits for Connecticut teachers.
Registrations can be made by calling 860-247-0998, ext. 23 or online at
www.marktwainhouse.org.

The 2002 Symposium is part of the education initiative of The Mark Twain
House, an organization which is dedicated to preserving the author's
Hartford home and to enriching the understanding of his legacy as America's
most cherished - and, at times, most controversial - writer.

In November, The Mark Twain House will debut a new lecture series dedicated
to continuing Twain's legacy of social commentary and criticism.  The first
program, on Thursday, Nov. 14, will feature Dr. Randall Kennedy, professor
of law at Harvard University and author of _Nigger: The Strange Career of a
Troublesome Word_, which has received national attention and generated
tremendous discussion.

The Hartford Financial Services Group is the presenting sponsor for both The
Mark Twain 2002 Symposium and the Randall Kennedy lecture.

The Mark Twain House is the author's Hartford home, his primary residence
from 1874 to 1891.  A National Register Historic Landmark since 1963, the
house, located on Farmington Avenue in the historic Asylum Hill section of
Hartford, is open year-round for guided tours.  For tour information, please
call (860) 247-0998, ext. 26; for information about the 2002 Symposium or
other educational programs, call ext. 23.