Contact: Robbie Ward
STARKVILLE, Miss.--John Marszalek, the award-winning writer and Mississippi State Giles Distinguished Professor Emeritus, will be among Civil War historians featured Sunday [April 22] on a new History Channel program about Union Gen. William T. Sherman.
The two-hour special, called "Sherman's March to the Sea," shares the name of a book Marszalek wrote in 2005. The cable television network production begins at 8 p.m. central time.
One of about a half dozen historians scheduled to appear, Marszalek will discuss Sherman's 1864 march from Atlanta to Savannah, Ga., one of the war's defining events. His remarks will be culled from some four hours of interviews with the producers.
Though retired from teaching, Marszalek continues to work as director and mentor of the university's Distinguished Scholars program. Over his career, he has authored 13 books and more than 250 articles on the Civil War and related subjects.
Marszalek said the complexity and depth of Sherman keeps him fascinated and researching material on the general who had interests unrelated to war ranging from making wine to issues of law.
"He is one of the most intellectually curious individuals I have ever come across in human life and history," Marszelak said of the controversial military leader. "Every time you think you've got the guy figured out, he comes up with something else."
Sherman is known for many military tactics, including a "scorched earth" policy of burning anything that could be of use to the enemy as his troops left an area.
Many misconceptions still hover around Sherman's reputation, Marszalek also observed. For instance, Sherman never burned the city of Atlanta, as many people believe.
"There's just one myth after another," he said.
Over a long career, Marszalek has been called on to share his expertise for numerous network and cable television shows. Publications by the New York native and University of Notre Dame doctoral graduate have been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and USA Today, and other national publications.
His 1992 work, "Sherman: A Soldier's Passion for Order" (Free Press), was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. "Assault at West Point: The Court Martial of Johnson Whittaker," a 1972 release from Collier Books, was made into a Showtime movie channel production of the same name.
Marszalek is in the early stages of writing his next book about the mythology between Sherman and Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
NEWS EDITORS/DIRECTORS: For more information, telephone Marszalek at 662-323-8068.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.