Alistair Cooke
Born 1908 · Age 117
British-American journalist, broadcaster and writer; longtime host of Letter from America and Masterpiece Theatre, author and TV documentarian.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born Alfred Cooke in Salford, Lancashire, England
Born Alfred Cooke, son of Mary Elizabeth (Byrne) and Samuel Cooke in Salford, Lancashire (now Greater Manchester).
Family relocated to Blackpool
Cooke's family moved to the seaside town of Blackpool; interaction with billeted American soldiers left a lasting impression.
Won scholarship to Jesus College, Cambridge
Won a scholarship to Jesus College, Cambridge (stipulation originally required teaching), studied English and engaged in drama and editorial work.
Founded the Mummers theatre group at Cambridge
Set up the Mummers, Cambridge's first theatre group open to both sexes; anecdote: he rejected a young James Mason.
Graduated from Jesus College, Cambridge
Gained an honours degree in English (often cited as a 2:1 / summa-type distinction in some sources).
Changed his name to Alistair
Around age 22 (1930) he adopted the name Alistair (from Alfred).
Awarded Commonwealth Fund (Harkness) Fellowship to Yale and Harvard
Two-year fellowship (1932–34) to study drama/arts at Yale and Harvard; traveled cross-country in the US and visited Hollywood.
Engaged to Henrietta Riddle (engagement broken off)
Became engaged to Henrietta Riddle in 1932; the engagement was broken off in 1933 while Cooke was in America.
Served on BBC Advisory Committee on pronunciation
Sat on a BBC advisory committee (headed by George Bernard Shaw) concerning correct pronunciation.
Earliest recorded interview (Library of Congress archive)
Interviewed by Miles Hanley on Jan 14, 1934; one of the first surviving recordings of his voice (held by LOC).
Married Ruth Emerson
Married Ruth Emerson (great-grandniece of Ralph Waldo Emerson) on 24 August 1934.
Became BBC film critic (first BBC broadcast)
Replaced Oliver Baldwin as the BBC's film critic and made his first BBC broadcast on 8 October 1934.
Became London correspondent for NBC
Became London correspondent for the US broadcaster NBC, recording weekly radio London Letter talks for American audiences.
Reported intensively on Edward VIII abdication
Reported the 1936 Edward VIII abdication crisis for NBC, speaking some 400,000 words over ten days on the topic.
Published (edited) Garbo and the Night Watchmen
Editor: Garbo and the Night Watchmen: A Selection from the Writings of British and American Film Critics (1937).
Immigrated to the United States (settled in New York)
Moved permanently to the U.S.; within months he was living and working in New York and pursuing BBC/NBC/British press opportunities.
Produced I Hear America Singing (BBC series using Library of Congress recordings)
Created a 13-part BBC radio series (I Hear America Singing), borrowing recordings from Library of Congress—broadcast in 1938 and influential in introducing American folk music to British listeners.
Published Douglas Fairbanks: The Making of a Screen Character
Authored a critical/biographical study of Douglas Fairbanks (1940).
Birth of son John Byrne Cooke
Son John Byrne Cooke born in New York City on 5 October 1940 (who later became an author and folk singer/manager).
Documented American home front (1941–42)
Undertook a journey across the United States (1941–42) recording ordinary Americans' wartime life; material later published posthumously (2006).
Became a United States citizen
Swore the Oath of Allegiance and became a US citizen on 1 December 1941 (six days before Pearl Harbor).
First broadcast of American Letter (later Letter from America)
First American Letter broadcast on 24 March 1946 on the BBC; the program was commissioned for 13 instalments but became a 58-year weekly series.
Married Jane White Hawkes
Divorced first wife in 1944 and married Jane White Hawkes, a portrait painter and widow, on 30 April 1946.
Became foreign correspondent (staff) for the Manchester Guardian
Joined the Manchester Guardian as a foreign correspondent in 1947—the first time he was on a newspaper staff—and wrote for it until 1972.
Birth of daughter Susan
Daughter Susan born on 22 March 1949 (with his second wife, Jane).
Published A Generation on Trial: The USA v. Alger Hiss
Published an account of postwar espionage trials (Alger Hiss) in 1950; a significant nonfiction book in his career.
Published Letters from America (book)
Collection of his radio talks published as Letters from America in 1951 (Rupert Hart-Davis, London).
Published One Man's America
Published One Man's America (1952), a US edition with similar material to Letters from America, adapted for American readers.
Became host of CBS's Omnibus
In 1952 Cooke became host of Omnibus, the US commercial network arts series featuring Hume Cronyn, Jessica Tandy, Gene Kelly, Leonard Bernstein and others.
Delivered MacMillan Memorial Lecture
Invited to deliver the MacMillan Memorial Lecture to the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland on 'The Jet Age and the Habits of Man.'
Witnessed events after Robert F. Kennedy's assassination
Was only yards away from Robert F. Kennedy when he was assassinated in 1968 and witnessed the events that followed.
Published Talk about America: Letters from America, 1951–1968
Collected radio talks published as Talk About America (1968), covering 1951–1968.
Became host of Masterpiece Theatre (PBS)
Took the role of host and introducer of PBS's Masterpiece Theatre in 1971, presenting British drama to American audiences.
Produced television series America: A Personal History of the United States
Created the 13-part TV series America (1972) surveying US history; filmed on location throughout the United States.
Awarded Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE)
Received an honorary KBE in 1973 for contributions to Anglo-American understanding (could not be styled 'Sir' because of US citizenship).
Alistair Cooke's America book and Emmy recognition
Book Alistair Cooke's America (1973) based on the TV series became a bestseller; the series earned multiple Emmy awards (sources vary on exact count).
Won Jacob's Award in Ireland (for America series broadcast there)
After the America series was broadcast in Ireland, Cooke won a Jacob's Award (one of the rare awards given to an imported programme-maker).
Addressed joint Houses of the US Congress (bicentenary)
Invited to address the joint Houses of Congress as part of the bicentenary celebrations (delivered a notable speech in 1974).
Published The Americans: Fifty Talks on our Lives and Times
Published The Americans (1977), a collection of his broadcasts and essays from 1969–1979.
Received Primetime Emmy Governors Award (listed source)
Listed among recipients (or honorees) in the Primetime Emmy Governors Awards roll (Alistair Cooke appears in lists dated mid-1980s); source citation uncertain.
Published The Patient Has the Floor
Authored The Patient Has the Floor (1986), one of his later nonfiction books.
Published America Observed: The Newspaper Years of Alistair Cooke
Published America Observed (1988), a selection of his newspaper articles spanning decades.
Marked as having worked in television for 42 years
By the time of his 1992 retirement from Masterpiece Theatre he had worked in television for approximately 42 years.
Retired as host of Masterpiece Theatre
After 22 years as host (1971–1992), Cooke retired from Masterpiece Theatre in 1992.
Published Fun & Games with Alistair Cooke: On Sport and Other Amusements
Published a collection of pieces on sports and amusements (1996), reflecting his interest in golf and leisure.
Published Memories of the Great and the Good
Published Memories of the Great and the Good (2000), a late-career collection of reminiscences and essays.
Still producing Letter from America episodes into old age
Continuing to write/speak Letter from America from a manual typewriter and broadcast weekly into his mid-90s; remained active until early 2004.
Fulbright Alistair Cooke Award in Journalism established
After Cooke's death the Fulbright Alistair Cooke Award in Journalism was created to support study exchanges between the UK and US in journalism as a tribute to his career.
Ashes clandestinely scattered in Central Park
Family clandestinely scattered his ashes in Central Park after cremation.
Final Letter from America broadcasts and episode count
Letter from America ended in March 2004 after 2,869 instalments—the longest-running spoken-word radio programme presented by a single host.
Announced retirement from Letter from America
On 2 March 2004, Cooke announced his retirement from Letter from America after 58 years on air.
Died in New York City
Died at midnight on 30 March 2004 at his home in New York City of lung cancer that had spread to the bones; was cremated.
Report that Cooke's bones were stolen before cremation
On 22 December 2005 newspapers reported that his bones (among others) had been surgically removed prior to cremation by a tissue-recovery firm and sold for grafts.
Posthumous publication: The American Home Front: 1941–1942
Manuscript based on his 1941–42 journey and reporting was published posthumously in the US (2006); UK edition titled Alistair Cooke's American Journey.
Posthumous compilation The Marvelous Mania: Alistair Cooke on Golf
A compilation of Cooke's writings on golf was published in 2007 (posthumous); Jack Nicklaus wrote an introduction to a compilation of his golf writing in some editions.
Posthumous Reporting America: The Life of the Nation, 1946–2004
Reporting America: The Life of the Nation, 1946–2004 (a collected edition) was published posthumously in 2008.
Michael Mastromarino sentenced for body-parts scheme
Michael Mastromarino, central to the body-parts scheme that affected Cooke's remains, was sentenced on 27 June 2008 to 18–54 years' imprisonment.
Death of Michael Mastromarino
Michael Mastromarino died at age 49 on 7 July 2013 after suffering from liver cancer; included because of connection to the posthumous theft of Cooke's bones.
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