Austin American-Statesman (Texas), April 18, 2006, Tuesday

Copyright 2006 The Austin American-Statesman
All Rights Reserved
Austin American-Statesman (Texas)

April 18, 2006 Tuesday
Final Edition

SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A01

HEADLINE: Making history of his own, UT professor wins Pulitzer

BYLINE: Ralph K.M. Haurwitz AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

BODY:
David Oshinsky, a history professor at the University of Texas, is a prolific writer, an engaging lecturer, a man seldom at a loss for words. But when he learned Monday afternoon that he had won the Pulitzer Prize in history, he was speechless.
Moments later, after collecting himself, he said, "This isn't a joke?"
It was no joke. Oshinsky, 61, the George Littlefield professor in American history, had known he was a finalist for "Polio: An American Story," his account of the social, political and medical dimensions of the war on the dreaded disease.
But he also knew he was up against formidable competi- tion: Jill Lepore, a history professor at Harvard University, and Sean Wilentz, a history professor at Princeton University.
Oshinsky gathered with friends and colleagues on campus Monday afternoon to await the announcement from Columbia University but said he didn't expect to win. Fellow professors said they weren't surprised.
"He writes with grace and verve, and he knows how to tell a story," said Alan Tully, chairman of the history department. "It's a great day for him, it's a great day for the department, and it's a great day for the university."
The UT Tower was lit Monday night - white on top, orange on the shaft - in honor of Oshinsky. He is only the second faculty member at UT to win a Pulitzer, university officials said. William Goetzmann, now retired, won in 1967, also for history.
"I'm astounded, amazed, thrilled," Oshinsky said. "I feel a special privilege to have won the Pulitzer Prize here, at a university that is incredibly dear to my heart."
Oshinsky came to UT in 2001 after nearly 30 years at Rutgers University in New Jersey. He said he and his wife, Jane, were drawn to Austin by its funky quality, outstanding faculty, good students and "a climate to die for when you come from New Jersey."
"To win the Pulitzer Prize is the goal of a lifetime," he said. "I'd like to be modest and say all prizes are equal, but the Pulitzer is the prize that Americans look to for a sign of excellence."
Asked why he thought his book won, Oshinsky praised the "superb books" by Lepore and Wilentz: "New York Burning: Liberty, Slavery, and Conspiracy in Eighteenth-Century Manhattan" and "The Rise of American Democracy," respectively. In his book, Oshinsky said, he sought to be a storyteller, to convey through a narrative style the ultimately successful quest for a cure to an illness that frightened millions in the 1940s and '50s.
The Pulitzer Prize Board did not explain why it chose Oshinsky's book.
"Polio: An American Story" describes the sometimes bitter competition between two sizable egos in vaccine development - Jonas Salk and Albert Sabin - as well as the grass-roots fundraising, spearheaded by the March of Dimes, that revolutionized philanthropy and medical research. And, too, it recounts the willingness of the American people to subject their children to vaccination. It is, Oshinsky said, ultimately an uplifting story.
George Forgie, an associate professor of history at UT, said Oshinsky is impressive for his decency and his many skills.
"He's great across the board: a very hard worker, a beautiful writer and a great teacher," Forgie said.
Students seem to like him, too.
"He's a very personable adviser," said Zach Montz, who is working on a doctorate under Oshinsky. "He seems to be very interested in your interest."
rhaurwitz@statesman.com; 445-3604
David M. Oshinsky
Age: 61
Education: Bachelor of science in labor studies from Cornell University, master of arts in history from Cornell, doctorate in American civilization from Brandeis
Books: 'Polio: An American Story,' 'A Conspiracy So Immense: The World of Joe McCarthy,' 'Worse Than Slavery: Parchman Farm and the Ordeal of Jim Crow Justice'
Worth noting: He's a big fan of UT softball, UT baseball and the Boston Red Sox.

(sidebar)
2006 Pulitzer Prize journalism winners
A partial list:
Public service: The Sun Herald of south Mississippi and the Times-Picayune of New Orleans for coverage of Hurricane Katrina.
Breaking news reporting: Times-Picayune staff for Katrina coverage.
Investigative reporting: Susan Schmidt, James V. Grimaldi and R. Jeffrey Smith of the Washington Post for coverage of the Abramoff scandal.
Beat reporting: Dana Priest of the Washington Post for coverage of secret CIA prisons.
National reporting: James Risen and Eric Lichtblau of the New York Times for coverage of the U.S. government's secret domestic eavesdropping program and the staffs of the San Diego Union-Tribune and Copley News Service for coverage of the Randy 'Duke' Cunningham bribery scandal.
Commentary - Nicholas Kristof of The New York Times.
Criticism - Robin Givhan of the Washington Post.
Editorial cartooning - Mike Luckovich of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Breaking news photography - Staff of The Dallas Morning News for Katrina coverage.
Winners in the arts
Fiction: ''March,'' by Geraldine Brooks
History: 'Polio: An American Story,' by David M. Oshinsky
Biography: 'American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer,' by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin
Poetry: 'Late Wife,' by Claudia Emerson
General nonfiction: 'Imperial Reckoning: The Untold Story of Britain's Gulag in Kenya,' by Caroline Elkins

See the full list of winners and read a previous story with this story online at statesman.com