Mccollough. But im also very, very happy to introduce his wife rosalie. Because i said to david, is rosalie coming to the lecture, and he said, i cant go anywhere without adult supervision. Rosalie is awesome. Rosalie is to david what Abigail Adams was to john adams. Shes the fabulous [ applause ] its true. Shes the fabulous indispensable life partner. Shes not only beautiful inside and out. But she told me last night when she met David Mccollough, she was only 17, and the first time they went to a coming out party together, they danced until 7 00 in the morning. And she said when she took her heels off to go to bed, her feet her so much she had to put the heels back on in order to sleep because her feet were bent in that shape. They care deeply about each other and each others well being. And they take advice from each other. And she told me that she often reads davids books to him because he likes to listen to his words and see where he might be boring. When you google David Mccollough, youll be blown away. By the richness of his lifes productivity. Im not going to give you a long list of everything but all of you google it. He has had the most extraordinary number of prizes and honors and honorary degrees during his lifetime. And hes received not one but two of the coveted pulitzer prizes. But let me tell you a little bit more i know about david. He has achieved success in every aspect of his life. Hes not only a great historian and writer and lecturer, hes a great husband and father and grandfather. Hes a great man. And a good man. And, you know, i think goodness counts in life. He said [ applause ] last week we had a dear friend visiting us, gordon gund, who is bli blind. And gordon said to stanley and me, i listen to books on tape and rely on them. And he said i would rather listen to Dave Mccollough reading than anyone else. When i listened to the wright brothers, i thought no reader is as good as David Mccollough. He has a mallifluous voice. And i practiced that word. When i was the regent at mount vernon on friday, october 26th, 2006, we opened the exceptional orientation center, Education Center and museum. There was only one man i wanted to deliver the keynote speech and that was David Mccollough. I was beyond thrilled when he accepted. As was everyone at mount vernon. He delivered a memorable speech. And it meant the world to me. And we were launched. And that night at the ball i watched david and rosalie dance and i will tell you fred astaire and ginger rogers, move over. In 2007, i hosted dinner on the piazza at mount vernon. Many american patriots were there. Peggy noonan. Michael novak. Richard melonskaf. Rush limbaugh. The new regent to be. Who are here today. David and rosalie were there and david stood up and said ladies and gentlemen, this is hallowed ground. Just think of where were sitting. And that we see a view across the potomac to maryland. And there are no high rises and no buildings and no lights. And thats thanks to the Mount Vernon Ladies Association who have protected the view shed. It looks almost exactly as it looked in the 18th century. And then he said this is where George Washington and martha entertained hamilton, lafayette, adams, jay, madison. He said, were sitting in the same place. And everybody stood up to toast. All of us were mistyeyed and had goose bumped. I once asked david is it true you do all your typing on a typewriter . He said, absolutely. I write on a royal standard, a 1940 model that i bought secondhand in 1965. I asked him why he never changed to a computer. Gay, i understand my typewriter and i dont understand computers. And also with a twinkle in his eye he said, i like to hear the ping at the end of the sentence. Rosalie told me that wherever he goes, that typewriter is with him. And all he has ever had to do is change the ribbon a few times. She also told me hes a great water colorist. I didnt know that. Hes a fine painter. And rosalie paints too, he said. But she says, gay, he is going to have an exhibit some day soon. After reading john adams in 1776, which david wrote at marthas vineyard, i said how do you get your mind into the 18th century. Oh, he said, i go out the back door after breakfast and im leaving behind the 21st century and i go through a small gate in a stone wall and im in the 20th century. And then i cross by the barn and over the garden and i walk through another small gate. And where theres a stone fence. And i get to my cabin from the 19th century. I open the door and im in the 18th century. And every single book in the room was either an 18th century copy or about the 18th century. He said nobody is ever allowed to interrupt me ever. Except the people who are not as tall as the gate. And he said theyre not really coming to see me. Theyre coming to see that old typewriter. I always go home for lunch, he said, and then back to work. He said, but im not ever working on a book, im working inside the subject. The good news is that means they are still being read. And that is his books. When i asked him, what is your greatest accomplishment, he said, well, i dont know, but im awfully proud of the fact that all my books are still in print. So all of his books are still being read. On april 18th this year, davids newest book, the american spirit, will be coming out. Its a selection of speeches and talks from the past 25 years. All of us in this audience are going to love it. It includes his talk at the 200th celebration of the congress and the 200th celebration of the white house. It also includes he said the hardest speech he ever had to give in his life. Which was at the Memorial Service for our assassinated president john kennedy in dallas in pouring rain and cold. He said the United StatesNaval Academy chorus was sicking battle hymn of the republic and everybody was sobbing. But that speech will be in the book. And also a speech that he did at lafayette college. And stanley and i went to hear that. I think it was 2007. But it was all about the ties that bind. About lafayette and about frances relationship with the United States. Its a fabulous speech. Stanley and i were having lunch at the breakers with david and rosalie about february of 2016 when i told him about my dream of having this series. He said, gay, thats a wonderful idea. His reaction was positive. Just as positive as joe ellis and newt beginnigingrich and heo for it. But i had an idea and knew the speakers and i had the most amazing positive support from chairman patrick henry, president David Brennan and head of the education. I think her title is president of the education. Molly shalen. Without whom this really wouldnt have happened. It did. Were here. Thank you all for coming. And give David Mccollough a warm palm beach welcome. Thank you. [ applause ] thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much. Good morning and thank you very much. And, gay, thank you, dear, for all that you said and all that youve done for your country. And particularly in what you did for your country in the work you did year after year at mount vernon. And there are very few sights in the world that harken as much of whats important in our story as a peel as mount vernon. And i think that gay also is a perfect example of someone who understands that the only way to get something of consequence accomplished is to work together. Very little is ever accomplished alone. Its a joint effort. And, boy, can she bring us all together to create good things. Thanks, pal, very much. [ applause ] i also appreciated your reference to my malifluous voice. You never know where compliments can come from in life. And one of them happen to me in boston two or three years ago when we had that horrific winter where one blizzard followed another. We had an accumulative snowfall of nine feet. It was really a disaster. The subways werent running. The buses werent running. You couldnt use your car. And so you would try and get out to the market to get provisions to survival the next blast of snow. And rosalie and i made up a list. We were living in back bay then. And made up a list. And i went to the nearest supermarket, star market, to get everything on the list. And i was doing fine. And the whole place was a mad house. Everybody else trying to get food too. It was like the russians bring on the horizon or something. I had everything on the list except the cashews. And as you know, you cant survive without cashews. So theres this fella going by with a star market label on his shirt. I said, excuse me, could you tell me where i might find the cashews. He said yes, follow me. So we went around a few turns and he pointed it out. And i thanked him and he went his way. And about ten minutes later, i was checking out the cash regist register. And he came up to me. That voice, your voice. Said, were you by any chance of narrator of the ken burn series on the civil war . I said, yes, i was. He said, well, i want to thank you from the bottom of my heart. Said, because when that series first came on the air, i was suffering terribly from insomnia. [ laughter ] he said, id hear you talk and go right out. Its also a very great privilege for me to take part in this series with so many other distinguished historians and friends. And its really a lineup. And i wish i had been able to attend their lectures. I admire each and every one. And i know each and every one has fulfilled a void that needs filling in our understanding of our history, our story. And i want to thank gay and others also for what they have said about rosalie. Rosalie and i have been married for 63 years. We have 19 grandchildren. 5 children. And she is mission control. And she is secretary of the treasury. And chair of the ethics committee. And shes the start i steer by. And before i ask you to stand up, i want to just tell you a quick story. As gay also mentioned, i believe very strongly in writing for the ear as well as the eye. Lots of the greats have said this. And so its very helpful for anyone who wants to write something that may have some value to get somebody to read it aloud to you. Because you hear things that you dont necessarily see. Particularly if youre working on a manuscript day after day after day. You hear certain words being repeated more often than necessary. You hear certain sentence structure that gets tiresome. And most important of all, you can hear when youre becoming boring. And you want to cut that or trim it back or do something with it. Well, rosalie was reading aloud to me, as she has everything ive ever written. And since i write and rewrite, shes often read chapters three or four times. Over 50 years now. With my first book, the johnstown flood. And she was reading i think next to the last chapter of my book about theodore roosevelt. She suddenly stopped and said theres something wrong with that sentence. I said, well, read it again please. She read it again. I said no, theres nothing wrong with that sentence. She said yes, there is. I said, give me that. This is not one of my better moments. I read it aloud. See. She said no, theres something wrong with that sentence. I said, well, just go on. Keep going. So the chapter was finished. The next chapter was finished. The book was finished. She sent to the publisher. It was published. It came out and was reviewed. And it got a very nice review in the new york review of books from gorvy dahl. But toward the end of the review, he said, sometimes, however, mr. Mccollough does not write so well. Listen to this sentence. [ laughter ] rosalie, where are you, sweetheart . Please stand. Stand up. [ applause ] i am i feel very strongly that education is one of the most important aspects of life. Not just in preparation to take part in life, but to appreciate and enjoy life. And education is one of the foundations of greatest importance to our whole american way of life. And one of the reasons the revolutionary era, the the war and the whole spirit of the revolution, are so important, is so important, remains so important, is because of the emphasis in that time by those specific people on the importance of education. Jefferson said it perfectly. He said any nation that expects to be ignorant and free expects what never was and never will be. And all of them, each and every one of them, either was an example of the importance of education because he or she had education or because she did it themselves. George washington being a prime example. Abigail adams being another prime example of selfeducated people. John adams was, many ways, in his childhood and youth, living under the same kind of circumstances as abraham lincoln. He grew up on a farm where they had no money. His mother was illiterate. His father we know could sign his name. Maybe could read. Was a bible in the house. And that was the only book. And they worked hard every day. From childhood on. And because but because he got a scholarship to this Little College in cambridge called harvard, as he said, discovered books and read forever, he became the john adams who helped change the world. No question about it. When he was 80 years old, he was embarking on a 16 volume history of france in french. Which he had taught himself. Because he was on his way at one point to become a representative in paris to try to get the french to come in and help us win this revolutionary war. Knowing no french, he decided he would teach himself and he taught himself on the way over on the ship. Which of course in those days was quite a journey. John adams read everything. And he never went anywhere without a book. One of his most memorable lines to his son john quincy was youll never be alone with a poet in your pocket. He would carry a small volume of poetry. Excuse me, in his pocket. The emphasis on education of course also included libraries. I think one of the most emblematic Historic Sites in america in this respect is Carpenters Hall in philadelphia. Now most people when they go to philadelphia walk right by Carpenters Hall. Its right next door practically, independence hall. Carpenters hall is where the Continental Congress first met. Its an exquisite little building. And upstairs in that building was a library created by benjamin franklin. In many ways was a Public Library. Might even be called the first Public Library. Its small. As the building is small. But great trees from acorns grow. And thats one of the lessons of our story. We grew up out of nothing. The whole population of our country in 1776 was 2. 58 million people. Thats all. And 500,000 of those people were in slavery. And we had no money. When we went to war, we had no money. We had no army. We had no navy. We had no officers with extensive experience in the military. And only about a third of the country were for the revolution. We forget that. A third of the country were for it. A third of the country were adamantly against it. The other third in the good old human way were waiting to see who won. And yet they persisted. Now i dont think we could ever know enough about the revolutionary era. I dont think we could ever know enough about the founders. And we have to see them as human beings. History is human. When in the course of human events. Human is the operative word. History is not about dates and memorizie ining quotations. Its about people. Its about human beings. And theyre different from each other. And they all have their faults, their fauilings. None of them ever knew how it was going to turn out any more than we do. Talk about foresight. They talk about the foreseeable future. No such thing as the foreseeable future. And that ought to be remembered. And thats how history should be taught. And in my view how it should be written. Im not oh, thank you. Im not at all one who favors the view from the mountain top, the wise historian who can say they should have done this, they should have done that. Put yourself in their places. And then try to judge what they did or didnt do. Now, i first started out to write a dual biography of jefferson and adams. I thought, this is an amazing story. Its the hour glass configuration. If youre thinking about structure. Theres two very different men from very different parts of the country. Totally different backgrounds. Who come together in philadelphia. Create help create with others this miraculous achievement called the declaration of independence. Then when the story begins to develop beyond that, they go in this direction to the point where they become not only rival also but enemies. And then at the very end, they make up, theyre out of power, and they start to communicate and become friends again. Wonderful story. And, and think about how it ends. If you went into if i walked into my editors office, its wag go to do a novel about amany da adams and jefferson. And said guess what, theyre going to die on the same day. Its going to be the fourth of july. No, no, of course not. That cant happen in real life. That doesnt happen in real life. And yet its exactly what happened in real life. But then i began reading about john adams. I knew very little about john adams comparatively. I knew quite a lot about jefferson. My first visit to an Historic Site was when i was 15 was to charlottesville and monticello. And i came back just thrilled to have seen that. And as gay was suggesting in her remarks, theres nothing like taking your children or your grandchildren to an Historic Site to light the fire of interest in our story as a nation, as a people. It works. Take them to a Historic Site. It doesnt have to be monticello or gettysburg, it can be all kinds of things. But in any event. Pardon me. What did i say . Well, i was plugging you. Yeah. Monticello. Monticellos the first place i went, Historic Site i ever visited. I grew up in pittsburgh, pennsylvania. I was very interested in history. When i went to monticello, things changed. But when i started to believe about adams, i thought, what an amazing story. And when i began to try and get inside jeffersons life, i thought, theyre roadblocks everywhere. You cant get very far into the personal life. You cant get very close to the human being the way you can with others. And particularly adams. Jefferson destroyed every letter his wife ever wrote to him. He destroyed every letter he wrote to her. He would write friends of theirs who might have received a letter from his wife saying if you have any letters from my wife, id really love to