The Wilson Center Mourns the Loss of Longtime Fellow James Reston, Jr.

Author of 19 books (with two more on the way), four plays, and numerous articles in national publications, James Reston, Jr. was a prolific chronicler of American and world history and of contemporary national and global issues. His significant body of work guarantees that his legacy will live on, and the Wilson Center was privileged to have him affiliated with the institution for more than 20 years as a scholar and colleague. 

Born in New York in 1941, he was raised in Washington, DC and attended the University of North Carolina on a Morehead Scholarship where he earned his BA in philosophy. He attended Oxford University for his junior year.

At UNC Jim was an All-South soccer player and he still holds the single game scoring record for the university, having scored 5 goals against NC State on October 18, 1962. A man of numerous and prestigious accomplishments, this is one of which he was particularly proud.   

It would be impossible to fully summarize his diverse accomplishments in this brief article, so instead we offer a collection of highlights from Jim’s remarkable career:

• Served as an assistant to Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall (1964-1965)
• Served in the US Army (1965-1968)
• In 1976-77, he was David Frost's Watergate advisor for the famous Nixon interviews. He provided Frost with a 96-page “interrogation strategy memo” that resulted in the most watched public affairs television program in American history.
• His book, The Conviction of Richard Nixon: The Untold Story of the Frost/Nixon Interviews, was developed into a play that then became part of the inspiration for the Academy Award-nominated film Frost/Nixon (2008). In the movie, Jim was portrayed by Academy Award-winning actor, Sam Rockwell. 
• He won the Prix Italia and Dupont-Columbus Award for his 1983 NPR radio documentary, Father Cares: The Last of Jonestown.
• His last five historical works, Galileo: A Life, The Last Apocalypse, Warriors of God, Dogs of God, and Defenders of the Faith have been translated into thirteen languages.
• His articles have appeared in The New Yorker, Vanity Fair,  Time, The New York Times Magazine, Smithsonian, National Geographic, Esquire,  American Theatre, Playboy, and Rolling Stone.
• From 1971 to 1981, he was a lecturer in Creative Writing in the English Department at UNC Chapel Hill.
• He had been a fellow at the American Academy in Rome, a fellow at the John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress and a senior scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

Jim is survived by his wife, Denise Leary, two daughters, Maeve and Hillary, son Devin, brothers Tom and Richard, and two grandchildren. The Wilson Center extends its heartfelt condolences to all of Jim’s family and friends. He will always occupy a special place in the annals of the Wilson Center. 

From Jim’s colleagues:

“Jim Reston was a beloved Wilson Fellow who contributed so much to our community. His voluminous writings on historical and contemporary topics are a lasting legacy. Jim’s breadth and depth of knowledge reflected his abiding curiosity about the world around him—and a commitment to making it better.” --- Robert Litwak

Robert S. Litwak is a Wilson Center Senior Vice President and Director of International Security Studies. Dr. Litwak is also a consultant to the Los Alamos National Laboratory and served on the National Security Council staff as director for nonproliferation.

"In the loss of Jim Reston, Zeenat and I, like so many others, have lost a dear and valued friend. To us he symbolized the best of America and the best of humanity --always charming, courageous, generous, warm, and scrupulously fair in his excellent scholarship. " --- Zeenat and Akbar Ahmed

Ambassador Akbar Ahmed is Distinguished Professor and Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies at American University and is a Wilson Center Global Fellow.

“In so many ways, Jim was the personification of the Wilson Center’s mission. His commitment to the long-standing Wilson value of scholarship in service to the public was passionate, inspiring, and unwavering. His work was not simply an intellectual exercise, it was personal. He cared deeply about democracy, freedom, and justice and was a true believer in the power of ideas.” --- John Milewski

John Milewski is a long-time broadcast journalist who currently serves as the Wilson Center’s Director of Digital Programming. He is also host of the interview program Wilson Center NOW, and of the podcasts Need to Know and Americas 360.

“Jim Reston was a remarkable literary talent, a loving and devoted husband and father, a genteel and generous friend, and for me as an author, an invaluable mentor and exemplar. Jim’s interests were immense and his productivity prodigious. He was a Renaissance man whose writings stretched from the Middle Ages to modern American politics, covering social and international justice, the Space Age, and even a moving personal memoir.  His insatiable intellectual curiosity and indefatigable industry has resulted in a body of work that will long endure.” --- Richard Whittle

Richard Whittle is a journalist, author, and speaker focused on transformational military and civilian aviation technology. He is currently a Global Fellow with the Wilson Center’s Science and Technology Innovation Program.