313:. In one column, he described himself as “a conservative neo-Thomist Roman Catholic with Platonist leanings and occasional temptations towards anarchy.” He opposed what he called San Francisco's "rigid inquisitorial orthodoxy," which he identified with the city's Democratic leadership, and defended Proposition 13, which capped increases in property tax rates. After Patricia Hearst was abducted by the Symbionese Liberation Army, denounced her parents, and participated in the SLA's bank robberies, Starr described Hearst, whose father was president of the
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All of a sudden I saw all these
California books: diaries, memoirs, journals, histories, bibliographies. And a kind of enchantment overtook me, a kind of beguilement, a kind of reverie, definitely a physical reaction in the days that followed. As I look back on it psychologically, I see that I’d made
425:. Starr oversaw the allocation of $ 350 million in local library construction money after voters approved a statewide library borrowing measure in 2000. As a child, Starr had to read the newspaper to his visually impaired father, an experience which led him to create a statewide service that allowed
172:
After an impoverished childhood, he received degrees from various universities where he studied history and literature. Beginning in 1973, Starr wrote nine books on the history of
California during his career, along with being professor or visiting lecturer at numerous California universities. From
436:, its vitality and its promise in such detail and yet invest it with the immediacy and excitement of a page-turner novel." Starr's library assistant, Mattie Taormina, notes that "Starr made you excited to be a Californian because you were going to create the future California."
385:
Kevin Starr chronicled the history of
California as no one else. He captured the spirit of our state and brought to life the characters and personalities that made the California story. His vision, like California itself, was bigger than life.
328:
series. It was at
Harvard that he first became inspired to write about California's history, after browsing through their collection of books about California and the Pacific Coast. He explained the impact those books had on him:
317:, as "a political prisoner of the politics of class resentment." In one speech, San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk referred to Starr as a bigot and grouped him with anti-gay activists. After leaving the
215:
Starr's parents divorced when he was a child. When he was six his mother had a nervous breakdown, after which Starr and his younger brother, James, were placed in a Roman
Catholic orphanage in
282:) in 1969. He subsequently launched his teaching career at Harvard as an assistant (and later associate) professor of English from 1969 to 1973 before returning to California.
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Starr is the author of the multi-volume history of
California collectively entitled "Americans and the California Dream". The first volume in the series,
403:, he then became Professor of History, and he was designated University Professor in 1998. Starr sometimes taught at the USC State Capital Center in
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and running unsuccessfully for the San
Francisco Board of Supervisors, Starr tempered his political views and refashioned his public persona.
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From 1994 to 2004 Starr was
California's state librarian. He continued writing California history throughout his career, receiving a
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Peter
Richardson, "Dream Interrupted: Kevin Starr at The San Francisco Examiner, 1976-83," Boom California, March 19, 2019,
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California state librarian Greg Lucas calls Starr "truly, one of a kind. No other historian has been able to capture
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From 1974 to 1989 he was professor or visiting lecturer at numerous
California universities, including
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Beginning in 1973, Starr wrote nine books on the history of California, eight of which comprise his
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for his work as a scholar and historian, and in 2010 was inducted into the California Hall of Fame.
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to serve as California's state librarian, a post he managed from 1994 to 2004, at which time
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people to call a phone number to connect with someone who would read the news to them.
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the school newspaper. After graduation he was commissioned as an armor officer in the
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824:"Author of California histories and former State Librarian Kevin Starr dies at 76"
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Continental Ambitions: Roman Catholics in North America: the Colonial Experience.
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an absolutely powerful connection between California and my interior landscape.
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near Mannheim in West Germany. Upon release from the service, Starr entered
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563:. (1973 and 1986) New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 494.
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858:"Kevin Starr, Prolific Chronicler of California’s History, Dies at 76"
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In 1989 Starr became Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at the
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In 1973, he became an aide and speechwriter to San Francisco mayor
475:
In 2006, Starr was made a member of the College of Fellows of the
275:
254:. He served for two years as a lieutenant with the 4th Battalion,
985:"Kevin Owen Starr: University Professor and Professor of History"
510:
was inspired by the "Dream" series of books to write the piece
491:
for his work as a scholar and historian. And in 2010, Governor
916:
942:"Americans and the California Dream | Series | LibraryThing"
882:"Biographical Sketch: Kevin Starr, State Librarian Emeritus"
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Golden Gate: The Life and Times of America's Greatest Bridge
169:, collectively called "Americans and the California Dream."
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Golden dreams: California in an age of abundance, 1950–1963
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Inventing the Dream: California through the Progressive Era
246:
degree in English in 1962. At the school, he was editor of
1139:"Announcing the 2012 Los Angeles Times Book Prize winners"
800:"Kevin Starr, California’s premier historian, dead at 76"
930:
https://boomcalifornia.org/2019/03/19/dream-interrupted/
663:
Embattled Dreams: California in War and Peace, 1940–1950
173:
1989 until his death in 2017, he was a professor at the
1200:"A historian's view of the changing 'California dream'"
641:
Sunset magazine: a century of Western living, 1898–1998
516:
in 2009. Starr received The Robert Kirsch Award by the
157:(September 3, 1940 – January 14, 2017) was an American
638:"Sunset Magazine and the Phenomenon of the Far West".
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Material Dreams: Southern California through the 1920s
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Endangered Dreams: The Great Depression in California
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covers the period from 1950 to 1963 and won the 2009
751:(2016) Ignatius Press; Sewn edition. pp. 675.
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676:Coast Of Dreams: California on the Edge, 1990–2003
443:was published in 1973. The final volume, entitled
242:, a Jesuit institution, where he graduated with a
445:Golden Dreams: California in an Age of Abundance,
302:, in 1974. He also did post-doctoral work at the
309:From 1976 to 1983, Starr wrote a column for the
165:, best known for his multi-volume series on the
1019:USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development
383:
331:
227:, while they subsisted on welfare. He attended
625:The Dream Endures: California Enters the 1940s
208:Kevin Starr was born on September 3, 1940, in
1047:"2009 Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalists"
561:Americans and the California Dream, 1850–1915
441:Americans and the California Dream, 1850–1915
8:
368:and served as the Vatican correspondent for
477:Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology
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1329:University of Southern California faculty
714:. Oxford University Press US. July 2009.
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358:, the University of San Francisco, and
104:Historian, author, professor, librarian
967:"California Gets More Starr Treatment"
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538:in San Francisco on January 14, 2017.
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1314:National Humanities Medal recipients
1324:University of San Francisco faculty
1198:Daniel B. Wood (October 27, 2004).
278:in the discipline (specializing in
1319:University of San Francisco alumni
769:Bibliography of California history
372:, covering the elections of Popes
362:. He was also a columnist for the
326:Americans and the California Dream
300:University of California, Berkeley
14:
1250:"Resplendent in the American Sun"
993:University of Southern California
971:University of Southern California
734:. Bloomsbury USA. 24 April 2012.
401:University of Southern California
344:University of Southern California
175:University of Southern California
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16:American historian and librarian
1304:Historians of the American West
470:Commonwealth Club of California
190:Commonwealth Club of California
1231:. July 1, 2009. Archived from
186:Society of American Historians
120:Sheila Gordon (1963–his death)
112:Writings on California history
1:
1248:Herbert Gold (July 9, 2009).
1176:San Francisco Bay Area portal
646:Stanford University Libraries
524:Los Angeles Times Book Prizes
483:. In 2006 he was presented a
192:. In 2006 he was presented a
74:San Francisco, California, US
1055:. April 2010. Archived from
188:, and the Gold Medal of the
163:California's state librarian
147:Los Angeles Times Book Prize
434:California's exceptionalism
240:University of San Francisco
84:University of San Francisco
1360:
1344:Librarians from California
1339:Historians from California
1334:Writers from San Francisco
421:named him State Librarian
304:Graduate Theological Union
1299:Harvard University alumni
1205:Christian Science Monitor
1014:"SPPD Affiliated Faculty"
919:format from October 2003)
485:National Humanities Medal
274:in English in 1965 and a
238:He later enrolled in the
194:National Humanities Medal
142:National Humanities Medal
28:
1309:Historians of California
1229:'s Forum by Scott Shafer
887:California State Library
499:inducted Starr into the
204:Early life and education
1255:The Wall Street Journal
501:California Hall of Fame
410:Starr was appointed by
137:California Hall of Fame
890:. 2007. Archived from
694:. Random House. 2005.
464:His writing won him a
405:Sacramento, California
388:
365:San Francisco Examiner
356:Santa Clara University
336:
315:San Francisco Examiner
311:San Francisco Examiner
221:public housing project
91:(M.S. 1965; PhD 1969);
691:California: a history
493:Arnold Schwarzenegger
466:Guggenheim Fellowship
419:Arnold Schwarzenegger
260:8th Infantry Division
182:Guggenheim Fellowship
167:history of California
1027:on November 26, 2011
946:www.librarything.com
894:on December 19, 2017
522:as part of the 2012
481:Berkeley, California
412:Governor Pete Wilson
184:, membership in the
1115:on January 26, 2010
1103:John Adams (2009).
832:. January 15, 2017.
360:Stanford University
280:American literature
262:and was located at
256:68th Armor Regiment
229:St. Boniface School
1137:(April 19, 2013).
911:2017-05-25 at the
805:The Sacramento Bee
268:Harvard University
252:United States Army
1190:California portal
1052:Los Angeles Times
829:Los Angeles Times
721:978-0-19-515377-4
701:978-0-679-64240-4
655:978-0-911221-17-6
550:(a novel) (1979)
519:Los Angeles Times
460:Awards and honors
450:Los Angeles Times
427:visually impaired
370:Hearst Newspapers
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52:September 3, 1940
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244:Bachelor of Arts
155:Kevin Owen Starr
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67:January 14, 2017
58:, California, US
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42:Kevin Owen Starr
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1259:. Retrieved
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1237:. Retrieved
1233:the original
1224:
1209:. Retrieved
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1148:. Retrieved
1142:
1135:Staff writer
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1117:. Retrieved
1113:the original
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536:heart attack
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378:John Paul II
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352:UC Riverside
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248:The Foghorn,
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86:(B.A. 1962);
69:(2017-01-14)
1294:2017 deaths
1289:1940 births
1270:Appearances
1105:"City Noir"
393:Jerry Brown
374:John Paul I
340:UC Berkeley
96:(M.S. 1974)
23:Kevin Starr
1283:Categories
951:2021-02-23
775:References
548:Land's End
508:John Adams
454:Book Prize
233:Tenderloin
48:1940-09-03
1150:April 21,
581:254930084
577:641725018
513:City Noir
506:Composer
391:Governor
380:in 1978.
298:from the
159:historian
80:Education
1144:LA Times
1021:web site
909:Archived
763:See also
648:. 1998.
423:Emeritus
416:Governor
348:UC Davis
319:Examiner
125:Children
1261:July 8,
1239:May 26,
1211:May 26,
1119:May 26,
1063:May 26,
1031:May 26,
998:May 26,
906:Full CV
898:May 26,
678:(2004)
665:(2002)
627:(1997)
614:(1996)
601:(1990)
588:(1985)
571:(1986)
231:in the
89:Harvard
1274:C-SPAN
1088:May 5,
755:
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