A journey from journalism

Greetings. Welcome to my blog. I started it to talk about the work I’ve been doing since retiring as a newspaper editor. Mostly I’ve been researching and writing about history. My most recent project is titled Citizen Carl: The editor who cracked Teapot Dome, shot a judge and invented the parking meter. I was inspired… Continue reading A journey from journalism

Citizen Carl: The movie

I’ve produced a video documentary based on my biography of Carl Magee. So if you’ve been waiting for the movie, here it is. The video gave me a chance to add an episode to Magee’s life story that I completely missed in writing Citizen Carl: The Editor Who Cracked Teapot Dome, Shot a Judge and… Continue reading Citizen Carl: The movie

History Channel podcast features Carl Magee

I got a chance to talk about Carl Magee’s role in the Teapot Dome scandal during an episode of the History Channel’s “History This Week” podcast. The producer was Jon Earle, and he did a great job dragging some decent quotes out of me for his very lively narrative about the corruption that shook the… Continue reading History Channel podcast features Carl Magee

Citizen Carl wins 2025 New Mexico Book Award

Citizen Carl was named best biography in the 2025 New Mexico Book Awards competition conducted by New Mexico Writers, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting and connecting the state’s literary community. I was sorry I couldn’t get back to New Mexico for any of the New Mexico Writers events, but a trip to the Land… Continue reading Citizen Carl wins 2025 New Mexico Book Award

Citizen Carl honored in NM-AZ Book Awards

Citizen Carl was a finalist for 2024 New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards in two categories: history/New Mexico subject and biography/New Mexico subject. The competition, now in its 19th year, is sponsored by the New Mexico Book Coop, a partnership of over 1,200 publishers and authors interested in showcasing and selling books about New Mexico, Arizona, and… Continue reading Citizen Carl honored in NM-AZ Book Awards

Carl Magee’s gun and grandson impress

A special guest showed up with a special surprise when I delivered a recent talk to Historic Albuquerque about Carl Magee, the subject of my Citizen Carl book. The guest was Vishu Magee, Carl Magee’s grandson, and his surprise was the tiny Colt .25 used to shoot Judge David Leahy and John Lassetter 100 years… Continue reading Carl Magee’s gun and grandson impress

Talks about Carl Magee coming to ABQ

I’m going to be in Albuquerque in mid-September giving lectures on Carl Magee. The talks will be at 11:30, Wednesday, Sept. 17, to Historic Albuquerque at Botts Hall, 423 Central Ave NE; and at noon, Saturday, Sept. 20 at the Wheels Museum, 1100 2nd St. S.W. (Barelas Railyard). The events were prompted by UNM Press’s… Continue reading Talks about Carl Magee coming to ABQ

Parking meter podcast features Citizen Carl

The “How Curious” podcast just dropped an episode about the origins of the parking meter, and Carl Magee, naturally, was the star. The podcast is associated with KGOU, the public radio station at the University of Oklahoma in Norman. The show highlights the “legends, rumors, tall tales and other curiosities” of the Sooner State. Magee… Continue reading Parking meter podcast features Citizen Carl

Western Writers Assn honors Citizen Carl

The Western Writers Association named Citizen Carl a finalist in the Best Biography category of its 2025 Spur Award competition. I couldn’t be more thrilled. My old Albuquerque Tribune pal Ollie Reed Jr. turned me on to the group and suggested I enter the competition. Sadly, he died in November. I wish I could share… Continue reading Western Writers Assn honors Citizen Carl

Reflecting on Carl Magee’s libel trial in new era of press attacks

The libel trial of editor Carl Magee serves as a reminder of the threats journalists faced from politicians before the media were protected by the New York Times vs Sullivan decision and other court rulings. With new attacks on journalism these days, I thought I’d post the chapter about that trial from my biography of… Continue reading Reflecting on Carl Magee’s libel trial in new era of press attacks

Friends of N.M. History post Carl Magee lecture

The New Mexico Friends of History invited me to tell the story of Carl Magee for its December First Wednesday virtual lecture. The presentation is now available on YouTube. Check it out, or check out the many other New Mexico history lectures in the Friends archive. Many thanks to Kathleen Daggett of the Friends of… Continue reading Friends of N.M. History post Carl Magee lecture