The Earl of Louisiana

In the summer of 1959, A. J. Liebling, veteran writer for the New Yorker, came to Louisiana to cover a series of bizarre events that began with Governor Earl K. Long’s commitment to a mental institution. Captivated by his subject, Liebling remained to write the fascinating yet tragic story of Uncle Earl’s final year in politics. First published in 1961, The Earl of Louisiana recreates a stormy era in Louisiana politics and captures the style and personality of one of the most colorful and paradoxical figures in the state’s history. This updated edition of the book includes a foreword by T. Harry Williams, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Huey Long: A Biography, and a new introduction by Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Jonathan Yardley that discusses Liebling’s career and his most famous book from a twenty-first-century perspective.

Author Biography

A staff writer for the New Yorker from 1935 until his death in 1963, A. J. Liebling also served during World War II as a correspondent for that magazine in France, England, and North Africa. He wrote a number of books, including The Honest Rainmaker, The Sweet Science, and Normandy Revisited.

T. Harry Williams (1909-1979) was Boyd Professor of History at Louisiana State University. He won both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award for Huey Long: A Biography. Among his other works are Lincoln and His Generals, With Beauregard in Mexico, Romance and Realism in Southern Politics, and Americans at War: The Development of the American Military System.