Gene Weingarten
Encyclopedia
Gene Weingarten is a two-time Pulitzer Prize
-winning journalist
known for both his serious and humorous work. Weingarten's column, Below the Beltway
, is published weekly in the Washington Post Magazine and syndicated nationally by The Washington Post Writers Group
, which also syndicates Barney & Clyde
, a comic strip he co-authors.
, giving one of America's best known humor columnists his big break. Tropic won two Pulitzer Prizes, including Barry's, during Weingarten's tenure.
Weingarten was a fellow at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism
at Harvard University
in 1987-1988.
Weingarten created and (until 2003) edited The Style Invitational
humor contest for the Washington Post; he often hid his connection to the Invitational, using the pseudonym "The Czar." However, Weingarten admitted responsibility in 1999, writing, "I run a reader-participation contest every Sunday in The Post. It is called The Style Invitational." He claimed credit again in 2001, writing, "[T]he Style Invitational, which I edit."
Weingarten hosts, as of 2008, a popular Washington Post online chat called "Chatological Humor, aka Tuesdays with Moron". Common topics in his online chat include the art of comic strips, analysis of humor, politics, philosophy, medicine, and gender differences. Many of his columns addressing gender differences have been written in a he-said she-said style in collaboration with humorist Gina Barreca
, his co-author for I'm with Stupid. Weingarten writes that humor quality is objective, not subjective, and claims to be the final arbiter on the subject. A hypochondriac until a near-fatal infection with Hepatitis C
, he is familiar with a wide range of medical conditions as a result of writing The Hypochondriac's Guide To Life. And Death.
In his live online chat on June 22, 2009, Weingarten disclosed that he had accepted a buyout offer from The Washington Post. The frequency of his online chat was reduced from weekly to monthly, although he provides weekly updates. His column will continue under a contract with the Post but he will no longer contribute feature length articles.
In June 2010, Weingarten and his son Dan began publishing the syndicated comic strip Barney & Clyde
, illustrated by David Clark
.
for his Washington Post story "Pearls Before Breakfast", "his chronicling of a world-class violinist (Joshua Bell
) who, as an experiment, played beautiful music in a subway station filled with unheeding commuters." In 2010, he won a second Pulitzer for "Fatal Distraction," "his haunting story about parents, from varying walks of life, who accidentally kill their children by forgetting them in cars."
and New York University
; at NYU he
"majored in psychology, but only because it was the easiest major"; he "spent all [his] time as editor of the daily newspaper, and then dropped out with three credits to go."
Weingarten used to live in Bethesda, Maryland
. Since 2001 he has lived in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, D.C. with his wife, an attorney. He has two children, Molly, a veterinarian, and Dan, a college student and cartoonist.
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
known for both his serious and humorous work. Weingarten's column, Below the Beltway
Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)
Interstate 495 is a Interstate Highway that surrounds the United States' capital of Washington, D.C., and its inner suburbs in adjacent Maryland and Virginia. I-495 is widely known as the Capital Beltway or simply the Beltway, especially when the context of Washington, D.C., is clear...
, is published weekly in the Washington Post Magazine and syndicated nationally by The Washington Post Writers Group
The Washington Post Writers Group
The Washington Post Writers Group is a press syndication service composed of opinion journalists, editorial cartoonists, comic strips and columnists. The service is operated by the Washington Post.-Writers:...
, which also syndicates Barney & Clyde
Barney & Clyde
Barney & Clyde is a daily newspaper comic strip created by Washington Post columnist Gene Weingarten, his son Dan Weingarten, and cartoonist David Clark. Syndicated by The Washington Post Writers Group, it debuted on June 7, 2010...
, a comic strip he co-authors.
Early years
Weingarten grew up in the West Bronx, the son of an IRS agent and a schoolteacher. His first newspaper job was with the Albany (N.Y.) Knickerbocker News, an afternoon daily that is now defunct. From there he went to The Detroit Free Press, and later The National Law Journal. From 1985 to 1990 he served as the editor of the Miami Heralds Sunday magazine, Tropic, during which time he hired Dave BarryDave Barry
David "Dave" Barry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American author and columnist, who wrote a nationally syndicated humor column for The Miami Herald from 1983 to 2005. He has also written numerous books of humor and parody, as well as comedic novels.-Biography:Barry was born in Armonk, New York,...
, giving one of America's best known humor columnists his big break. Tropic won two Pulitzer Prizes, including Barry's, during Weingarten's tenure.
Weingarten was a fellow at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism
Nieman Foundation for Journalism
The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University is the primary journalism institution at Harvard. It was founded in 1938 as the result of a $1 million bequest by Agnes Wahl Nieman, the widow of Lucius W. Nieman, founder of The Milwaukee Journal...
at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1987-1988.
Washington Post
Weingarten writes "Below the Beltway," a weekly humor column for the Washington Post that is nationally syndicated. For one of these columns, he enhanced his biography on Wikipedia until he was caught and stopped.Weingarten created and (until 2003) edited The Style Invitational
The Style Invitational
The Style Invitational, or Invite, is a long-running humor contest that ran first in the Style section of the Sunday Washington Post before moving to Saturday's Style and later returning to the Sunday paper. Started in 1993, it has run weekly, except for a hiatus in late 1999...
humor contest for the Washington Post; he often hid his connection to the Invitational, using the pseudonym "The Czar." However, Weingarten admitted responsibility in 1999, writing, "I run a reader-participation contest every Sunday in The Post. It is called The Style Invitational." He claimed credit again in 2001, writing, "[T]he Style Invitational, which I edit."
Weingarten hosts, as of 2008, a popular Washington Post online chat called "Chatological Humor, aka Tuesdays with Moron". Common topics in his online chat include the art of comic strips, analysis of humor, politics, philosophy, medicine, and gender differences. Many of his columns addressing gender differences have been written in a he-said she-said style in collaboration with humorist Gina Barreca
Gina Barreca
Regina "Gina" Barreca is an American academic and humorist. She is professor of English literature and feminist theory at the University of Connecticut. Her latest book, It's Not That I'm Bitter, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying About Visible Panty Lines and Conquered the World, was published by...
, his co-author for I'm with Stupid. Weingarten writes that humor quality is objective, not subjective, and claims to be the final arbiter on the subject. A hypochondriac until a near-fatal infection with Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is an infectious disease primarily affecting the liver, caused by the hepatitis C virus . The infection is often asymptomatic, but chronic infection can lead to scarring of the liver and ultimately to cirrhosis, which is generally apparent after many years...
, he is familiar with a wide range of medical conditions as a result of writing The Hypochondriac's Guide To Life. And Death.
In his live online chat on June 22, 2009, Weingarten disclosed that he had accepted a buyout offer from The Washington Post. The frequency of his online chat was reduced from weekly to monthly, although he provides weekly updates. His column will continue under a contract with the Post but he will no longer contribute feature length articles.
In June 2010, Weingarten and his son Dan began publishing the syndicated comic strip Barney & Clyde
Barney & Clyde
Barney & Clyde is a daily newspaper comic strip created by Washington Post columnist Gene Weingarten, his son Dan Weingarten, and cartoonist David Clark. Syndicated by The Washington Post Writers Group, it debuted on June 7, 2010...
, illustrated by David Clark
David Clark (cartoonist)
David Clark is an American illustrator who has produced work in newspapers. He received the National Cartoonist Society Newspaper Illustration Award for 1996 for his work. He has illustrated several children's books. , he is the illustrator for the syndicated comic strip Barney & Clyde, of which...
.
Old Dogs: Are the Best Dogs
In fall of 2008, Weingarten published Old Dogs: Are the Best Dogs in collaboration with photographer Michael S. Williamson. Together they profiled and photographed 63 dogs between the ages of 10 and 17 years old over the course of two and a half years. In response to the inevitable question of which dogs remained alive, Weingarten has asserted that the answer will always be "All of them." Weingarten's inspiration for Old Dogs came shortly after the death of his dog, Harry S. Truman, who is also featured in the book.Pulitzer Prizes
In 2008, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Feature WritingPulitzer Prize for Feature Writing
The Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing has been awarded since 1979 for a distinguished example of feature writing giving prime consideration to high literary quality and originality. The Pulitzer Committee issues an official citation explaining the reasons for the award.-List of winners and their...
for his Washington Post story "Pearls Before Breakfast", "his chronicling of a world-class violinist (Joshua Bell
Joshua Bell
Joshua David Bell is an American Grammy Award-winning violinist.-Childhood:Bell was born in Bloomington, Indiana, United States, the son of a psychologist and a therapist. Bell's father is the late Alan P...
) who, as an experiment, played beautiful music in a subway station filled with unheeding commuters." In 2010, he won a second Pulitzer for "Fatal Distraction," "his haunting story about parents, from varying walks of life, who accidentally kill their children by forgetting them in cars."
Personal life
Weingarten attended the Bronx High School of ScienceBronx High School of Science
The Bronx High School of Science is a specialized New York City public high school often considered the premier science magnet school in the United States. Founded in 1938, it is now located in the Bedford Park section of the Bronx...
and New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
; at NYU he
"majored in psychology, but only because it was the easiest major"; he "spent all [his] time as editor of the daily newspaper, and then dropped out with three credits to go."
Weingarten used to live in Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House , which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda...
. Since 2001 he has lived in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, D.C. with his wife, an attorney. He has two children, Molly, a veterinarian, and Dan, a college student and cartoonist.