Meyer Berger
Encyclopedia
Meyer "Mike" Berger was a Pulitzer Prize
winning journalist and columnist for The New York Times
. Berger was known for his long running column "About New York" and for his history of the first 100 years of the New York Times. The Mike Berger award given annually by the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism to a reporter for outstanding local reporting is named after him.
to the Williamsburg
section of Brooklyn. Berger dropped out of school for financial reasons and became a messenger for a newspaper, The New York World. During World War I
, Berger fought with the 106th Infantry, 26th Division and was awarded a Purple Heart
and the Silver Star
. In 1928, Berger joined the staff of the New York Times, where, except for a short stint at The New Yorker
, he worked until his death in 1959.
. Known for his use of detail and color, Berger's pieces were often used in other media. One piece, a report on the first wounded soldiers returning from Europe during World War II became a radio script while another became a documentary. In 1939, he began the "About New York" column in the Times. His history of The Times, The Story of the New York Times 1851-1951 was published and a collection of his About New York columns were published posthumously (edited by Pete Hamill
) in 1960. Berger is also the author of The Eight Million, a book about New York.
for "a distinguished example of local reporting" "prepared under the pressure of edition time". The cited story was for his account of the rampage of the serial killer, Howard Unruh, in Camden, New Jersey on 6 September 1949. Unruh, a 28 year old veteran of the second world war
, killed 13 people and wounded several others and was arrested after a police standoff at his apartment in Camden. For the report, Berger retraced Unruh's steps interviewing 50 witnesses. The resulting 4,000 word piece, prepared and typed by Berger in two and a half hours, was published unedited in the newspaper the next morning. In a little known detail, Berger donated the $1,000 pulitzer prize money to Unruh's mother.
. The Meyer Berger award for outstanding local journalists is considered to be one of the most prestigious by New York journalists.
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 and columnist for The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. Berger was known for his long running column "About New York" and for his history of the first 100 years of the New York Times. The Mike Berger award given annually by the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism to a reporter for outstanding local reporting is named after him.
Early life
Meyer Berger was born in New York City on 1 September 1898, the son of a Czechoslovakian immigrant father and a storekeeper mother. Sometime after his birth, the family moved from the Lower East SideLower East Side
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
to the Williamsburg
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bordering Greenpoint to the north, Bedford-Stuyvesant to the south, Bushwick to the east and the East River to the west. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 1. The neighborhood is served by the NYPD's 90th ...
section of Brooklyn. Berger dropped out of school for financial reasons and became a messenger for a newspaper, The New York World. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Berger fought with the 106th Infantry, 26th Division and was awarded a Purple Heart
Purple Heart
The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
and the Silver Star
Silver Star
The Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....
. In 1928, Berger joined the staff of the New York Times, where, except for a short stint at The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, he worked until his death in 1959.
At The Times
Berger soon became the top color writer at The Times writing mostly on local matters including murders, the mob, and the 1939 New York World's Fair1939 New York World's Fair
The 1939–40 New York World's Fair, which covered the of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park , was the second largest American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904. Many countries around the world participated in it, and over 44 million people...
. Known for his use of detail and color, Berger's pieces were often used in other media. One piece, a report on the first wounded soldiers returning from Europe during World War II became a radio script while another became a documentary. In 1939, he began the "About New York" column in the Times. His history of The Times, The Story of the New York Times 1851-1951 was published and a collection of his About New York columns were published posthumously (edited by Pete Hamill
Pete Hamill
Pete Hamill is an American journalist, novelist, essayist, editor and educator. Widely traveled and having written on a broad range of topics, he is perhaps best known for his career as a New York City journalist, as "the author of columns that sought to capture the particular flavors of New York...
) in 1960. Berger is also the author of The Eight Million, a book about New York.
The Pulitzer
In 1950, Berger was awarded a Pulitzer PrizePulitzer 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...
for "a distinguished example of local reporting" "prepared under the pressure of edition time". The cited story was for his account of the rampage of the serial killer, Howard Unruh, in Camden, New Jersey on 6 September 1949. Unruh, a 28 year old veteran of the second world war
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, killed 13 people and wounded several others and was arrested after a police standoff at his apartment in Camden. For the report, Berger retraced Unruh's steps interviewing 50 witnesses. The resulting 4,000 word piece, prepared and typed by Berger in two and a half hours, was published unedited in the newspaper the next morning. In a little known detail, Berger donated the $1,000 pulitzer prize money to Unruh's mother.
Legacy
Berger is often cited as one of the best American journalists and many of his reports, the pulitzer prize winning one and another piece on the arrival of the first set of coffins from Europe after the war in particular, are considered to be the best examples of color reporting, as is the baseball poetry he wrote on the error that cost the Brooklyn Dodgers the 4th game of the 1941 World Series1941 World Series
The 1941 World Series matched the New York Yankees against the Brooklyn Dodgers, with the Yankees winning in five games to capture their fifth title in six years, and their ninth overall....
. The Meyer Berger award for outstanding local journalists is considered to be one of the most prestigious by New York journalists.