Tuesdays with Morrie
 First edition | |
| Author | Mitch Albom |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Biographical, Philosophical novel, Memoir |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
Publication date | 1997 |
| Media type | Print Hardcover, Paperback |
| Pages | 192 |
| ISBN | 0-385-48451-8 |
| OCLC | 36130729 |
| 378.1/2/092 B 21 | |
| LC Class | LD571.B418 S383 1997 |
Tuesdays with Morrie is a memoir[1] by American author Mitch Albom[2] about a series of visits Albom made to his former sociology professor Morrie Schwartz, as Schwartz gradually dies of ALS. The book topped the New York Times Non-Fiction Best-Sellers List for 23 combined weeks in 2000, and remained on the New York Times best-selling list for more than four years after.[3] In 2006, Tuesdays with Morrie was the bestselling memoir of all time.[3]
An unabridged audiobook was also published, narrated by Albom. The appendix of the audiobook contains excerpts from several minutes of audio recordings that Albom made during his conversations with Schwartz before writing the book.
A new edition with an afterword by Albom was released on the book's ten-year anniversary in 2007.
Synopsis[edit]
In 1995, Albom is a successful sports columnist for the Detroit Free Press. After seeing his former sociology professor Morrie Schwartz appear on Nightline, Albom phones Schwartz and is prompted to visit him in Massachusetts. A coincidental newspaper strike allows Albom to visit Schwartz every week, on Tuesdays. The book recounts each of the fourteen visits Albom made to Schwartz, supplemented with Schwartz's lectures and life experiences and interspersed with flashbacks and references to contemporary events.
After being diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Morrie's final days are spent giving his former student Mitch his final lesson of life. The memoir is divided into 14 different "days" that Mitch Albom spent with his professor Morrie. Throughout these days, Mitch and Morrie discuss various topics important to life and living. The memoir also recounts Mitch's memories of Morrie as a professor.[4]
The 1st Audiovisual[edit]
This was the first episode out of three on a Nightline special on Morrie and his illness. Morrie caught the eye of a Nightline television producer after an article was published titled: "A Professor's Final Course: His Own Death." It was through this airing that Morrie's old student Mitch was reminded of his old professor, causing him to reach out and reconnect.
Main characters[edit]
Mitch Albom[edit]
Mitch Albom was born in May 1958 in New Jersey. Originally, he was a pianist and wanted to pursue a life as a musician. Instead he became an author, journalist, screenwriter, and television/radio broadcaster. In his college years, he met sociology professor Dr. Morrie Schwartz who would later influence his memoir, Tuesdays with Morrie.
Morrie Schwartz[edit]
Morrie Schwartz was a sociology professor at Brandeis University who was diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The son of Russian immigrants, Schwartz had a difficult childhood, indelibly marked by the death of his mother and his brother's infection with the Polio virus. He later went on to work as a researcher in a mental hospital, where he learned about mental illness and how to have empathy and compassion for other people. Later in life, he decided to become a sociology professor in hopes of putting his accumulated wisdom to use. This is where he met his student Mitch Albom, who would later become a lifelong friend. Schwartz was married to Charlotte Schwartz, with whom he had two children. After a long battle with ALS, Morrie died on 4 November, 1995. His tombstone reads, "A teacher until the end."
Adaptations[edit]
The book was adapted into a 1999 television film, directed by Mick Jackson and starring Hank Azaria and Jack Lemmon.[2]
In 2002, the book was adapted as a stage play that opened off Broadway at the Minetta Lane Theatre. Co-authored by Mitch Albom and Jeffrey Hatcher (Three Viewings) and directed by David Esbjornson (The Goat or Who Is Sylvia?). Tuesdays with Morrie starred Alvin Epstein as Schwartz and Jon Tenney as Albom. It received positive reviews.[5]
See also[edit]
- The Five People You Meet in Heaven
- For One More Day
- The Last Lecture
- Have a Little Faith
- The Time Keeper
- The Ultimate Gift
- The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto
References[edit]
- ^ de Botton, Alain (23 November 1997). "Continuing Ed". The New York Times.
- ^ a b Ryan Shriver (2014). "Tuesdays with Morrie". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 24 March 2014.
- ^ a b "Bestselling Author of Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Albom, to Present Ubben Lecture November 13". DePauw University. Retrieved 17 March 2021.
- ^ Albom, Mitch (2006), "Tuesdays with Morrie", Managed Care (Langhorne, Pa.), Books on Tape, 11 (2 Suppl): 31–3, ISBN 978-0-7393-4615-0, OCLC 1002100368, PMID 11907999
- ^ Gutman, Les (November 2002). "Tuesdays with Morrie Review". CurtainUp. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
Morrie Schwartz
 | This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. (July 2022) |
Morrie Schwartz | |
|---|---|
| Born | Morris S. Schwartz December 20, 1916 |
| Died | November 4, 1995 (aged 78) |
| Occupation | Professor at Brandeis University |
| Spouse | Charlotte Schwartz |
| Children | Robert and Jonathan Schwartz |
Morris S. "Morrie" Schwartz (December 20, 1916 – November 4, 1995)[1] was an American professor of sociology at Brandeis University and an author. He was the subject of the best-selling book Tuesdays with Morrie, written by Mitch Albom, a former student of Schwartz. He was portrayed by Jack Lemmon in the 1999 television film adaptation of the book.
Personal life[edit]
Schwartz was the son of Charlie Schwartz, a Russian-Jewish immigrant who emigrated from Russia to escape the army. Schwartz's mother died when he was eight years old, and his brother David developed polio at a young age. His father would eventually marry a Romanian woman named Eva Schneiderman. Later in Schwartz's life, his father suffered from a heart attack after fleeing a mugging. Schwartz came from a Jewish family, but as an adult he adopted multiple beliefs from a variety of different religions.
Schwartz had two sons with his wife Charlotte, Rob and Jon.
Schwartz was a 78-year-old sociology professor at Brandeis University when he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). He died in November of 1995, less than two years after being diagnosed with the disease.
Tuesdays with Morrie[edit]
Schwartz achieved national prominence posthumously after being featured as the subject of Mitch Albom's 1997 best-selling memoir, Tuesdays with Morrie. Albom had been a student of Schwartz's at Brandeis University, and years later had seen Schwartz on the television program Nightline. After Albom phoned Schwartz, he made a series of trips to visit him in the final weeks of Schwartz's life as he was gradually overtaken by ALS. The book recounts the fourteen visits Albom made, their conversations, Schwartz's lectures, and his life experiences.
The book was adapted into a television film in 1999, starring Jack Lemmon as Schwartz.
Works[edit]
- with Alfred H. Stanton: The Mental Hospital: A Study of Institutional Participation in Psychiatric Illness and Treatment. Basic Books 1950, ISBN 978-1-59147-617-7 (2009 edition)
- with Charlotte Green Schwartz: Social Approaches to Mental Patient Care. Columbia University Press 1964
- with Emmy Lanning Shockley: The Nurse and the Mental Patient: a Study in Interpersonal Relations. Wiley 1966, ISBN 978-0-471-76610-0
- Letting Go: Morrie's Reflections on Living While Dying. Walker & Company 1996, ISBN 978-0-8027-1315-5
- Morrie: In His Own Words. Delta Publishing 1997, ISBN 0385318790
Notes[edit]
- ^ Harris, Richard. Nearly 20 years after his death, Morrie Schwartz lives on. "Boston Globe" March 16, 2015. Retrieved August 26, 2016.
References[edit]
- Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson. New York: Doubleday, 1997. Print.
- Harris, Richard. Nearly 20 years after his death, Morrie Schwartz lives on. "Boston Globe" March 16, 2015. Retrieved August 26, 2016.
