Tick ... tick ... tick ... : the long life and turbulent times of 60 minutes

An insider's view of the most successful show in the history of TV, 60 Minutes. The most popular TV show in America isn't American Idol, and it's not Survivor. Month in, month out, the most–watched program in America is 60 Minutes, drawing a staggering 25 million viewers in an average week. For its entire 34–year history, 60 Minutes was the brainchild (and personal fiefdom) of Don Hewitt, the take–no–prisoners visionary who hustled the show into being and kept it afloat with a mixture of chutzpah, tough talk, scheming, and journalistic savvy. But now that Hewitt is 80 and grudgingly considering retirement, the show's direction is increasingly up for grabs, and the transition will surely be marked by some serious fireworks. As author David Blum provides a fly–on–the–wall perspective on the show's upheavals, he'll also trace its past; although the show has aired some 5,000 pieces and has made household names of Mike Wallace, Ed Bradley, Leslie Stahl, and Morley Safer, much of the backstage story––the passionate pursuit of stories, the behind–the–scenes wrangling, and the stars'prima donnish behavior––has gone untold. With full access to the producers, stars, and executives, Blum will give readers an unprecedented view of the personalities and events that have shaped 60 Minutes – and a new perspective on how current events become news.

Drawing on unprecedented access to the staff of CBS's 60 Minutes, television critic Blum (Columbia U. Graduate School of Journalism), traces the history of the groundbreaking TV news magazine show since its 1968 debut. With a particular focus on longtime producer Don Hewitt, he discusses the show's innovations and insider politics. Photos feature show veterans Dan Rather, Morley Safer, and Mike Wallace; newer correspondents; interviewees; and the show's timepiece logo. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Library Journal

Freelance journalist Blum (the Wall Street Journal; the New York Times Magazine) rightly indicates that the history of 60 Minutes-now in its 36th year-is the life story of its creator Don Hewitt. The book follows Hewitt from his early days in broadcast news, to his career as the executive producer of the TV news magazine, to his forced retirement this year at 81, incorporating many colorful anecdotes about the personalities and the stories that have made 60 Minutes such a success. Unfortunately, controversial issues are seldom given more than a page or two. Given the incredible number of (often historical) news stories broken by the series-including, most recently, the Abu Ghraib prison scandal-this is slightly disappointing. Nevertheless, fans of the show will certainly be interested, and the all-encompassing examination of the series makes it an important addition to all public library collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 5/15/04.]-Joel W. Tscherne, Cleveland P.L. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

An insider's view of the most successful show in the history of TV, 60 Minutes. The most popular TV show in America isn't American Idol, and it's not Survivor. Month in, month out, the mostwatched program in America is 60 Minutes, drawing a staggering 25 million viewers in an average week. For its entire 34year history, 60 Minutes was the brainchild (and personal fiefdom) of Don Hewitt, the takenoprisoners visionary who hustled the show into being and kept it afloat with a mixture of chutzpah, tough talk, scheming, and journalistic savvy. But now that Hewitt is 80 and grudgingly considering retirement, the show's direction is increasingly up for grabs, and the transition will surely be marked by some serious fireworks. As author David Blum provides a flyonthewall perspective on the show's upheavals, he'll also trace its past; although the show has aired some 5,000 pieces and has made household names of Mike Wallace, Ed Bradley, Leslie Stahl, and Morley Safer, much of the backstage storythe passionate pursuit of stories, the behindthescenes wrangling, and the stars' prima donnish behaviorhas gone untold. With full access to the producers, stars, and executives, Blum will give readers an unprecedented view of the personalities and events that have shaped 60 Minutes and a new perspective on how current events become news. It was a Saturday afternoon in March 1931, and an 8-year-old boy named Donald Shepard Hewitt had taken the profits from his part-time job selling magazines in the tree-trimmed New York suburb of New Rochelle and bought himself a frozen Milky Way bar and a trolley car ticket to the neighborhood movie house. A history of the popular news program shares the stories of some of its most famous correspondents, reveals what the show achieved for CBS under the leadership of Don Hewitt, and describes the efforts of its current generation of producers