COOK, William A. 1944-

PERSONAL:

Born January 5, 1944, in Cincinnati, OH; son of Ralph M. (a stock keeper) and Ethel (a waitress; maiden name, Riley) Cook; married Susan Eileen Johnson, August 1, 1987 (deceased). Ethnicity: "English-Irish." Education: University of Cincinnati, A.A., 1979, M.S., 1981; University of Illinois—Chicago Circle, M.A., 1983. Religion: Christian.

ADDRESSES:

Home—3 Claremont, North Brunswick, NJ 08902.

CAREER:

Writer. North Brunswick Township, North Brunswick, NJ, member of township council, 1991-93.

MEMBER:

American College of Health Care Executives.

WRITINGS:

The 1919 World Series: What Really Happened?, McFarland (Jefferson, NC), 2001.

The Summer of '64: A Pennant Lost, McFarland (Jefferson, NC), 2002.

Pete Rose: Baseball's All-Time Hit King, McFarland (Jefferson, NC), 2004.

WORK IN PROGRESS:

Pete Rose: The Rise, Fall, and Rise of Charlie Hustle (tentative title), publication by McFarland and Co. (Jefferson, NC) expected in 2004.

SIDELIGHTS:

William A. Cook told CA: "In writing The 1919 World Series: What Really Happened?, my primary motivation was to provide an objective look at baseball's most infamous event. For more than eighty years historians had passed down the myth that the tainted Chicago White Sox, had they not been subject to internal scandal, would have won the series with ease. The prevailing myth was that the White Sox were, void of scandal, simply invincible. The fact of the matter is that regardless of how that world series was played, fair, fixed, or otherwise, the Cincinnati Reds were an excellent ball club in their own right and were going to win the series."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, September 1, 2002, Wes Lukowski, review of The Summer of '64: A Pennant Lost, p. 30.

Nine, spring, 2003, David Shiner, review of The 1919 World Series: What Really Happened?, p. 127.