R. Scott Williams to sign copies of his latest biography

On Saturday, August 19, 2017 from 2-4 p.m., R. Scott Williams will be at the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center signing copies of his latest biography, “An Odd Book: How the First Modern Pop Culture Reporter Conquered New York.”

Williams, whose ancestors were among the original settlers of Haywood County in West Tennessee, has also spent many hours researching his ancestry and sharing the forgotten stories from the past on his website, haywoodcountyline.com.

Williams’ latest biography is about Odd McIntyre, the highest-paid, most-read columnist of the early twentieth century. Raised in Gallipolis, Ohio, McIntyre moved to New York and quickly became close friends with many of the leading personalities of the day including writers Edna Ferber, Ernest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald; entertainers Fred Astaire, Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., Billie Burke, and Will Rogers; composers George Gershwin and Meredith Willson; actors Rudolph Valentino and Charlie Chaplin and many others.

In his daily column, “New York Day by Day,” and in national magazines like Cosmopolitan and Life, Odd captured a time and place undergoing great transition and innovation in communication, politics, art and entertainment. As the country shifted from the Gilded Age to the Progressive Era and through the Great Depression, new technologies and methods of communication were being quickly adopted around the world, as were new ideas regarding journalism and the role of media in American politics and society. Odd, living and writing in New York, was at the epicenter of this new modern age.

“Odd documented the stories of what was happening backstage and behind the scenes with popular culture around the world,” said Williams, who is the chief operating officer of the Newseum in Washington, D.C. “Odd was there as the telegraph changed the news business, and then as radio changed everything. He covered live entertainment as it shifted from vaudeville to something new and exciting on Broadway, and he had a literal front-row seat as moving pictures evolved first to nickelodeons, then to silent films, and finally to talkies.”

Williams first book was “The Forgotten Adventures of Richard Halliburton: From Tennessee to Timbuktu” a biography of explorer and writer Richard Halliburton whose parents lived in Brownsville, Tennessee for a number of years.

The West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center is located on Music Highway between Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee, just off of Interstate 40 at Exit 56 in Brownsville, Tennessee.
High-resolution photos are available at AnOddBook.com/press.

About R. Scott Williams
R. Scott Williams is the author of “An Odd Book: How the First Modern Pop Culture Reporter Conquered New York,” available now on Amazon.com and through IngramSpark. Williams is the chief operating officer at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. Williams earned his degree in journalism from the University of Memphis. He then held positions at several advertising agencies and organizations, including Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. He currently serves on the board of the D.C. chapter of the American Advertising Federation and on the board of the Historical Society of Washington, D.C. His first book was “The Forgotten Adventures of Richard Halliburton: From Tennessee to Timbuktu” a biography of Memphian Richard Halliburton.

About The West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center
The West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center, in Brownsville, offers a refreshing Southern experience showcasing the history and culture of rural West Tennessee. Inside visitors can learn about the history of cotton, explore the scenic and “wild” Hatchie River and get to know the legendary musicians who call West Tennessee home. Also located on the grounds is the Tina Turner Museum at Flagg Grove School, the childhood school of Tina Turner, and the last home of Blues pioneer Sleepy John Estes. The Delta Heritage Center is also a featured stop along the Americana Music Triangle connecting Nashville, Memphis and New Orleans. To learn more about the Center, visit westtnheritage.com or call 731-779-9000.