Buckley

William F. Buckley, Jr.

Known for his brilliant mind, rapier wit, and formidable vocabulary, William F. Buckley, Jr. was one of the 20th century's most articulate conservative thinkers and writers.

Biography

Known for his brilliant mind, rapier wit, and formidable vocabulary, William F. Buckley, Jr. was one of the 20th century's most articulate conservative thinkers and writers.

Bursting on the literary scene with his sensational 1951 debut, God and Man at Yale, Buckley went on to author more than 50 books on a vast array of subjects. (He even wrote a line of bestselling mysteries!) In 1955, he founded the iconic conservative magazine National Review as a forum for public opinion, and he dispensed reams of political commentary and social criticism in his popular newspaper column ""On the Right.""

From 1966 to 1999, Buckley hosted Firing Line, an issues-oriented television talk show that counted among its guests prominent personalities on both the right (Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan) and the left (Jimmy Carter, Jesse L. Jackson). He died on February 27, 2008, at his home in Stamford Connecticut at the age of 82.

Good To Know

Buckley was fluent in Spanish and French.

He completed God and Man at Yale one year after graduating from Yale University.

In 1965, Buckley ran for mayor of New York City and won 13.4% of the vote on the Conservative Party ticket.

He was an avid sailor.

Buckley's television show, Firing Line, was one of the longest-running programs in TV history, with 1,429 episodes.