In whatever role he chose--civil rights leader, wealthy entrepreneur, or unconventional surgeon--Theodore Roosevelt Mason Howard (1908-76) was always close to controversy. One of the leading renaissance men of twentieth century black history, Howard successfully organized a grassroots boycott against Jim Crow in the 1950s. Well known for his benevolence, fun-loving lifestyle, and fabulous parties attended by such celebrities as Jesse Owens and Jackie Robinson, sometimes he also let his boundless ego get the best of him. After getting his medical degree, Howard became one of the wealthiest blacks in Mississippi as a gentleman planter, banker, and home builder. He was a mentor to civil rights activist Medgar Evers, a nemesis of J. Edgar Hoover, and a target of the Ku Klux Klan. He also played a key role in the search for truth in the Emmett Till murder case. As a trained medical doctor, he kept the secrets of the white elite, and although married to one woman for forty years, he had many personal peccadilloes. His life was often in great peril, and his home was protected by armed guards around the clock. But T. R. M. Howard's impressive accomplishments and abilities vastly outshone his personal flaws and foibles. He was a dynamic civil rights pioneer and promoter of self-help and business enterprise among blacks. With this remarkable biography, David T. Beito and Linda Royster Beito secure Howard's rightful place in African American history. Drawing from dozens of interviews with Howard's friends and contemporaries, as well as FBI files, court documents, and private papers, the authors present a fittingly vibrant portrait of a complicated leader, iconoclastic businessman, and tireless activist.''[A] captivating and vividly detailed new biography . . . . With Black Maverick, T.R.M. Howard's achievements have finally received the attention they deserve.''--Reason ''[Howard] was in fact one of the most effective black civil rights leaders of his generation and a key figure in bringing civil rights to Mississippi and empowering black voters in Chicago.--Harper's Online ''You will likely never read about a more courageous or interesting entrepreneur.''-CNNMoney.com''Black Maverick's wonderfully told story about an important personality sadly unknown to most students of the Civil Rights Movement is a more than welcome corrective. Dr. Howard's life and accomplishments need to be better known!''--Julian Bond, chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ''Dr. Howard was a history maker, and this book brings him to life as a man of courage whose actions and views on civil rights shaped American history.''--Juan Williams, commentator for National Public Radio and author of Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years, 1954-1965 A terrific book about a truly fascinating and uniquely telling individual.''--Timothy B. Tyson, author of the award-winning Blood Done Sign My Name: A True Story ''It is my privilege and pleasure to have known and worked with Dr. Howard as he was pursuing the cause of civil rights in Mississippi with the same vim and vigor as it was being pursued in New York, Chicago, and other places. I was also afraid of him. This illuminating biography is a must read for anyone seeking to know more about the civil rights struggle in Mississippi in foregone years. Every acre was a drop of blood and every step was a tear.''--Benjamin J. Hooks, former executive director of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ''The definitive work on the life of T. R. M. Howard. A fascinating narrative that illuminates important aspects of the African American experience in the twentieth century.''--Adam Fairclough, author of Better Day Coming: Blacks and Equality, 1890-2000 ''One of the best biographies I have read in years. It works both as a revisionist project, challenging our understanding of the nature of black leadership in the South, and as a reclamation project, bringing back into the discussion a colorful and important transitional figure who has received little notice from scholars.''--Charles M. Payne, author of I've Got the Light of Freedom: The Organizing Tradition in the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement
