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I am so pleased to announce that my former college roommate and close friend, Alison Macor, just released another book this week. She’s a noted film expert, and this time she focused her considerable research and writing skills on the classic movie “The Best Years of Our Lives.”

Here’s a summary of Making The Best Years of Our Lives: The Hollywood Classic That Inspired a Nation:

“Released in 1946, The Best Years of Our Lives became an immediate success. Life magazine called it “the first big, good movie of the post-war era” to tackle the “veterans problem.” Today we call that problem PTSD, but in the initial aftermath of World War II, the modern language of war trauma did not exist. The film earned the producer Samuel Goldwyn his only Best Picture Academy Award. It offered the injured director, William Wyler, a triumphant postwar return to Hollywood. And for Harold Russell, a double amputee who costarred with Fredric March and Dana Andrews, the film provided a surprising second act.

Buy now on Amazon!

“Award-winning author Alison Macor illuminates the film’s journey from script to screen and describes how this authentic motion picture moved audiences worldwide. General Omar Bradley believed The Best Years of Our Lives would help “the American people to build an even better democracy” following the war, and the movie inspired broad reflection on reintegrating the walking wounded. But the film’s nuanced critique of American ideals also made it a target, and the picture and its creators were swept up in the anti-Communist witch hunts of the late 1940s. In this authoritative history, Macor chronicles the making and meaning of a film that changed America.”

This book starts off with a bang with its dedication.

Was that self-serving? I’m so honored to have a book dedicated to me and two other fine veterans that I just had to share.

Be sure to check out Making The Best Years of Our Lives: The Hollywood Classic That Inspired a Nation. It’s bound to appeal to movie and history buffs, as well as people interested in veterans’ concerns.

Congratulations, Alison!

Update: As of 6/8/22, Amazon is temporarily out of stock of physical copies but you can purchase the book on the UT Press website. Use code UTXSPRING any time before 6/30/22 to get 40% off!