May/June 1999

Should John Adams, Ebbets Field, the 60s, and Tocqueville be knocked off their pedestals? Are Ben Franklin and Bob and Ray far greater than you ever imagined? Our second annual survey asks experts in every field what reputation is the most inflated and what’s most underappreciated.

Thomas Berger, the author of a classic novel of the American West, speaks about its long-awaited sequel, and about what is to be learned in the challenging territory that lies between history and fiction.

THE FOUNDER, CONSIDERING HIS RACE A FAILURE, TOOK HIS OWN LIFE. BUT HIS CONTEST SURVIVED HIM, ENDURING SEVERAL BRUSHES WITH EXTINCTION TO BECOME AMERICA’S LONGEST-RUNNING SPORTS TRADITION. IT TURNS 125 THIS SPRING.