About “The Boys in the Boat” – A Daughter Remembers
Presented by Judy Willman
The critically acclaimed non-fiction novel The Boys in Boat, by
Daniel James Brown, celebrates the 1936 U.S. men’s Olympic eight-oar
rowing team – nine working class boys from the Pacific Northwest who stormed
the rowing world, transformed the sport, and galvanized the attention of
millions of Americans. Join us for an explanation of the book’s genesis and
stories from the daughter of Joe Rantz, one of those working class boys who
made history.
This presentation will begin with a little history on how the book
was “born” and covers some of the process involved in its writing. Our speaker
will take a brief biographical look at each of the boys and includes both a
reading from the book and film footage of the actual Olympic race taken from
Leni Riefenstahl’s period documentary movie Olympia. Our speaker’s
presentation will then look at what Joe Rantz was like as a father, touches on
his later life, and then probes the question of why the book has had such an
impact on those who read it. A slideshow of historical pictures accompanies the
talk.
About the Speaker:
Judy Rantz Willman is the daughter of Joe Rantz. She grew up in
Lake Forest Park, Washington, and graduated from the University of Washington
with a Bachelor of Science degree in Home Economics Education. She and her
husband, Ray, live on five acres outside of Redmond accompanied by two horses
and two cats. They have two adult children and four grandchildren.
Judy sings in the choir at Washington Cathedral in Redmond,
Washington, and is a member of the adult drama group. She writes short stories
and essays and has been published several times in national magazines. She also
won awards in international writing competitions.
* Judy will happily autograph any books brought to the
event by audience members.
