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The 2009 ESU Annual Conference is a terrific opportunity for members to gather together and renew our energies in this culturally rich, uniquely festive American city. New Orleans was chosen as the site for the Conference because of the enthusiasm and strength of the Branch and spirit of renewal in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. Come and share the energy!

The Annual Conference will also be our first opportunity to meet Patricia Schroeder, newly elected Chairman of the English-Speaking Union of the United States, and hear and discuss her ideas for the future of the ESU. She will welcome as an honored guest and speaker at the Conference Lord Hunt, Chairman of the ESU of the Commonwealth, in his first official visit to the ESU of the US. A lawyer, former Member of Parliament for 21 years and former Government Minister, he served in the cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major. Lord Hunt's association with the ESU stretches back more than 40 years and in 1967, while a law student, he was selected to take part in a debate tour of the United States. He was elected Chairman of the ESU of the Commonwealth in 2005.

Dr. Samuel Johnson

Dr. Quinn Peeper, President of the New Orleans Branch is finalizing arrangements for an entertaining and informative program, while hosting a high-value visit to his beloved New Orleans at the best possible conference registration fee. Dr. Peeper will introduce the overall theme of the Conference, “The Art of the Biography” commemorating the 300th anniversary of the birth of Dr. Samuel Johnson, the subject of James Boswell’s definitive biography that is regarded as a milestone in the development of the genre. In a panel discussion and individual speaker programs, contemporary biographers will discuss the challenges of rendering lives in words. This theme of telling the story of a life in words corresponds well with the work of the ESU itself that uses the English language to change lives.

Our current line-up of participating speakers includes:

	Julia Reed, who will welcome conferees to New Orleans at our opening dinner. She is a contributing editor at Vogue and Newsweek magazines whose recent book, The House on First Street, describes her many years in New Orleans and her experience with the house she purchased in the historic Garden District just four weeks before Hurricane Katrina. Carlo D’Este, retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel and distinguished military historian who has authored acclaimed biographies, Patton: A Genius for War and Eisenhower: A Soldier’s Life, and the recent Warlord: A Life of Winston Churchill. Flora Fraser, British writer best known for her historical biographies of Emma Hamilton, Caroline of Brunswick and the daughters of George III. She is the daughter of Lady Antonia Fraser and the late Sir Hugh Fraser and step-daughter of the Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter. Pauline Bonaparte: Venus of Europe is her most recent work. Carol Gelderman, Distinguished Professor of English at the University of New Orleans. Dr.Gelderman has authored eight books, including the biography Henry Ford: The Wayward Capitalist, (which was made into a four-part TV series): Mary McCarthy, A Life; and Louis Auchincloss, A Life. Formerly a Presidential speech-writer, her related books include All the Presidents' Words: The Bully Pulpit and the Creation of the Virtual Presidency and Presidential Speechwriting: From the New Deal to the Reagan Revolution and Beyond. She has written numerous articles on various topics and has been a commentator for several on-air documentaries. Christina Vella, writer, biographer and historian of modern Europe and adjunct professor at Tulane University. Her Intimate Enemies: The Two Worlds of the Baroness de Pontalba, was chosen as one of the best books of the year by The New York Times Book Review, Publishers Weekly, and The Times-Picayune. It chronicles the life and career of Micaela Almonester, the woman responsible for building the Embassy of the United States in Paris and the Pontalba Buildings in New Orleans. A professor of history for more than twenty years, Ms. Vella now devotes her time to writing and lecturing and serves as a consultant and writer for the United States Department of State. Sean Wilentz, Dayton-Stockton Professor of History and Director of American Studies at Princeton University and a contributing editor at The New Republic. His The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln, received the Bancroft Prize in 2006 and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, his 2005 biography of Andrew Jackson was edited by Arthur Schlesinger Jr. and his most recent biography is The Age of Reagan: A History, 1974-2008;

Other planned Conference events currently include:

• a dinner Commemorating Dr. Johnson with music by members of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and Dr. Peeper at the piano playing "Music from the age of Johnson" and a presentation introducing the Art of the Biography Conference theme;


• a lunchtime tasting of famous local Cajun and Creole dishes at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum. Lady Shaw Stewart, former Executive Committee Member of the National Trust for Scotland and lecturer on fine and decorative arts, will make a presentation on Georgian Scottish Cooking, and Dr. Betty Ruth Speir, author of Come Cook with Me, will supply dessert and sign books.


• a luncheon and speaker presentation by Christina Vella;

• a Saturday evening black tie optional Dinner/Jazz Ball

  with keynote address by Lord Hunt and entertainment by New Orleans' legendary singer and performer Gennifer Flowers.


• a private reception for National Patron Donors at the Hermann Grima Gallier Historic House.


• a visit to the National World War II Museum, This remarkable attraction illuminates the American experience during the WWII era with moving personal stories, historic artifacts and powerful interactive displays. Shakespeare scholar and ESU Interim Chairman Ann Cook Calhoun will present a personal reminiscence, “What Did Your Daddy Do in the War?," drawing on letters, pictures and graphic memories to recount her father's experiences when he trained in England as a combat engineer and then landed on Omaha Beach during the first hour of D-Day. That event not only determined the outcome of the war but changed her family's life forever.

The venue for the Conference is the Windsor Court Hotel, located in downtown New Orleans, an easy walk to all the sites of interest in the French Quarter.

The Windsor Court is renowned for its extensive collection of British and European paintings. The special ESU Conference rate is $235 per night for a full suite (bedroom, living room, dressing room and kitchenette). This is a saving of 40% off normal room rates! Sales and bed taxes, currently totaling 15%, are added to these room charges. These discounted rates will be available until October 6. All room reservations made after that date will be confirmed on a space and rate-available basis.

Come early and stay late! These discount room rates will be available from November 2 to 11 if you would like to extend your stay in New Orleans.

Conference registration will be open from 12:00 noon to 7:30 pm Thursday, November 5. The opening event of the Conference will be a reception and dinner on Thursday, November 5 at 6:00 pm. The sessions of the Annual General Meeting of the English-Speaking Union of the United States are currently scheduled for Friday morning and afternoon, November 6, and Sunday morning, November 8. Regional Meetings are scheduled for Sunday morning, November 8. The Board of Directors will meet from 9:00 am until 4:00 pm on Thursday, November 5. The Conference concludes on Sunday, November 8 at noon. SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

The Conference registration fee of $450 per person includes: All plenary sessions, speaker programs and panel discussion; opening reception and dinner Thursday evening; lunch on Friday; tasting visit to The Southern Food and Beverage Museum on Saturday; jazz ball dinner Saturday evening; and visit to the National World War II Museum.

Our auditors advise us that for tax deduction purposes, member participation is measured by the “rendition of services test.” It is therefore desirable, they advise, not only that the delegates and alternates be appointed in writing by the Branches, but that they take an active part in the meetings, presentations and so forth, and that they make written reports or personal diaries of meeting events as a record of their participation.

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For more information on the ESU Annual Conference, please contact Christopher Broadwell at cbroadwell@esuus.org or 212-818-1200. The Conference registration forms will be distributed to the Branches and available online at the ESU website, www.esuus.org.

Enjoy the food, music, architecture and history of New Orleans....

AND ALL THAT JAZZ!

All members of The English-Speaking Union of the United States are invited to attend the Annual Conference, which includes the Annual General Meeting.