Jump to content

Michael Vitez

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Mollifiednow (talk | contribs) at 00:37, 16 November 2020 (Added content and subheadings). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Michael Thomas Vitez
Born (1957-04-11) April 11, 1957 (age 67)
Washington, D.C.
Occupation(s)Director of Narrative Medicine, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University
SpouseMaureen Fitzgerald
Children3 children
Awards1997 Pulitzer prize, explanatory reporting

Michael Thomas Vitez (born April 11, 1957)[1] is an American Pulitzer prize-winning journalist and author. He is the son of immigrants, his father having fled from Budapest, Hungary in 1939, and his mother coming from Europe as a German Jew in 1941; both leaving their homeland to escape from Hitler's reign. He is the Director of Narrative Medicate at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, after serving as a journalist over a three decade career (1985-2015) with The Philadelphia Inquirer.[1][2][3]

His work at the Inquirer, was focused on human-interest stories. In 1997, Vitez, along with Inquirer photographers April Saul and Ron Cortes, was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Explanatory Journalism for a series of articles he wrote on end-of-life care, telling the stories of terminally ill patients who wished to die with dignity.[2][4] He has authored four novels, one is based on his pulitzer prize-winning stories, Final Choices.[5]

Biography

Background and education

Vitez was born on April 11, 1957, in Washington, DC and grew up in North Springfield, in northern Virginia. He is the son of immigrants, his father, Thomas Vitez, fled Budapest, Hungary in 1939, and his mother, Marianne, coming from Europe as a German Jew in 1941; both leaving their homeland to escape from Hitler's reign. His parents met in New York City, eventually moving to the Washington area. Even though his parents both wrote their own biographies, He told their stories in his book, Great Americans. He is married to Maureen Fitzgerald, and they have three children.[1][2]

Career

After graduating from the University of Virginia in 1979, Vitez found positions at a series of middle-sized newspapers, including the Virginian-Pilot/Ledger Star, the Washington Star, and the Hartford Courant before being offered and accepting a position at the Inquirer in 1985.[2][6]

Vitez has had a long career in Philadelphia, as a general-assignment feature writer. After completing a year as a Journalism Fellow at the University of Michigan in 1994-95,[2] Vitez began to focus on aging, which persisted after his 1997 Pulitzer Prize win. He has written extensively on the murder-rate in Philadelphia, gun control, along with softer, more community-oriented pieces.

As a result of his work leading up to his Pulitzer Prize win, Vitez wrote "Final Choices," a book focusing on individuals in pursuit of a noble death that was published in 1997.[5] That same year, Vitez said that he tries "to celebrate ordinary people around us by showing how ordinary people sometimes do extraordinary things."[2]

In November 2006, Vitez published "Rocky Stories," a collection of stories about people who came to Philadelphia to run the famous steps at the Philadelphia Art Museum.[6] The book features glossy, color photos by Inquirer photographer and fellow Pulitzer Prize-winner Tom Gralish, and an introduction by the star of the Rocky movies, Sylvester Stallone.[7] Vitez appeared briefly (uncredited) at the end of the movie Rocky Balboa (film).[citation needed]

In 2015, Vitez left the Inquirer to serve as the Director of Narrative Medicate at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University. He also teaches elective courses at the University.[1]

Bibliography

  • Final Coices: Seeking the Good Death, Camino Books, 1997.[5]
  • Rocky Stories: Tales of Love, Hope and Happiness at America's Most Famous Steps, Paul Dry Books, 2006.[7]
  • The Road Back: A Journey of Grace and Grit, CreateSpace Publishing Platform, 2012.[8]
  • Great Americans: Stories of Resilience and Joy in Everyday Life, CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2016.[9]

Sources

  1. ^ a b c d "About Michael". MICHAEL VITEZ. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "The 1997 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Explanatory Journalism". www.pulitzer.org. Retrieved 2020-11-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ "Stories from Temple's Narrative Medicine Program – Medium". Medium. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  4. ^ "About Mike Vitez". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on 17 February 2007.
  5. ^ a b c "Final Choices". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
  6. ^ a b "Biography - Michael Vitez". ppww.hkbu.edu.hk. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
  7. ^ a b "Rocky Stories". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
  8. ^ "The Road Back". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  9. ^ "Great Americans". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2020-11-16.


Stub icon

This article about an American journalist born in the 1950s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Michael_Vitez&oldid=988915155"