BIOGRAPHY OF THOMAS D. ELIAS
(1720 Oak St., Santa Monica, CA 90405, Tel. 310-452-3918, email: tdelias@aol.com)
Columnist and author Thomas Elias writes a syndicated political column appearing twice weekly in 94 California newspapers, with circulation over 2.3 million. He has won numerous awards from organizations like the National Headliners Club, the California Newspaper Publishers Association and the California Taxpayers Association. His columns have also won first place awards for commentary in the Los Angeles Press Club competition in seven of past ten years.
Elias is the author of two books, The Burzynski Breakthrough: The Most Promising Cancer Treatment and the Government’s Campaign to Squelch It (now in its fourth edition; also published in German and Japanese) and The Simpson Trial in Black and White, co-authored with the late Dennis Schatzman. He is currently at work on a third book, about his experiences with kidney failure and later as a kidney transplant recipient.
Besides his writing activities, Elias is a director and vice president of Madera Printing & Publishing Co., publisher of the Madera, Calif., Tribune, the weekly Madera Direct and the weekly Coalinga Recorder.
Elias was the West Coast correspondent for the Scripps Howard Newspapers for 15 years before he began writing books. Among many other assignments in that position, he covered eight national political conventions, every planetary fly-by, the rise of the AIDS plague, several World Series, Olympics and Super Bowls, two papal visits, wrote dozens of travel articles, as well as conducting numerous investigative projects. His work has resulted in the recall of a California governor, unseated two judges, helped create a major state park and caused significant changes in the federal treatment of immigrants. A former Associated Press staff writer, he has made numerous radio and television appearances, on such programs as The Today Show, CBS This Morning, the CBS Evening News, Larry King Live and C-Span’s Book TV. An archive of his columns can be seen online at www.californiafocus.net.
Elias holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from Stanford University. He has taught journalism at the University of Southern California, California State University at Northridge and two other Cal State campuses. He has been honored for his volunteer work by the Los Angeles Human Relations Commission, the National Kidney Foundation and the Anti-Defamation League. He has served on the national advisory boards of the Polycystic Kidney Research Foundation and the Center for Talented Youth of Johns Hopkins University.
Elias and his wife Marilyn live in Santa Monica.
Columnist and author Thomas Elias writes a syndicated political column appearing twice weekly in 94 California newspapers, with circulation of 2.3 million. He has won numerous awards from organizations like the National Headliners Club, the California Newspaper Publishers Association and the California Taxpayers Association. His columns have won first-place awards for commentary in the Los Angeles Press Club competition in seven of the past 10 years. Mr. Elias is the author of two books, The Burzynski Breakthrough: The Most Promising Cancer Treatment and the Government’s Campaign to Squelch It ( also published in German and Japanese) and The Simpson Trial in Black and White, co-authored with the late Dennis Schatzman. He is at work on a book about his experiences with kidney failure and later as a kidney transplant recipient.tdelias@aol.com
Editor/publisher Ari L. Noonan has divided his long journalistic career into equal parts, the first three decades as a sportswriter, the three most recent decades covering politics. He said goodbye to sports in the mid-1980s as the final sports editor of the now-defunct Evening Outlook of Santa Monica. He spent the next 15 years covering the Los Angeles Jewish community before moving to Culver City just after the turn of the century. He also has worked in Santa Barbara, Philadelphia and Baltimore.
I was born and raised in Queens, when Queens had lakes and snakes.
I left New York after receiving a B.A. from CCNY. I received a B.A. from Ohio University, and a Ph.D. from Stanford University. I taught at universities in Hawaii, California, and Israel. I am happily married with three children, and have three beautiful grandchildren.
I retired in 2004 from the LA School District, and have been enjoying hobbies ever since. One of my passions is writing an essay each week for thefrontpageonline. Each essay’s topic is a surprise to me, as my passion-of-the-week jumps into my head.
BIOGRAPHY OF ALEXANDRA VAILLANCOURT
Alexandra Vaillancourt is a preschool teacher, a nanny, a photographer, and a Democrat, among other things. She was born and raised in New York City, and has resided in Boston for over 20 years.
Her hobbies include reading, writing, and asking someone else to do her arithmetic. She enjoys improve theater and getting tattooed.
Alexandra spends her leisure time with her husband, stepsons, and two Siberian cats.
