Portrait of a Historian: Celebrating Larry Glasco and his Biography on August Wilson

Name: Portrait of a Historian: Celebrating Larry Glasco and his Biography on August Wilson
Start: 2026-11-02T21:00:00.000Z
End: 2026-11-02T22:30:00.000Z
Location: Hillman Library

RSVP at: pi.tt/Glasco26

Celebrate with the University of Pittsburgh Library System and the Department of History as we mark the publication of Dr. Larry Glaso’s August Wilson’s American Century: Life as Art published by the University of Pittsburgh Press (2026). His book draws on Wilson’s early poetry, archival material, and original interviews with family members, neighbors, and friends to reveal how Pittsburgh’s Hill District and its people shaped the celebrated playwright’s identity, voice, and body of work.

Several of Dr. Glasco’s academic colleagues (Dr. Rob Ruck, Professor of Sport History, University of Pittsburgh; Dr. Joe William Trotter, Jr, Giant Eagle University Professor of History and Social Justice, Carnegie Mellon University; and Dr. Sandra G. Shannon, Professor Emerita of African American Literature, Howard University; President Emerita and Founder, August Wilson Society) will discuss his array of scholarship which centers on race and ethnicity, urban history, and the social and cultural history of Pittsburgh's Black community—including the history of the Hill District, the life and legacy of K. Leroy Irvis, and the visual imagery of photographer Teenie Harris. Dr. Glasco is the author or coauthor of five books, including August Wilson: Pittsburgh Places in His Life and Plays, co-written with Christopher Rawson.

Dr. Laurence A. Glasco is professor emeritus of history at the University of Pittsburgh, where he earned a reputation as one of the foremost historians of Black life in Pittsburgh. He holds a Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Buffalo (1973).

Hillman Library is located at 3960 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15260. Metered on-street parking is available on various streets surrounding the library. Paid parking is also available at Soldiers & Sailors Parking Garage (.2 miles from the library). Hillman Library is also accessible by public transportation. See the Pittsburgh Regional Transit website for planning your trip.

Please email [email protected] with any questions or accessibility accommodation requests.

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