John Updike Selected for Jefferson Lecture

On his 76th birthday, the U.S. government sent celebrated writer John Updike another official honor. The National Endowment for the Humanities announced yesterday that Updike will deliver the 2008 Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities.

Giving the annual lecture is one of a handful of honors in the humanities bestowed by the federal government. Updike, an interpreter of American relationships and mores, is only the third American to have received both the National Humanities Medal (2003) and the National Medal of Arts (1989). Those honors are awarded by the president in consultation with the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts. The other recipients of both honors are Paul Mellon and Eudora Welty.

"John Updike's discerning eye has made him an acute observer of American culture and art," said Bruce Cole, chairman of the humanities endowment. "His fiction, prose, essays and poetry over the years have provided invaluable insights into the human condition and into the humanities."

Updike's output spans more than 50 books. His novels "Rabbit Is Rich" and "Rabbit at Rest" won Pulitzer Prizes, and his work has won every other prestigious literary award. The Jefferson Lecture carries a $10,000 honorarium.

At the 37th annual lecture, which will be delivered May 22 at the Warner Theatre, Updike will consider the question: "What is American about American art?"

Admission to the 2008 Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities at the Warner Theatre is free of charge but tickets are required. Requests for tickets will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis through May 12 via an online form at www.neh.gov or by calling 202-606-8446.