In “A Columnist's View of Capitol Square: Ohio Politics and Government, 1969-2005,” Lee Leonard collects his columns about the major figures, seminal events and legends in Ohio politics from 1969 through 2005. The book, published by The University of Akron Press in cooperation with the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, is now available.
Leonard covered the Democratic primary battles between John Glenn and Howard Metzenbaum in the 1970s, the four-term governorship of James A. Rhodes, who controlled the Ohio Republican Party for two decades, and other personalities including Tom Dudgeon, who characterized the legislative process as “The Dance of the Stomping Buzzards,” Sen. Oakley Collins, who said he “could dive into the Ohio River and shake three hands before he surfaced,” and Sen. Tony Calabrese, a former nightclub bouncer from Cleveland, who told a nervous lobbyist, “Don’t worry. Once I’m bought, I stay bought.”
Leonard was a reporter for United Press International and the Columbus Dispatch until his retirement in 2005. He also wrote pieces for Columbus Monthly magazine, Ohio Magazine and State Legislatures Magazine.
“A Columnist’s View of Capitol Square” is the newest book in The University of Akron Press Series on Ohio Politics. The book is available in cloth for $29.95 (ISBN 978-1-931968-69-0) and can be ordered online at UA Press or by calling 1-800-247-6553.
Media Contact: Sarah Lane, 330-972-7429 or slane@uakron.edu.