On Wednesday, April 22, 2015. in the Hill Memorial Library, Louisiana State University, Dr. Michael S. Martin, Cheryl Courrégé Burguières/Board of Regents Professor in History, and Director, Center for Louisiana Studies, University of Louisiana at Lafayette spoke about his new book, Russell Long: A Life in Politics (University Press of Mississippi, 2014). A book signing and reception followed. This event was co-sponsored by the LSU Department of History and LSU Libraries Special Collections. A small display of relevant materials, selected by Tara Laver, Curator of Manuscripts, was included in the event, as the papers of Russell B. Long, as well as other Long family papers, are held in the LSU Libraries Special Collections (http://lib.lsu.edu/special/findaid/3700.pdf).

Russell Long (1918-2003) occupies a unique and important position in twentieth-century American political history. Born into Louisiana's most influential political family, and son of perhaps the most famous Louisianan of all time, Long extended the political power generated by other members of his family and attained heights of power unknown to his predecessors, including his father Huey.

The Long family held a strong presence in Louisiana politics from the late 1920s through the 1980s. His family’s deep political ties, as well as his father's assassination set the scene for his future political career. In 1948, Russell followed his father and his mother to a seat in the United States Senate. In due course, he rose to the politically eminent positions of majority whip and chair of the Senate Finance Committee. Russell Long: A Life in Politics examines Long's public life and places it within the context of twentieth-century Louisiana, southern, and national politics.