Alistair Cooke - Mid To Later Years

Mid To Later Years

Cooke took up golf in his mid-fifties, developing a fascination with the game, despite never attaining an extraordinary level of skill. He was driven by his love of golf to devote many of his Letters from America to the topic, speaking once of the thrill of learning 'how much more awesome was the world of golf than the world of politics'. Cooke became close friends with many of the leading golfers of the era: Jack Nicklaus, in the introduction to a compilation of Cooke's writing on golf, recounts his many notable achievements, but describes him as 'most of all ... a friend.'

In 1966 he was invited to deliver the MacMillan Memorial Lecture to the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland. He chose the subject 'The Jet Age and the Habits of Man'.

In 1968, he was only yards away from Robert F. Kennedy when he was assassinated, witnessing the events that followed.

In 1971, he became the host of the new Masterpiece Theatre, PBS's showcase of quality British television. He remained its host for 22 years, before retiring from the role in 1992. He achieved his greatest popularity in the U.S. in this role, becoming the subject of many parodies, including "Alistair Cookie" in Sesame Street & No.39's "Monsterpiece Theater" ("Alistair Cookie" was also the name of a clay animated cookie-headed spoof character created by Will Vinton as the host of a video trailer for The Little Prince and Friends); Alistair Quince, portrayed by Harvey Korman who introduced many episodes in the early seasons of Mama's Family.

America: A Personal History of the United States (1972), a 13-part television series about the United States and its history, was first broadcast in both the United Kingdom and the United States in 1973, and was followed by a book of the same title. It was a great success in both countries, and resulted in Cooke's being invited to address the joint Houses of the United States Congress as part of Congress's bicentennial celebrations. After the series' broadcast in Ireland, Cooke won a Jacob's Award, one of the few occasions when this award was made to the maker of an imported programme.

Later the same year, Cooke was awarded an honorary knighthood (KBE) for his "outstanding contribution to Anglo-American mutual understanding." Cooke was reportedly happy to accept because in the words of Thomas Jefferson, it did not involve "the very great vanity of a title." Having relinquished his British citizenship during World War II, he could not be called "Sir Alistair".