Doris Fleeson covered the world of politics for forty years, first as a reporter for the New York Daily News, then, after World War II, as a columnist whose views were syndicated, at her peak, in nearly 100 newspapers throughout the United States. Her writing combined wit with an acerbic, straightforward presentation of information and interpretation. She was especially well known for her extensive network of federal contacts within the government, which provided her with the raw material for her scoops and examinations of political intrigue.

Fleeson was born in Sterling, Kansas, on 20 May 1901 to William Fleeson, the owner of a clothing store, and Helen Tebbe Fleeson. She attended the University of Kansas in Lawrence, where she decided to become a reporter: she thought William Allen White and Ed Howe led exciting lives and saw no reason why she should not do the same. At Kansas, too, she exchanged...