Rickover: The Struggle for Excellence
About this ebook
Rickover’s work on nuclear propulsion had a profound effect on the post-World War II world and on the development of civilian nuclear reactors for electricity generation. His demand for excellence and accountability was felt far beyond the naval community, yet few other flag officers in the US Navy have been so controversial. Drawing on the admiral’s private papers and the personal insights of friends and family members, this biography examines Rickover’s extraordinary naval career and his private life.
“Francis Duncan, in his long-awaited full biography of Hyman Rickover, achieves that difficult dual goal of close personal insight and honesty of distance... Duncan details Rickover’s many controversies, his towering rages, and his contempt for tradition, bureaucracy, and stupidity... a very readable cruise through the life of a notorious curmudgeon who, after all, served his country well and had a major impact on the ships of the U.S. Navy, on the engineering profession, and on the development of nuclear power in the United States.” — Rodney Carlisle, The Journal of American History
“This fine treatment of a remarkable man is highly recommended.” — Malcolm Muir, Jr., Technology and Culture
“Francis Duncan is uniquely qualified to write the biography of Admiral Hyman G. Rickover... He is the only person to whom Admiral Rickover ever made himself available for interviews and allowed use of his personal papers, including the letters between himself and his first wife, Ruth... This is an enjoyable book, especially for the thousands who served, or serve now, in the nuclear programs, civilian or military. It is also an important addition to the history of a man who was one of the giants of the twentieth-century United States.” — Robert Loewenthal, The Journal of Military History
“Victorious in his struggle for excellence, Rickover’s personal baton of highly disciplined professionalism was passed without a hitch to those he had selected, educated, and trained to run nuclear power plants safely and efficiently. We still feel his presence; his legacy endures. This book does him long-awaited justice.” — Admiral James D. Watkins, USN (Ret.), Chief of Naval Operations, 1982-86
“Impressively researched, insightful, and readable. Duncan captures the Rickover behind the myths and sea stories. This account of his remarkable life, an only-in-America story, will appeal to a wide audience — midshipman to CEO.” — Admiral Bruce DeMars, USN (Ret.), Director, Navy Nuclear Propulsion, 1988-96
“This excellent book offers insights not available to previous authors who did not enjoy Francis Duncan’s close association with Rickover and his family. Particularly useful are early chapters that define the character of the man.” — Admiral Kinnard R. McKee, USN (Ret.), Director, Navy Nuclear Propulsion, 1982-88
“This is the authentic biography of Hyman Rickover, one of the most influential persons in naval history and in the creation of an international civilian nuclear power industry. Duncan has given us a national treasure that is both authoritative and enjoyably readable. There’s something in it for everyone.” — Dr. Theodore Rockwell, former technical director of Rickover’s naval reactors program
“Rickover: The Struggle for Excellence is an original and absolutely fundamental contribution both to naval history and to a general understanding of nuclear power development. It is very objective and accessible... There is no comparable book.” — Dr. Gary Weir, Naval Historical Center
“I believe Rickover: The Struggle for Excellence by Francis Duncan is the best biography of Admiral Rickover.” — Robert Rickover, son of Admiral Rickover
Ratings and reviews
About the author
Francis Duncan (1922-2016) was born in Oak Park, Illinois. A naval World War II veteran, he graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University with a BA in History and earned his MA and PhD (1954) in History from the University of Chicago. After working as an analyst for the Air Force Office of Intelligence, Duncan moved to the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in 1957 and was a historian for the AEC and its successor agency, the Department of Energy, from 1962 until 1987. He co-authored with Richard G. Hewlett, Atomic Shield, 1947-1952, Volume II of a History of the United States Atomic Energy Commission, which won the David D. Lloyd Prize from the Harry S. Truman Institute. The volume covers the J. Robert Oppenheimer controversy and many technical and political issues facing the AEC including the debate about the development of thermonuclear devices and the effect of the Korean War on nuclear policy. By 1974, Hewlett and Duncan had also published Nuclear Navy, 1946-1962, a study of the naval nuclear propulsion program. Duncan also published numerous articles in the Naval Institute Proceedings, encyclopedias and professional journals.
Duncan first met Admiral Rickover in 1969 after completing his work on the AEC history, and was assigned to the Admiral’s office in 1974. Until his retirement in 1987, Duncan worked closely with the Admiral and his staff, visiting laboratories, touring shipyards, and attending sea trials of nuclear-powered attack and missile submarines, cruisers, and aircraft carriers. He also assisted with research for Rickover’s monograph, “How the Battleship Maine was Destroyed.” In 1990, Duncan published an overview of Rickover’s nuclear propulsion program in Rickover and the Nuclear Navy: The Discipline of Technology, which won the Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt Naval History Prize in 1991.
Duncan’s nearly twenty years involvement with Admiral Rickover and the nuclear naval program allowed him unprecedented access to Rickover’s colleagues, friends, family and the Admiral’s thoughts and personal papers, resulting in the biography Rickover: The Struggle for Excellence, originally published in 2001.
