American literature professor and writer (1944–2022)
Philip Douglas Beidler (October 29, 1944 – April 20, 2022[1][2][3]) was an American academic and author. He was a professor ofAmerican literature at theUniversity of Alabama, and the author and editor of books on Alabama literature, theVietnam War, and other topics. For his work on Vietnam writers, he has been called "one of the founding fathers of Vietnam War studies".[4]
Beidler, who was of German and Quaker descent, was born on October 29, 1944, inAdams, Pennsylvania.[1] He did his undergraduate studies atDavidson College.[5] During 1969 and 1970, he served as a lieutenant in an armored cavalry platoon in Vietnam.[6][7][8] He received master's and doctoral degrees in English from theUniversity of Virginia—the latter in 1974.[9][5]
He became a professor at the University of Alabama in the mid-1970s, served as director of graduate studies and as assistant dean, and was awarded the 1999 Burnum Distinguished Faculty Award.[5] He was eventually named the Margaret and William Going Professor of English and, at the time of his death, he was a professor emeritus of English at the University of Alabama.[10][11]
Beidler suffered fromParkinson's during the last years of his life. He died on April 20, 2022.[2]
