2007 PALMER VINEYARDS WRITERS ON THE VINE SERIES BRINGS LEADING AUTHORS TO LONG ISLAND's NORTH FORK

AQUEBOGUE, NY (May 2007) – Palmer Vineyards’ long-running Writers on the Vine author series this year will feature numerous leading writers, including Nelson DeMille, author of the New York Times best seller “Wild Fire.” Other forums will include discussions the military, winemaking, music, mystery and sports.

The discussions, hosted by broadcast personality Larry Davidson, will run each Sunday, June 24 through Aug. 26, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Palmer Vineyards winery, Sound Ave., Aquebogue. Admission to each session is $10, which includes a glass of Palmer’s award winning wines.

The series kicks off on Sunday, June 24, with military strategist and author Brian Haig and former Marine Anthony Swafford. Swafford is the author of “The Military Life,” “Jarhead” and “Exit A.” Haig, the son of one-time White House Chief of Staff Alexander Haig and a West Point and Harvard alum, is the author of such titles as the “Man in the Middle” and “The President’s Assassin.”

On July 1, Neal Gabler, author of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize winning “Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination,” will join Davidson. Gabler appears regularly on the media review program “Fox News Watch” and often writes for the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times.

Award-winning travel writer Matthew Polly, author of “American Shaolin: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the New China,”appears July 8: Growing up a ninety-pound weakling tormented by bullies in the schoolyards of Kansas, young Polly dreamed of one day journeying to the Shaolin Temple in China to become the toughest fighter in the world, like Caine in his favorite 1970s TV series, Kung Fu. While in college, he decided to pursue this quixotic dream before it was too late. Much to the dismay of his parents, he dropped out of Princeton to spend two years training with the legendary sect of monks who invented kung fu and Zen Buddhism. Theme. Currently a writer for the online magazine Slate, his work also has appeared in Esquire, Playboy and The Nation.

On July 15: a trio of writers, Bob Drury, Masha Hamilton and Ann Liguori,discuss the theme: Asking Questions. Drury is the co-author of “Halsey’s Typhoon,” the story of the sinking of three Navy destroyers and the drowning of 800 sailors in 1944. He is a contributing editor and foreign correspondent for Men’s Health and has reported from Iraq, Darfur, Liberia, Belfast, Sarajevo and Haiti. Hamilton is the author of the just-published “The Camel Bookmobile” tells the story of a restless American librarian searching for more meaning in her life who travels to Africa to help start a library carrying books to remote settlements on the backs of camels. Hamilton has worked as a journalist for the Los Angeles Times, The Associated Press, NBC Mutual Radio and several other news organizations around the globe. Sports broadcaster Liguori is the author of “A Passion for Golf, Celebrity Musings About the Game,” second edition, to be published in June. Liguori is one of the two original WFAN radio sports talk hosts still on the air in New York.

Local author and wine industry personality Louisa Thomas Hargrave appears on July 22: Hargrave is the author of “he Vineyard: The Pleasures and Perils of Creating an American Family Vineyard" and Director of the Stony Brook University Center for Wine, Food and Culture.

On July 29, husband and wife writers Victoria Lustbader and Eric Van Lustbader discuss their works and working together. Victoria, long time fiction editor at Harper & Row and Putnam, is the author of “Hidden.” Her second book is already completed, and a third is in the works. Eric is the author of more than 20 best-selling novels, including "The Ninja,"in which he introduced Nicholas Linnear, one of modern fiction's most loved and enduring heroes, “The Testament” and “Bourne Betrayal.” The movie version of “Bourne Betrayal" will appear in theaters in August.

On Aug. 5, wine again makes a literary appearance with authors Deborah Brenner and Cynthia Baxter. Brenner is the owner of Women of the Vine Cellars, and author of “Women of the Vine: Inside the World of Women Who Make, Taste and Enjoy Wine.” The book was described by Joe Czerwinski, Senior Editor of Wine Enthusiast Magazine as “a unique and enjoyable journey into wine country.” Baxter, a Long Island native, is the author of the Reigning Cats and Dogs mystery series, including last year’s “Hare Today, Dead Tomorrow” a murder mystery set in the North Fork’s wine country.

Christine Brennan, the award-winning sports columnist, best-selling author and broadcast commentator will be at Palmer Vineyards on Aug. 12 to discuss her book, “Best Seat in the House: A Father, A Daughter, A Journey Through Sports.” Brennan, who writes for USA Today, has twice been named one of the Nation’s top 10 sports columnists by the Associated Press Sports Editors.

On Aug. 19, the discussion turns to the story behind the music with Steve Matteo, the author of “The Beatles’ Let It Be,” about the making of The Beatles’ album and film “Let It Be.” He is also the author of “Dylan,” a biography of Bob Dylan. He has also written for Rolling Stone magazine, Harp, Spin, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Newsday, LI Pulse Magazine and the Long Island Press. Also appearing is Wendy Luck, internationally recognized flutist, vocalist and composer. She has appeared in theater and on television and radio and has performed regularly at New York's comedy clubs,

The series wraps up on Aug. 26 with lifelong Long Island resident DeMille, author of 13 acclaimed novels including terrorism thriller “Wild Fire” and the No. 1 New York Times bestsellers “Night Fall” and “Plum Island.”

Established in 1986, Palmer Vineyards, the most-awarded winery on Long Island, has been described by New York Times wine writer Howard Goldberg as “Long Island’s most important winery.” The Palmer Vineyards tasting room on Route 48 in Aquebogue is modeled on an old British pub and its tasting deck, overlooking the vineyards, is spacious. For more information about Palmer Vineyards go to palmervineyards.com or call (631) 722-9463 ext. 10.

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