Writer, historian, broadcaster. Born William Royal Stokes on June 27, 1930 in Washington, D.C.; died May 1, 2021 in Elkins, West Virginia.
He attended Woodrow Wilson High School and then University of Maryland before serving in the U.S. Army. He then attended the University of Washington (BA, 1958, MA, 1960), and completed his formal education with a Ph.D.