Past Speakers

Past Speakers:

The F. Joseph Callahan Distinguished Lecture presented in partnership with Think Forum

Elizabeth Kolbert
May 1, 2024

Renowned journalist, author, and environmentalist Elizabeth Kolbert took the Maltz Performing Arts Center Stage for the F. Joseph Callahan Distinguished Lecture on Wednesday, March 1, 2024. Her newest book, H is for Hope, was released on March 26, 2024.

 

 

"Scientific America: The Eclipse That Enlightened a Nation"
David Baron
March 20, 2024

Think Forum welcomed radio personality, author, and avid eclipse chaser David Baron to the Maltz Performing Arts Center Stage speaking on his book American Eclipse. 

 

 

MLK Convocation presented in partnership with Think Forum (January 2024)

Tiffany Cross
Friday, January 19, 2024

Tiffany D. Cross is the former host of The Cross Connection on MSNBC and a 2020 Resident Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics. She is a longtime cable news veteran having previously served as the D.C. Bureau Chief for BET Networks, an Associate Producer for CNN, and a freelance Field Producer. Tiffany also spent time on the campaign trail having both covered and worked on numerous local, state, and federal campaigns.

The Elaine G. Hadden Distinguished Author presented in partnership with Think Forum (Fall 2023)

Ruha Benjamin
Thursday, September 7, 2023

Ruha Benjamin is a Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, founding director of the Ida B. Wells Just Data Lab, author of the award winning book Race After Technology: AbolitionistTools for the New Jim Code (2019) and Viral Justice: How We Grow the World We Want (2022),  2023 winner of the Stowe Prize, among many other publications.

For more information, contact thinkforum@case.edu. 

Think Forum, previously known as the Town Hall of Cleveland, is the nation’s longest consecutive-running speaker series. To see who has been a part of this series, click on the year.

62-63 | 63-64 | 64-65 | 65-66
66-67 | 67-68 | 68-69 | 69-70

70-71 | 71-72 | 72-73 | 73-74 | 74-75
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80-81 | 81-82 | 82-83 | 85-86 
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95-96 | 96-97 | 97-98 | 98-99 | 99-00

00-01 | 01-02 | 02-03 | 03-04 | 04-05
05-06 | 06-07 | 07-08 | 08-09 | 09-10

10-11 | 11-12 | 12-13 | 13-14 | 14-15
15-16 | 16-17 | 17-18 | 18-19 | 19-20

20-21 | 21-22 | 22-23 | 23-24

1962-1963

Frank Gervasi
Dr. Cleo Dawson
Marie Torre
Robert R. Brunn
Gayelord Hauser
Dr. Ralph W. Sockman
Jan Lindermann
Dr. Harry Wood
Baroness Maria von Trapp
Lynn Heinzerling
Dr. Rowland M. Myers
Denis Warner
Lisa Howard
Robert Kazmayer

1963-1964

Raymond Moley
Nancy Spain
Brg. Gen. Frank L. Howley (Ret.)
Morris Barr
Ray Middleton
Edward Weeks
Ginette Spanier
Emily Kimbrough
Dr. Donald W. Cox
Constantin Boldyreff
Eleanor Lansing Dulles
Eddy Gilmore
Gerald Moore
Godfrey Sperling, Jr.

1964-1965

Cleveland Amory
Roscoe Drummond
Mme. Anna Chennault
John Braine
Dame Alica Markova
Dr. Ralph Robey
Lehman Engel
Willem Oltmans
Sir Hugh Foot
M. S. Handler
Dr. Russell Caldwell
Eddie Frederics
Betty Bruce
H. Montgomery Hyde

1965-1966

Micol Fontana
Winston S. Churchill
John Mason Brown
Robert S. Elegant
Tom Ewell
Dr. Woodrow Wilson Sayre
Nila Magidoff
Joe A. Callaway
Alistair Cooke
Eddy Gilmore
Bergen Eveans
Dr. Karl H. Berns
Lionel Wiggam
Adelaide Stedman

1966-1967

Bennett Cerf
Aline Mosby
Alistair Cooke
Cincy Adams
Jean Pierre Hallet
Warren Rogers
Betty Furness
Marietta Tree
Walter B. Pitkin, Jr.
John Hlavacek
Dr. Richard McLanathan
Philip Burton
Robin Moore

1967-1968

Art Buchwald
Betsy Halstead
Dr. Leland Miles
Arther C. Clarke
Drew Middleton
Col. John S. D. Eisenhower
General Mark W. Clark
The Marquis De La Passardiere
Pegge Parker
Jean Houston
Dr. Richard McLanathan
Paul Niven

1968-1969

Buill Mauldin
William Jay Smith
Kitty Carlisle
David Humphreys
Dr. Haim G. Ginott
Dan Rather
Agnes DeMille
George Reedy, Jr.
Pauline Frederick
Joseph C. Harsch

1969-1970

Celeste Holm
Howard K. Smith
William A. Emerson, Jr.
Dr. Harold Taylor
James J. Kilpatrick
Ilka Chase
Ralph Salerno
Earl Wilson
Ambassador 
Walter Dowling
Joseph C. Harsch

1970-1971

Adela Rogers St. Johns
David Keith Hardy
William David
David Hoy
Paul Duke
Virginia Graham
Nila Magidoff
Frank Graham, Jr.
Jenkin Llyod Jones
Joseph C. Harsch
Henry Fonda

1971-1972

Meredith Willson
Dr. David H. C. Read
Dr. Edwin O. Reischauer
Erma Bombeck
Vice-Admiral James F. Calvert
Jeane Dixon
Robert Cromie
Bonaro Overstreet
Joseph C. Harsch

1972-1973

Congressman Philip M. Crane
Ralph Nader
Sam Shulsky
Clare Boothe Luce
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
Hugh Sidey
Mr. & Mrs. J. Leslie-Melville
Samuel S. Vaughan
Eve Arden
Joseph C. Harsch

1973-1974

John A. Davenport
James Reston
Phyllis Schlafly
Sam Levenson
Senator Barry Goldwater
Mark Gayn
Adelle Davis
James C. Bostain
Eve Brown
Dr. S. I. Hayakawa

1974-1975

Nancy Dicerson
Adela Rogers
David Niven
Clive David
William A. Rusher
Bill Lignante
Joe A. Calloway
Alex Haley
Irene Kampen
Senator Barry Goldwater

1976-1977

Russell Baker
George C. Roche, III
Hugh Sidey
Lord Harlech
Gloria Swanson
Joyce Jillson
June Weir
John Peer Nugent
Dr. John G.Stoessinger
Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr.

1977-1978

Patrice Munsel
charles Collingwood
Nicholas Johnson
James T. Lynn
Lowell Thomas
Wendell Garrett
Dr. James Thorne
The Hon. Judge Lisa Richette
Dr. John G. Stoessinger

1978-1979

Countessa de Romanones y
Quintanilla Grandee of Spain
Frank Cappiello
Hedrick Smith
Thomad Hoving
Ruth Gordon
Eric Sevareid
Cord Meyer
Richard W. Hoover
Dr. John G. Stoessinger

1979-1980

Barbara Howar
Ambassador William H. Sullivan
John W. Dean, III
David Halberstam
W. Michael Blumenthal
Morris Barr
Dorothy Fuldheim
Dr. John G. Stoessinger

1980-1981

Patricia Neal
Leslie H. Gelb
Dr. David D Burns
Jack Anderson
Alan Jay Lerner
Ann Compton
Herbert S. Richey
Terry Hekker
Dr. John G. Stoessinger

1981-1982

F. Lee Bailey
Betty Williams
Ellen Goodman
Hugh Sidey
Mark Russell
Dr. John G. Stoessinger
Dr. Paul S. Nadler
Maureen Reagan
Barbara Walters

1982-1983

Dr. Norman Vincent Peale
Claire Booth Luce
Bette Bao Lord
Jack Anderson
Beverly Sills
Amb. Richard T. Davies
Fred Friendly
Arianna Hyman Rickover

1985-1986

Moya Olsen Lear
Frank Cappiello
Madame Jehan Sadat
Arkady N. Shevchenko
Hon. Jeane J. Kirkpatrick
J. Peter Grace
Mike Wallace

1986-1987

Edward Heath
Wm. F. Buckley & John K. Galbraith
Dr. Carl Sagan
Amb. Philip C. Habib
Diane Sawyer
Capt. James Lovell
Thomas P. O’Neill

1987-1988

Hon. Donald T. Reagn
Apartheid Awareness Debate
Mark Mathabane
Stuart Pringle
Ambassador Herman W. Nickel
Dr. Susan Forward
Linda Ellerbee
Sam Donaldson
Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski
The McLaughlin Group

1988-1989

Abba Eban
Vladimir Pozner & Malcolm Toon Debate
Nien Cheng
Tom Wolfe
Mark Russell
Tom Peters
Dr. Henry Kissinger

1989-1990

Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski
Gov. Mario M. Cuomo
Neil Sheehan
Hon. David A. Stockman
Calvin Trillin
Rosamond Bernier
Pierre Salinger

1990-1991

Chancellor Helmut Schmidt
Vladimir Pozner
Bryan Burrough & John Helyar
Jonathan Kozol
Jane Goodall
George Will
Ambassador Winston Lord &
Bette Bao Lord

1991-1992

Benazir Bhutto
Kenneth Burns
Peter Arnett
Patricia Schroeder
Sander Vanocur
Hugh Sidey
Margaret Thatcher

1992-1993

Terry Waite
Alan Dershowitz
William J. Bennett
Faye Wattleton
Faith Popcorn
Dan Rather
David McCullough

1993-1994

President George Bush
Louis W. Sullivan
Bill Moyers
Hedrick Smith
Robert James Walker
Cokie Roberts
Peter S. Lynch

1994-1995

President Gerald R. Ford
Dr. Henry Kissinger
Richard E. Leakey
Lesley Stahl
Garrison Keillor
Stuart A. Varney
Marlin Fitzwater

1995-1996

Ken Burns
William Safire
Anna Quindlen
The Hon. Brian Mulroney
Gen. Colin Powell
David Halberstam
Doris Kearns Goodwin

1996-1997

Cokie Roberts & Steve Roberts
F.W. de Klerk
Eli Wiesel
Thomas L. Friedman
Ambassador Richard C. Holbrooke
Li Lu
Lynn Martin & Pat Schroeder

1997-1998

Rt. Hon. Christopher Pattern
Charlton Heston
Prime Minister Shimon Peres
Rev. Prof. Peter J. Gomes
Ray Brady
Dr. Robert Arnot
Bill Kristol & George Stephanopoulos

1998-1999

Barbara Goldsmith
Dr. Victor R. Fuchs
Jane Alexander
Sir Richard Needham
James P. Kelly
Judson D. Hale, Sr.
Dr. Beck Weathers
Rt. Hon. John Major

1999-2000

William J. Bennett, Ph.D.
Leah Rabin
Robert M. Gates, Ph.D.
Michael R. Beschloss
President George Bush
Beverly Sills
Robert A. M. Stern

2000-2001

Martin S. Feldstein, Ph.D.
Archbishop John P. Foley, D.D.
John C. Bogle
Ralph Nader
Tim Russert
Barbara Bush
Yolanda King

2001-2002

Ronan Tynan, M.D.
F. Warren McFarlan, D.B.A.
Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf
Doris Kearns Goodwin, Ph.D.
Robert Ballard, Ph.D.
J. Craig Venter, Ph.D.
H.J. de Blij

2002-2003

Rudolph Giuliani
Sergei N. Khrushchev, Ph.D.
Ray Suarez
Michael Osterholm, Ph.D. M.P.H.
Captain Scott O'Grady
Gwen Ifill
Hugh Sidey

2003-2004

David Breashears 
Benazir Bhutto
Dr. Robert H. Dorff 
Stan Davis 
Dave Barry 
Dr. William F. Schulz 
Dr. Bob Arnot

2004-2005

Bob Woodward
Ben Carson
Gen Barry McCaffrey
Liz Murray
Mark Russell
Joseph Badaracco, Ph.D
David McCullough

2005-2006

Lou Holtz
Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley
Newt Gingrich
Norah O'Donnell
T.R. Reid
Michael Roizen, MD
George F. Will

2006-2007

Tim Russert
Frank Deford
Michael Porter
Scott Cowen
The Capitol Steps
Kyle Maynard
Julie Gerberding, MD

2007-2008

Doris Kearns Goodwin
Khaled Abou El Fadl
Jaime Escalante
Ben Stein
Paul Farmer, MD.
Charles Mann
Mary Robinson

2008-2009

Christiane Amanpour & James Rubin
Eleanor Clift & William Kristol
Philippe Cousteau
Ken Burns
Steven Nissen, M.D.
The Three Doctors
David Pogue

2009-2010

Juan Williams
George S. Hawkins, Esq.
William A. Sahlman
Capitol Steps
Stan Gerson, M.D.
Lisa Dennison
David Gergen

2010-2011

T. Boone Pickens
Andrew Ross Sorkin
Mireille Guiliano
Bill Strickland
John Halamka, M.D.
David Brooks
Ronan Tynan

2011-2012

Ambassador John Bolton
Daniel Esty
David Pogue
Capitol Steps
Aaron D. Miller
Larry Elder
Erskine Bowles

2012-2013

Steve Russell
Zanny Minton-Beddoes
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
P.J. O'Rourke
William H. Deitz, M.D., Ph. D.
Jose Antonio Vargas
Michael Beschloss

2013-2014

Doris K. Goodwin
William F. Baker, Ph.D.
Martin Jacques
Capitol Steps
Jeff Hoffman
Michael Ruhlman
Bob Woodward

2014-2015

Gloria Steinem
Cass Sunstein
Sarah Lewis
Sherry Turkle

2015-2016

Daniel Mendelsohn
Majora Carter
Randall Lane
Abraham Verghese

2016-2017

Suzan-Lori Parks
Tony Kushner
Sarah Vowell
Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Jay Famiglietti

2017-2018

Robert Sapolsky
Deborah Bial
Dr. Shirley Collado
Jill Lepore
Marlon James

2018-2019

Jonathan Haidt
Tarana Burke
Julia Ioffe
Viet Thanh Nguyen

2019-2020

Manoush Zomorodi
David Henry Hwang 
Jaron Lanier 

2020-2021

Martha S. Jones
T. Morgan Dixon
Dacher Keltner

2021-2022

Jelani Cobb
Anna Lembke

2022-2023

Alan Lightman
Anita Hill

2023-2024

Ruha Benjamin
Tiffany Cross
David Baron
Elizabeth Kolbert

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