To Inter a Truman

Margaret Truman Daniel, only offspring of former president Harry S. Truman, has died at the age of 83. Truman also became a concert singer, radio and TV host and wrote a series of best selling murder mysteries set in Washington, D.C. Truman’s singing career drew mixed reviews, but enthusiastic fans and became front-page news when Paul Hume, the music critic of The Washington Post, said that “she cannot sing very well,” and “is flat a good deal of the time.” The president responded with some of the most awkward trash-talking ever, writing Hume “I have never met you, but if I do, you’ll need a new nose.” Ironically, the incident proved one of Truman’s more popular actions in office, as 80% of letters supported his coming to his daughter’s defense. After her performing career ended, she wrote biographies of both her parents and 23 novels in her popular “Capital Crime Series,” all set in and around Washington, starting with Murder in the White House.