UW alumnus Ted Van Dyk will be speaking in Seattle tonight about his new book, Heroes, Hacks, and Fools: Memoirs from the Political Inside.

Van Dyk is notable for his work with national politics and policy.

"The book is a personal memoir but also a history of policy and politics since the Depression era," Van Dyk said in an e-mail.

The event will be at Town Hall Center at 7:30 p.m.

Van Dyk graduated from the School of Communication in 1955 and has since worked with Vice President Hubert Humphrey, as well as several presidential candidates including Ted Kennedy, Walter Mondale, Gary Hart, George McGovern and Paul Tsongas.

"Van Dyk, a veteran of countless national political and policy fights, casts fresh light on many of the leading personalities and watershed events of American politics since JFK," according to the Seattle Town Hall press release. "He was a Pentagon intelligence analyst during the Berlin Crisis of 1961 and an aide to Jean Monnet and other leaders of the European movement before serving at the Johnson White House as Vice President Humphrey's senior adviser and alter ego."

He has also worked with many national publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Fortune and most recently the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

"Van Dyk's memoirs contain many previously untold stories from a historic period of national politics, portray brilliant and not-so-brilliant leaders and ideas and also illuminate politics' darker side," according to the book description on amazon.com.

Van Dyk will be reading from Heroes and will conduct a question and answer session immediately after.

Tickets are available at the door for $5.

The event is presented by the Town Hall Center for Civic Life with Elliott Bay Book Company and University Press.

[Reach reporter Celia Hunko at news@thedaily.washington.edu.]