American jurist, an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1937 until his death. Called a militant humanist, he often referred to himself as a “Clay County hillbilly.” He is one of the most distinguished jurists to have served in the Court’s history, in the category of John Marshall and Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.. In a career that spanned 34 years, from 1937 to 1971, he issued gallant opinions that made the bill or Rights a visible protector of individual liberty.
Hyperactive and opportunistic, sarcastic, self-righteous and sentimental, Black was a people’s lawyer who made his mark representing workers in personal injury suits against big corporations. Always a son of the south, he was even a member of the Ku Klux Klan in 1922. His entry into the Supreme Court was due to fortuitous circumstances. Due to his advocacy of Roosevelt’s plan to pack the Court, Black was picked after the expected nominee dropped dead. His early work was so dismal that some questioned his fitness for the job. Gradually, his eloquence began to emerge along with triumphant feuds about legal ideas. He always held that freedom to speak and write about public questions is the heart of our government.
Black’s first wife was a suicide after years of depression. When he was 71 he married is 49-year-old secretary. Pre-Viagra, he injected himself daily with testosterone.
Died on 9/24/1971.
Link to Wikipedia biography