How to Be Abe Lincoln

Jonathan Shapiro received his undergraduate and first masters degree in history from Harvard University. A Rhodes Scholar, he obtained a second masters degree from Oriel College, Oxford University before earning his JD from the University of California Berkeley School of Law. He joined the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division Organized Crime & Racketeering Section through the Honors Program, and spent the next 10 years as a federal prosecutor in Washington D.C, and then as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Central District of California. Formerly Of Counsel at Kirkland & Ellis, Shapiro has spent the last 23 years working in television. He is an Emmy and Peabody Award winning television writer and showrunner for various series, including The Undoing (HBO), Goliath (Amazon), Mr. Mercedes (HULU), and various networks (for example, The Blacklist (NBC), Big Sky, Boston Legal, and The Practice (ABC). His first play, Sisters in Law, about the relationship between Sandra Day O'Connor and RBG has been produced throughout the country, and will premiere in New York in 2023. His three books include the new How To Be Abe Lincoln: Seven Steps Toward Leading a Legendary Life, and he co-hosts a podcast of the same name. He is married to TV comedy writer Betsy Borns (Friends, Roseanne, and All of Us) and they have three children.