Robert Morgan, the Kappa Alpha Professor of English, will appear in the first episode of the new History Channel docudrama, “The Men Who Built America: Frontiersmen” Wednesday, March 7 at 9 p.m. Morgan was tapped by History Channel producers (who include Leonardo DiCaprio) for his expertise on Daniel Boone; he is the author of “Boone: A Biography” and “Lions of the West: Heroes and Villains of the Westward Expansion.”

The four-part, eight-hour series covers the first 75 volatile years of the United States, from the Revolution through the California Gold Rush. Featuring dramatized portrayals of frontier icons interlaced with interviews with experts – such as Morgan – and survivalists, episode one explores the beginning of the American Revolution, where the outbreak of war spreads beyond the colonies into remote territory, forcing frontiersmen such as Boone to fight for his life and the future of his country.

In addition to his scholarly works, Morgan is the author of 14 books of poetry and nine volumes of fiction, including “Gap Creek,” a New York Times best-seller. His awards include the James G. Hanes Poetry Prize from the Fellowship of Southern Writers, the Academy Award in Literature by the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the History Award Medal from the Daughters of the American Revolution. He was inducted into the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame in 2010.

- Linda B. Glaser