Andrei S. Markovits, born in October 1948 in the West Romanian city of Timisoara as the only child of a Hungarian speaking middle class Jewish couple, is the Karl W. Deutsch Collegiate Professor of Comparative Politics and German Studies and an Arthur F. Thurnau Professor at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Raised in Vienna and New York City, Markovits attended Columbia University from which he received five degrees. His academic career led him to holding positions on the faculties of Wesleyan University; Boston University; and the University of California at Santa Cruz before assuming his current professorships at the University of Michigan in 1999. In addition, Markovits was a long-time member of the Center for European Studies at Harvard University where he was also a Visiting Professor of Social Studies in 2002-2003. Markovits held guest professorships at universities in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Israel. He has been awarded many fellowships and was a member of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences of Stanford University and the Institute for Advanced Study Berlin (Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin). His many books, articles and reviews have appeared in fifteen languages. Markovits's published scholarship ranges from European social democracy and labor unions; to European anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism; from the politics of scandal to that of the Green movement and party in Germany. His latest work has primarily focused on the consumption of sports (i.e. the fans as opposed to the athletes) in North America and Europe; as well as dog rescue in the ever-changing context of human-animal relations. Markovits was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Leuphana University in Lueneburg, Germany. Additonally, the President of the Federal Republic of Germany bestowed on Markovits the Cross of the Order of Merit, First Class, one of the highest honors awarded by Germany to Germans and foreigners alike. A lover of all music, Markovits has been particularly enamored with the work of Mozart, Beethoven, Dvorak and the Grateful Dead, whom he followed on many a tour on the East Coast between 1969 and Jerry Garcia's tragic and untimely death in 1995. A devoted lover of golden retrievers over many years, Markovits and his wife Kiki live with their beloved golden Cody in Ann Arbor, Michigan.