Norman Mailer
Posted by: Malky on 10 November 2007
Macho, sexist, aggressive and an insufferable egotist but he just happened to be the best American writer of the twentieth-century.
I remember as a young twenty year old being totally and utterly blown away by The Naked And The Dead, Barbary Shore and many others. Until I picked up Mailer I would never have believed that literature could be as powerful as a punch in the guts.
I remember as a young twenty year old being totally and utterly blown away by The Naked And The Dead, Barbary Shore and many others. Until I picked up Mailer I would never have believed that literature could be as powerful as a punch in the guts.
Posted on: 10 November 2007 by Bob McC
My favourite Mailer anecdote involves Gore Vidal, who, it would be fair to say, had a less than amicable relationship with Mailer. Having recently written something most uncomplementary about Mailer they both met at a literary function. Mailer walked up to Vidal and threw the contents of a glass of wine in his face. After a suitable pause Vidal merely commented, "Yet again, words fail him."
Posted on: 12 November 2007 by Chris Kelly
This violence was carried over into literary disputes. In 1971, in the green room before The Dick Cavett Show, Mailer butted Gore Vidal in the face, having taken exception to the novelist's review of one of his books. Seven years later, at a party, he threw a glass at him and, by some accounts, including Vidal's ("I saw this tiny fist coming at me"), punched him. Still on the floor, Vidal announced: "Words fail Norman Mailer. Yet again."
aken from the obituary in today's Telegraph.
aken from the obituary in today's Telegraph.
Posted on: 12 November 2007 by Unstoppable
quote:Originally posted by Malky:
he just happened to be the best American writer of the twentieth-century.
You could make a good case for other writers. Hemingway, Faulkner, Fitzgerald, William Burroughs, Flannery O'Connor...ect,..ect...
Posted on: 13 November 2007 by Chris Kelly
Add to that list Philip Roth.
Posted on: 13 November 2007 by Malky
or Joseph Heller, or Ken Kesey, or Cormac Mcarthy or Kurt Vonnegut. My point is Mailer was the first literary heavyweight I picked up on. The power of my first experience of reading him can never be repeated. So, for me, he remains the greatest.
Posted on: 13 November 2007 by Unstoppable
quote:Originally posted by Malky:
or Kurt Vonnegut.
I took a freshman, sci-fi fiction course and we invited Vonnegut to speak to our class. He was passing through. This was in the early 80's. Great big guy with a shock of unkempt hair, a 'wild eyed genius' demeanor sort. Guy came bursting into the room. We tried to ask him suitably 'literary' questions but all he wanted to do was rant about/against Ronald Reagan and the new corporate world order.
Interesting bloke.
US
Posted on: 13 November 2007 by Chris Kelly
quote:he just happened to be the best American writer of the twentieth-century.
Malky
You seemed to be making an assertion not voicing an opinion. I'm not sure his body of work after "The naked and the dead" really proves your thesis.
Posted on: 13 November 2007 by Malky
quote:I'm not sure his body of work after "The naked and the dead" really proves your thesis.
Patchy for sure, but An American Dream, Armies Of The Night, Executioner's Song, The Fight and Why Are We In Vietnam? in addition to TNATD is an outstanding body of work and bears comparison with any other writer and towers above most.
Posted on: 13 November 2007 by Malky
quote:I took a freshman, sci-fi fiction course
How could I have forgotten to include Philip K. Dick in that list?
Posted on: 13 November 2007 by Chris Kelly
Absolutely true. In any case, this thread was prompted by his passing and the world is the poorer without him.