Gore Vidal
Gore Vidal
Gore Vidalwas an American writerand a public intellectual known for his patrician manner, epigrammatic wit, and polished style of writing...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionPlaywright
Date of Birth3 October 1925
CityWest Point, NY
CountryUnited States of America
effects himself kept magician matter public until view
Until very recently, the artist was a magician who did his magic in public view but kept himself and his effects a matter of mystery.
prevent shut
To prevent the theft of 'Ben-Hur's sets, guards were prowling the back lot long after production had been shut down.
elderly life man meet odd rather slight
It's odd to meet a rather elderly man who says, 'I've been reading you all my life.' It makes you feel a slight chill.
served veteran war
For the record, I'm a Second World War veteran and served in the Pacific.
prisoners unless war
I don't know how prisoners of war are ever heroes unless they escape.
vices explanation
The American vice is explanation.
abandonment attainment absolutes
The only absolute attainment is absolute abandonment.
invention process equal
Nothing that Shakespeare ever invented was to equal Lincoln's invention of himself and, in the process, us.
savages
Vitriolic really is personal. I am vitriolic. I am savage.
politician believer improvisation
In a society like ours, politics is improvisation. To the artful dodger rather than the true believer goes the prize.
dismiss entirely politics
We are pleased to dismiss politics as entirely corrupt, if not financially, intellectually.
authority control created food human necessary power preserve purify society
To preserve the human race, it is now necessary to reorganize society. To this end, an Authority must be created with the power to control human population, to redistribute food, to purify air, water, soil, to re-pattern the cities.
roosevelt
When I say 'president,' I still mean Roosevelt - wisely, I think.
skip tend
Like most readers, I tend to skip the acknowledgements at the beginnings of books: the 'To-My-Wife-Without-Whose-Invaluable-Assistance' kind of thing.