When the Going Was Good by Graydon Carter review – all the fun of the Fair

In his memoir the former Vanity Fair editor and man-about-town recalls the golden age of glossy magazines, when sales were in the millions and ‘the budget had no ceiling’I can’t pretend to be impartial. When I look at the artworks in my house I say “thank you, Graydon” from the bottom of my heart. He hired me as a writer when he first became editor of Vanity Fair in 1992 and paid me a salary beyond my wildest dreams, which I mainly spent on art. Alas, the largesse only lasted two years. I was meant to interview Hollywood stars but none of them would agree to be interviewed by me – I was blackballed by the formidable publicist Pat Kingsley. So after only writing about eight articles in two years we reluctantly agreed to part. But still – thank you, Graydon.He is an odd character – ebullient, apparently confident, he confesses in this memoir that he is always anxious. But he believes that an anxious editor is a good editor, and he really loves being an editor. Born in 1949, and growing up in Canada, where life revolved around skiing and hockey, he dreamed of living in New York, editing a big magazine, marrying and having a happy family. He achieved it all eventually, but it took a while. Although he never enrolled as a student, he got a job editing a magazine at the University of Ottawa called the Canadian Review, which attained a circulation of 50,000 but no profits. So then he landed a job as a floating writer at Time magazine in New York. As he says, Time is “now a... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2025-04-06 06:00:42 UTC ]

Other news stories related to: "When the Going Was Good by Graydon Carter review – all the fun of the Fair"


When the Going Was Good by Graydon Carter review – all the fun of the Fair

In his memoir the former Vanity Fair editor and man-about-town recalls the golden age of glossy magazines, when sales were in the millions and ‘the budget had no ceiling’I can’t pretend to be impartial. When I look at the artworks in my house I say “thank you, Graydon” from the bottom of my... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2025-04-06 06:00:42 UTC ]
More news stories like this


7 New Nonfiction Book Releases of April 2025

From a memoir by chef Kristin Kish to an essay collection by Viet Thanh Nguyen, there's something in this list for every nonfiction lover. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2025-04-02 10:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


March’s Best Reviewed Nonfiction

Helen Garner’s How to End a Story, Graydon Carter’s When the Going Was Good, and David Sheff’s Yoko all feature among the best reviewed nonfiction titles of the month. Brought to you by Book Marks, Lit Hub’s home for book reviews. * 1. Raising Hare: A Memoir by Chloe Dalton (Pantheon) 9 Rave • 1... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-30 14:00:37 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Lit Hub Daily: March 26, 2025

“Somewhere beneath the bugle blast, the beer bloat, the crush of bodies, I was part of something.” Kyle Seibel on attending the Gathering of the Kyles (in Kyle, Texas). | Lit Hub Memoir “I am talking, of course, about #Scandoval, a word that I, a lowly lifestyle journalist and nascent author,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-26 10:30:02 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Graydon Carter on The Golden Age of Magazines

What two better editors to discuss the Golden Age of magazine publishing than Terry McDonell and Graydon Carter? As McDonell writes in Alta, the two first met in 1985 when they were trying to start their own magazines and trying to secure funding from Carl Navarre, owner of Atlantic Monthly... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-25 08:59:16 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Lit Hub Daily: March 19, 2025

“Crucially, The Living Mountain needs to be understood as a parochial work in the most expansive sense.” Robert Macfarlane on Nan Shepherd’s uniquely poetic memoir of life in the Cairngorm Mountains. | Lit Hub Criticism “I went home and obeyed those directions for some three months, and came so... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2025-03-19 10:30:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Cate Blanchett Is a Sexy Super Spy

This week, the hosts discuss Black Bag, Deli Boys, and the enduring legacy of Dave Eggers’ memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2025-03-19 07:20:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Book Review: ‘Firstborn,’ by Lauren Christensen

In the memoir “Firstborn,” Lauren Christensen writes about losing the daughter she was expecting. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2025-03-17 16:00:04 UTC ]
More news stories like this


‘A computer’s joke, on us’: writers respond to the short story written by AI

Sam Altman, the OpenAI boss, has declared its new model ‘good at creative writing’. We asked writers including Tracy Chevalier, Kamila Shamsie and David Baddiel if they agreeThis week has seen writers divided over a story written by an AI model that is “good at creative writing” – at least... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2025-03-14 16:00:23 UTC ]
More news stories like this


This Nature Memoir Pushes the Genre in New Directions

SOIL will make you reconsider everything you think you know about nature (including your own connection to it). Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2025-03-14 13:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Amazing: of all the books in all the world Mr Free Speech Zuckerberg wants to ban, it’s the one about him | Marina Hyde

Whether the Meta boss and his ex-lieutenant Sheryl Sandberg are truly beyond awful is neither here nor there. I thought he was done with factcheckingI am as shocked as I am confused that Mark Zuckerberg is going all-out to block a memoir by Facebook’s former director of global public policy,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2025-03-14 12:37:30 UTC ]
More news stories like this


A Meta tell-all memoir is soaring on Amazon’s best-sellers rankings after legal efforts to quash it

‘Careless People,’ which contains unflattering portrayals of Meta executives, is getting a sales boost despite attempts to stop its promotion. A new memoir that paints Facebook’s parent company and its executives in a negative light is rising on Amazon’s Best Sellers rankings faster than you... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2025-03-13 19:40:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Interview: Tori Amos on Her Children’s Book and Her Reading Life

His memoir “Growing Up” depicted her hometown “like a shining city on a hill.” Other authors who mean a lot to the musician (and now childrens’ book writer): Kevyn Aucoin and Hilary Mantel. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2025-03-13 09:00:09 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Lean In, said Sheryl Sandberg – but after this week, can we ever see her or Facebook in the same light again? | Emma Brockes

The new memoir about Sandberg and Mark Zuckerberg is billed as an exposé – but it feels like a morality tale for our timesMany years ago, when Facebook was an entity most people had warm – or at least neutral – feelings towards, I visited the company’s HQ in Menlo Park, California. I admired the... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2025-03-12 17:57:42 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Amy Griffin’s ‘The Tell’ is Winfrey’s new book club choice

Oprah Winfrey has chosen a new memoir by venture capitalist Amy Griffin for her book club Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2025-03-11 12:30:31 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Book Review: ‘Careless People,’ by Sarah Wynn-Williams

“Careless People,” a memoir by a former Facebook executive, portrays feckless company leaders cozying up to authoritarian regimes. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2025-03-10 12:07:24 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Spotify’s biggest sin? Its algorithms have pushed artists to make joyless, toothless music | John Harris

Most musicians can only make money on the platform by writing songs inoffensive enough to get on to one of its vapid playlistsIn the hands of some of its most gifted practitioners, songwriting is a kind of emotional alchemy. For the past week, I have been returning to a perfect example: Every... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2025-03-09 16:38:43 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Rock forgot one of its wildest front men. He’s got a story to tell.

Peter Wolf befriended music legends, married a movie star and led the J. Geils Band. His new memoir reminds us: He was there. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2025-03-07 11:00:38 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Book Review: ‘The Trouble of Color,’ by Martha S. Jones

A new memoir by the historian Martha S. Jones combines a trenchant analysis of race and the historical record with a homage to other Black women scholars. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2025-03-04 10:00:40 UTC ]
More news stories like this


‘My Name Is Barbra’ Wins Audiobook of the Year at 2025 Audie Awards

At the 30th annual Audies, presented by the Audio Publishers Association and held in New York City on March 4, winners across 28 categories were announced. Barbra Streisand’s memoir took home the night's biggest honor, Audiobook of the Year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-03-04 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this