Gore Vidal - Views from a Window

This book made available by the Internet Archive.

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In Memory of Two Friends, TOM DOYLE and J A Y DE BROUX

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We gratefully wish to thank the following people and publications:

Lord Longford and Michael Dean, for permission to make use of their conversation with Gore Vidal, which originally appeared as "The Private Life of Public MenLord Longford and Gore Vidal in Conversation with Michael Dean" in The Listener (14 March 1974).

Malcolm Muggeridge and Michael Dean, for permission to make use of their conversation with Gore Vidal, which originally appeared as "Talking for the CameraMuggeridge and Gore Vidal" in The Listener (8 August 1974).

Michael Dean, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Gore Vidal on His Latest Novelin Conversation with Michael Dean," which originally appeared in The Listener (26 September 1968).

Eugene Walter, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Conversations with Gore Vidal," which originally appeared in The Transatlantic Review (Summer 1960).

Michael S. Lasky, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Gore Vidal: His Workings," which originally appeared in Writer's Digest (March 1975).

The Book-of-the-Month Club, Inc., for permission to make use of "A Conversation with Myself" (by Gore Vidal), which originally appeared in the Book-of-the-Month Club News (November 1973).

Harper's Magazine, for permission to make use of "Vidal to Vidal: On Misusing the Past" (by Gore Vidal), which originally appeared in Harper's Magazine (October 1965). Copyright 1965 by Harper's Magazine.

Time, Inc., for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "The Rewards of Alienation" by Joseph S. Coyle, in Money Magazine (June 1978), by special permission. Copyright 1978 by Time, Inc.

Gerald Clarke, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Petronius Americanus: The Ways of Gore Vidal," which originally appeared in The Atlantic Monthly (March 1972). Copyright 1972 by The Atlantic Monthly Company, Boston, Mass. Reprinted with permission.

Gerald Clarke, The Paris Review, and Viking Penguin Inc., for their permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Interview with Gore Vidal," from Writers at Work: The Paris Review Interviews, Fifth Series.

Copyright 1974 by The Paris Review Inc. By permission of Viking Penguin Inc.

Antaeus, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Interview with Gore Vidal" by Daniel Halpern, which originally appeared in Antaeus, 1971. Copyright 1971 by Antaeus.

Curtis Bill Pepper and The Conde Nast Publications, Inc., for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "The Truth about Gore VidalRight from Gore Vidal," which originally appeared in Vogue (December 1974). Copyright 1974 by The Conde Nast Publications, Inc.

The Conde Nast Publications, Inc., for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Disturber of the Peace: Gore Vidal" by Eve Auchincloss and Nancy Lynch, which originally appeared in Mademoiselle (September 1961). Copyright 1961 by Street & Smith Publications Inc.

The New York Times Company, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Gore Vidal Loses Weight but Gains a New Novel" by Alvin Shuster, which originally appeared in The New York Times (24 February 1976). Copyright 1976 by The New York Times Company. Reprinted by permission.

The New York Times Company, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Gore Vidal: Scorekeeper" by Diane Johnson, which originally appeared in The New York Times (17 April 1977). Copyright 1977 by The New York Times Company. Reprinted by permission.

Newsweek, Inc., for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Gore Vidal on... Gore Vidal" by Arthur Cooper, which originally appeared in Newsweek (18 November 1974). Copyright 1974 by Newsweek, Inc. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission.

John Mitzel and Fag Rag, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Gore Vidal: The Fag Rag Interview," which originally appeared in Fag Rag (Winter-Spring 1974). Copyright 1974 by Fag Rag.

Richard Grenier and Cosmopolitan, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Gore Vidal: What It's Like to Be Talented, Rich, and Bisexual" by Richard Grenier, which originally appeared in Cosmopolitan (November 1975). Copyright 1975 by The Hearst Corporation.

The New Review, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "The Candidates" by Jacob Epstein, which originally appeared in The New Review (February 1976). Copyright 1976 by The New Review.

The Washington Post, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Portrait of a Man Reading: Gore Vidal" by Israel Shenker, which originally appeared in Book World (4 August 1968). Copyright 1968 by The Washington Post.

Hollis Alpert and American Film, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Dialogue on Film: Gore Vidal," which originally appeared in American Film (April 1977). Copyright 1977 by American Film.

Andy Warhol's Interview, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Vidal by Monique Van Vooren," which originally appeared in Andy Warhol's Interview (April 1976). Copyright 1975 by Motion Olympus Inc.

Christopher Street, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Interview with Gore Vidal" by Dennis Altman, which originally appeared in Christopher Street (January 1978). Copyright 1977 by That New Magazine, Inc.

Playboy Magazine, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Playboy Interview: Gore Vidal," which originally appeared in Playboy Magazine (June 1969). Copyright 1969 by Playboy.

Oui Magazine, for permission to make use of selected passages reprinted from "Conversation with Gore Vidal" by Beverly Kempton, which originally appeared in Oui Magazine (April 1975). Copyright 1975 by Playboy Publications, Inc.

Judy Halfpenny, for permission to make use of unpublished correspondence with Gore Vidal.

Felicia Stanton, for her suggestions and her typing of the final manuscript.

it), that his criticism is made for our own good. He tells us that we must first look truthfully into the mirror of reality, become totally aware of ourselves, and then have the courage to make many and drastic changes. In his career, Vidal has served as a window through which we can look inward upon our past and outward upon our future. The view is clear and real. The message is obvious: we must make changes now if we are to survive at all.

Because Gore Vidal is a famous person (the Information Please Almanac says so!), he has been interviewed hundreds of times. Most of these interviews usually serve as the bases for articles about him, which frequently appear in journals and newspapers throughout a large portion of the world. I first became aware of the interviews while I was preparing a large bibliography Gore Vidal: A Primary and Secondary Bibliography (Boston: G.K. Hall & Co., 1978)on works by and about him. I wrote to Vidal and asked if I might put together a collection of interviews. He wanted to know more about my plans, and, eventually, this present volume is the result of his co-operation with me.