Salinger

by David Shields

  Jennifer Schuessler is a staff editor at the New York Times Book Review.

  Jonathan Schwartz is a radio host on WYNC and Sirius.

  Jane Scovell is the author of Oona: Living in the Shadows, a biography of Oona O’Neill.

  Walter Scott writes a column for Parade magazine.

  John Seabrook is a staff writer at the New Yorker.

  John Seelye is an American literature professor at the University of Florida,

  Laurence Shames is an American writer of crime fiction and the author of Boss of Bosses, a bestselling book about the Mafia.

  Ian Shapiro is a reporter for the Washington Post.

  William Shawn was the editor of the New Yorker from 1952 until 1987. He edited the later stories of J. D. Salinger that appeared in the magazine. He died in 1998.

  Michael Silverblatt is the host of the nationally syndicated radio show Bookworm.

  William L. Shirer is the author of The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. He died in 1993.

  Judith Shulevitz is a contributor to Slate and the New York Times.

  Franklin Sibert was a lieutenant colonel in the 12th Infantry Regiment of the 4th Infantry Division during World War II. He commanded the Second Battalion.

  John Sim served as a captain in the 12th Parachute Battalion in World War II.

  Dean Simonton is a professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis; his research focuses on genius and psychological history.

  Mona Simpson’s novels include Anywhere But Here and The Lost Father. She teaches at UCLA.

  John Skow was a longtime staff writer for Time magazine.

  Dinitia Smith is a national cultural correspondent for the New York Times. She is the author of three novels, including The Illusionist.

  Albert Sohl was a private in the 12th Infantry Regiment during World War II.

  Stephen Spiro served in the New York Police Department for decades before retiring. He arrested Mark David Chapman following Chapman’s shooting of John Lennon.

  Alessandra Stanley is the chief television critic for the New York Times.

  Richard Stayton is the editor of Written By, the magazine of the Writers Guild of America, West.

  Sharon Steel is a senior editor at Artizia.

  George Steiner is a literary critic.

  Pamela Hunt Steinle is a professor of American Studies at California State University, Fullerton, and the author of In Cold Fear: The Catcher in the Rye Censorship Controversies and Postwar American Character.

  Charles Steinmetz was a classmate of J. D. Salinger at Ursinus College.

  James Stern was a literary critic, translator, and author of such short-story collections as The Man Who Was Loved. He died in 1993.

  Clyde Stodghill served in the 4th Infantry Division in World War II.

  David Streitfeld had been a reporter for the Washington Post and is now a reporter for the New York Times

  Harvey Swados was an essayist and novelist who wrote Out Went the Candle and Nights in the Gardens of Brooklyn. He died in 1972.

  Gay Talese is the author of eleven books, including The Kingdom and the Power and Thy Neighbor’s Wife.

  Michael Tannenbaum has written on J. D. Salinger.

  Cielle Tewksbury teaches workshops in Mythology, Movement, and Symbolism.

  Gwen Tetirick was a neighbor of J. D. Salinger.

  Frances Thierolf was a classmate of J. D. Salinger at Ursinus College; her married name, Frances Glassmoyer, was the inspiration for the name “Franny Glass.”

  John Toland was a historian and author whose books include Battle: The Story of the Bulge and Adolf Hitler: The Definitive Biography. He died in 2004.

  Michael Tosta was a literary critic and professor at Johnson College.

  Robert Towne wrote the screenplays for Chinatown and Shampoo, directed Without Limits, and has served as a script doctor for numerous films including, most famously, The Godfather.

  Joseph B. Treaster is a veteran reporter and former foreign correspondent for the New York Times.

  John C. Unrue is a professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and the author of J. D. Salinger’s “The Catcher in the Rye.”

  John Updike, who died in 2009, was the author of more than fifty books, including the Pulitzer Prize–winning Rabbit Is Rich and Rabbit at Rest.

  Gloria Vanderbilt, a childhood friend of Oona O’Neill, is an American heiress and socialite.

  Gore Vidal, a novelist, essayist, playwright, and journalist, is the author of such books as Burr, Myra Breckinridge, Lincoln, and Palimpsest. His essay collection, United States, received the National Book Award. He died in 2012.

  John Wain, who died in 1994, was an English writer and critic.

  Jerry Wald was a screenwriter and movie producer.

  Michael Walzer is a professor emeritus of political science at Princeton. His books include What It Means to Be an American and The Company of Critics.

  Bob Wandesforde served in the 4th Infantry Division during World War II and later became a commercial illustrator. He died in 1990.

  Donald A. Warner was a first lieutenant in the 22nd Infantry Regiment of the 4th Infantry Division during World War II.

  Juliet Waters is a journalist at the Montreal Mirror.

  Myles Weber is a professor at Ashland University in Ohio. He is the author of Consuming Silences: How We Read Nonpublication and Middlebrow Annoyances: American Drama in the 21st Century.

  Marc Weingarten is the author of The Gang That Wouldn’t Write Straight and From Hipsters to Gonzo.

  John Wenke, a professor at Salisbury State University in Maryland, is the author of J. D. Salinger: A Study of the Short Fiction.

  Lawrence Weschler is the author of many books, including Everything That Rises: A Book of Convergences.

  Leslie Aldridge Westoff was a reporter for the New York Times.

  E. B. White was an American writer and journalist at the New Yorker best known for his children’s books Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little. He died in 1985.

  Steven Whitfield is a professor of American studies at Brandeis University. His books include In Search of American Jewish Culture and The Culture of the Cold War.

  William Wiegand was a book critic and professor of English at San Francisco State College.

  Jon Wiener, a professor of history at University of California, Irvine, is the author of Come Together: John Lennon in His Time and Gimme Some Truth: The John Lennon FBI Files.

  Billy Wilder was the director of numerous movies, including Sunset Boulevard and The Apartment.

  George Wilson was a lieutenant in Company F of the 4th Infantry Division who landed on D-Day. His books include If You Survive.

  John M. Wilson is a journalist at the Los Angeles Times.

  Tom Wolfe, a key figure in the development of New Journalism, is the author of The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, The Right Stuff, and several novels, including The Bonfire of the Vanities.

  John Worthman served as a medic in the 22nd Regiment of the 4th Infantry Division during World War II.

  David Yaffe is a professor at City University of New York and the author of Fascinating Rhythm: Reading Jazz in American Writing.

  Ben Yagoda, the author of About Town: The New Yorker and the World It Made, is the director of the University of Delaware’s journalism department.

  Jonathan Yardley is a Pulitzer Prize–winning book critic for the Washington Post.

  Bertrand Yeaton was an artist and friend of J. D. Salinger.

  Pat York is a photographer.

  James Yuenger was a reporter for the Chicago Tribune.

  Katie Zezima, formerly a reporter for the New York Times, is now a supervisory correspondent for the Associated Press.

  NOTES

  This book consists primarily of interviews with more than 200 people, dozens of whom are authors who not only spoke to us at length about their subjects of expertise but also read aloud on camera passages from their work. As a result, certain passages in this book are, with the authors�
� permission, combinations of oral testimony and written source.

  In order to provide the reader with as complete account as possible, we also quoted from published sources in cases where the individual either was deceased or did not consent to an interview. In a number of these cases, we obtained special permission from the copyright holder.

  1: WE’RE GOING TO START THE WAR FROM RIGHT HERE

  “I landed on Utah Beach”: J. D. Salinger, “Backstage with Esquire,” Esquire, October 1945.

  “I landed on D-Day”: Margaret Salinger, Dream Catcher: A Memoir, p. 53.

  “On the evening prior”: Able Seaman Ken Oakley, quoted in Max Arthur, Forgotten Voices of World War II, p. 304.

  “Jerry was just a nice”: Werner Kleeman, quoted in Richard Firstman, “Werner Kleeman’s Private War,” The New York Times, November 11, 2007.

  “I guess about 3 a.m.”: John Keenan, quoted in “Voices from the Battlefront: [Nassau and Suffolk Edition 1],” Newsday, May 29, 1994.

  “Shells were flying over our”: Werner Kleeman, quoted in D-Day Plus 40 Years, anchored by Tom Brokaw, 1984.

  “The battleships were firing at”: John Keenan, quoted in “Voices from the Battlefront: [Nassau and Suffolk Edition 1]” Newsday, May 29, 1994.

  “The waves were pitching the”: Stephen E. Ambrose, D-Day, p. 285.

  “The boats were going round”: Private Ralph Della-Volpe, quoted in Stephen E. Ambrose, D-Day, p. 285.

  “So did many others”: Stephen E. Ambrose, D-Day, p. 285.

  “The beach at Utah Beach”: Staff Sergeant David Roderick, Utah Beach Normandy June 6, 1944.

  “ ‘Get ready!’ the coxswain shouted”: Private Albert Sohl, quoted in “From Utah Beach to the Hedgerows,” Military History, June 2004.

  “The men felt their”: Colonel Gerden F. Johnson, History of the Twelfth Infantry Regiment in World War II, p. 58.

  “For the first time I”: General Matthew Ridgway, quoted in Clay Blair, Ridgway’s Paratroopers, p. 62.

  “Never before in my life”: Captain George Mayberry, quoted in Russell Miller, Nothing Less Than Victory: The Oral History of D-Day, p. 365.

  “Once we were on the”: Werner Kleeman and Elizabeth Uhlig, From Dachau to D-Day, Marble House Editions, 2006, p. 90.

  “The 4th Division’s entire”: Joseph Balkoski, Utah Beach: The Amphibious Landing and Airborne Operations on D-Day, June 6, 1944, p. 184.

  “We come in twenty minutes”: J. D. Salinger, “The Magic Foxhole,” unpublished story, Story magazine archive, Firestone Library, Princeton University.

  “Our team rushed out of”: Private Ray A. Mann, quoted in Peter Liddle, D-Day, by Those Who Were There, 2004.

  “I had seen many terrible”: John Clark, quoted in Robert O. Babcock, War Stories: Utah Beach to Pleiku, p. 123.

  “Following the breakout”: Colonel Gerden F. Johnson, History of the Twelfth Infantry Regiment in World War II, p. 151.

  “Colonel Russell ‘Red’ Reeder”: Stephen E. Ambrose, D-Day, p. 286.

  “The Germans had flooded”: Colonel Russell “Red” Reeder, quoted in Joseph Balkoski, Utah Beach, p. 236.

  “In choosing their [defensive] positions”: Colonel Gerden F. Johnson, History of the Twelfth Infantry Regiment in World War II, p. 120.

  “Bodies were lying in a”: Clyde Stodghill, quoted in Robert O. Babcock, War Stories: Utah Beach to Pleiku, p. 205.

  “We ran into elements”: Colonel Gerden F. Johnson, History of the Twelfth Infantry Regiment in World War II, p. 62.

  “Happy Birthday to me, 22”: David Roderick, Utah Beach Normandy June 6, 1944.

  “During the days that followed”: Bill Garvin, quoted in Robert O. Babcock, War Stories: Utah Beach to Pleiku, p. 123.

  “It was at the hedgerows”: Private Albert Sohl, quoted in “From Utah Beach to the Hedgerows” Military History, June 2004.

  “While we were in our position”: Corporal Alton Pearson, quoted in John C. McManus, The Deadly Brotherhood: The American Combat Soliders in World War II, p. 134.

  “During the bombing, some German”: Paul Fussell, The Boys’ Crusade: The American Infantry in Northwestern Europe, 1944–1945, p. 51.

  “We were surrounded”: Lieutenant Elliot Johnson, quoted in Studs Terkel, The Good War, p. 259.

  “While we were being mortared”: Captain John Sim, quoted in Max Arthur, Forgotten Voices of World War II, p. 327.

  “The Air Corps finally smartened”: J. D. Salinger, “The Magic Foxhole” unpublished story, Story magazine archive, Firestone Library, Princeton University.

  “After much discussion Lt. Everett”: Lieutenant Joe Moses, letter to Colonel Russell “Red” Reeder, November 1945.

  “[They] made the enemy pay”: Captain Frank P. Burk, 4th Infantry Division combat interview.

  “As we went into”: Colonel Gerden F. Johnson, History of the Twelfth Infantry Regiment in World War II, p. 82.

  “Our job was support for”: John Keenan, quoted in “Voices from the Battlefront: [Nassau and Suffolk Edition 1],” Newsday, May 29, 1994.

  “The point of the whole operation”: Paul Fussell, The Boys’ Crusade: The American Infantry in Northwestern Europe, 1944-1945, pp. 40–41.

  “Following the bombing and”: Clyde Stodghill, quoted in Robert O. Babcock, War Stories: Utah Beach to Pleiku, p. 206.

  2: SLIGHT REBELLION OFF PARK AVENUE

  “His father, Sol Salinger”: Ian Hamilton, In Search of J. D. Salinger, p. 13.

  “So far as the present”: William Maxwell, Book-of-the-Month Club News, midsummer 1953.

  “Did mother ever tell you”: Doris Salinger, quoted in Margaret Salinger, Dream Catcher: A Memoir, pp. 17–18.

  “Salinger was vice-president”: Shane Salerno, discussing “FTC Bans Price Fixing by Cheese Companies,” The New York Times, October 5, 1940; “15 Named in Fixing of Cheese Prices,” The New York Times, July 2, 1941; The New York Times, September 7, 1944.

  “He wanted to do unconventional”: childhood friend, quoted in Salinger: A Critical and Personal Portrait, ed. Henry Grunwald, p. 11.

  “[Salinger] was anything but a”: Ernest Havemann, “The Search for the Mysterious J. D. Salinger: The Recluse in Rye,” Life, November 3, 1961.

  “Unlike Zooey and the rest”: John Skow, “Sonny: An Introduction,” Time, September 15, 1961.

  “He was interested in dramatics”: Ernest Havemann, “The Search for the Mysterious J. D. Salinger: The Recluse in Rye,” Life, November 3, 1961.

  “In 1932, Sol Salinger set”: Paul Alexander, Salinger: A Biography, p. 36.

  “His record as a freshman”: Ernest Havemann, “The Search for the Mysterious J. D. Salinger: The Recluse in Rye,” Life, November 3, 1961.

  “At the age of fifteen”: William Maxwell, Book-of-the-Month Club News, midsummer 1953.

  “Miss Doris Jane Salinger, daughter”: The New York Times, May 19, 1935.

  “Jerry’s conversation was frequently laced”: Richard Gonder, quoted in Paul Alexander, Salinger: A Biography, p. 43.

  “One of his classmates at”: James Lundquist, J. D. Salinger, p. 8.

  “As literary editor of Crossed”: James Lundquist, J. D. Salinger, p. 8.

  “The last parade, our hearts”: J. D. Salinger, 1936 Valley Forge Class Yearbook.

  “Salinger spent two years at”: Subhash Chandra, The Fiction of J. D. Salinger, p. 35.

  “At Valley Forge”: Shane Salerno, discussing Brett E. Weaver, Annotated Bibliography (1982–2002) of J. D. Salinger, p. 54; and David W. Berry, “Salinger Slept Here,” Philadelphia magazine, October 1991.

  “Spent a year in Europe”: J. D. Salinger, Story, November-December 1944, p. 1.

  “He lived in Vienna, with”: William Maxwell, Book-of-the-Month Club News, July 1951.

  “Leah was the daughter in”: J. D. Salinger, “A Girl I Knew,” Good Housekeeping, February 1948.

  “When this handsome, suave, and”: Frances Thierolf, quoted in “Biography of J. D. Salinger,” Bloom’s BioCritiques
: J. D. Salinger, ed. Harold Bloom, p. 13.

  “He felt he had come”: Anabel Heyen, quoted in Paul Alexander, Salinger: A Biography, p. 50.

  “Salinger found an outlet”” Ian Hamilton, In Search of J. D. Salinger, pp. 46–47.

  “On returning to America, he”: J. D. Salinger, contributor’s note, “Heart of a Broken Story,” Esquire, September 1941.

  “Letter: Dear Mother—You and”: J. D. Salinger, “The Skipped Diploma,” Ursinus Weekly, October 10, 1938.

  “Act One: Franklin:—I hate”: J. D. Salinger, “The Skipped Diploma,” Ursinus Weekly, October 17, 1938.

  “Mr. X: College feller?”: “The Skipped Diploma,” Ursinus Weekly, December 12, 1938.

  “Early one evening, not too”: Paul Alexander, Salinger: A Biography, p. 50.

  “He wasn’t what I’d call”: Richard Deitzler, quoted in Paul Alexander, Salinger: A Biography, p. 50.

  “I was in the same”: Charles Steinmetz, quoted in Paul Alexander, Salinger: A Biography, p. 52.

  “He didn’t say goodbye to”: Richard Deitzler, quoted in Paul Alexander, Salinger: A Biography, p. 53.

  “There was one dark-eyed”: Whit Burnett, quoted in Ernest Havemann, “The Search for the Mysterious J. D. Salinger: The Recluse in the Rye,” Life, November 3, 1961.

  “Mr. Burnett simply and very”: J. D. Salinger, “A Salute to Whit Burnett,” Fiction Writer’s Handbook, pp. 187-188.

  “He was a silent fellow”: Whit Burnett, quoted in Ernest Havemann, “The Search for the Mysterious J. D. Salinger: The Recluse in Rye,” Life, November 3, 1961”.

  “In class, one evening, Mr.”: J. D. Salinger, “A Salute to Whit Burnett,” Hallie and Whit Burnett, Fiction Writer’s Handbook, pp. 187–88.

  “He suddenly came to life”: Hallie and Whit Burnett, Fiction Writer’s Handbook, p. 105.

  “What do you do most”: J. D. Salinger, “The Young Folks,” Story, March-April 1940.

  “Edna shifted her position”: J. D. Salinger, “The Young Folks,” Story, March-April 1940.

  “In a letter to a friend”: Ian Hamilton, In Search of J. D. Salinger, p. 66.

  “ ‘Hey, Carl,’ Holden said”: J. D. Salinger, “Slight Rebellion Off Madison,” The New Yorker, December 21, 1946.