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What a Creep


Jan 22, 2022

What a Creep: Norman Mailer

Season 14, Episode 3

Writer, Activist, & Wife-Stabber



Norman Mailer has been in the news lately due to the fact his son John Buffalo Mailer who is partnering with Mailer biographer J. Michael Lennon on a new trove of Mailer writings with the later writers’ ideas on what American democracy will look like in the future. The man died in 2007 at the age of 84 and lived as big a life as any (we will get into it all today.)  Yet, Mailer’s longtime publisher Random House said they will not be associated with this work, instead, Skyhorse publishing (which worked with Woody Allen last year) decided to take on this new work. 

Why is Mailer potentially considered “canceled” so long after his death and living a life out loud with his machismo & boorishness?  Today we will talk about Norman Mailer and why he is one of the most controversial (and creepy) writers & creators of the 20th century. 

Trigger warning: Domestic Violence & homophobia

Sources:

Norman Mailer Wikipedia

Norman Mailer: The American

Gore Vidal, Norman Mailer, and Janet Flanner on Dick Cavett Show (1971)

Town Bloody Hall (1979)

New York Times

Britannica

New York Times Obituary

New York Magazine

The Airship

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