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Gore Vidal

Born

in West Point, New York, The United States

October 03, 1925

Died

July 31, 2012

Genre

Biography, Fiction, Historical Fiction

Influences

Henry James, Evelyn Waugh, Somerset Maugham, Michel de Montaigne, Mark ...more

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Gore Vidal was an American novelist, essayist, screenwriter, playwright and political commentator known for his sharp wit, provocative opinions and criticism of American society. Raised in Washington, D.C., he attended several preparatory schools before graduating from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1943. His maternal grandfather, Thomas Pryor Gore, a Democratic senator from Oklahoma, profoundly influenced his early interest in politics. During World War II, Vidal served in the United States Army and worked aboard a supply ship in the Aleutian Islands. His experiences inspired his first novel, Williwaw (1946), published shortly after his military service.
Vidal attracted controversy with The City and the Pillar (1948), one of the early American Gore Vidal was an American novelist, essayist, screenwriter, playwright and political commentator known for his sharp wit, provocative opinions and criticism of American society. Raised in Washington, D.C., he attended several preparatory schools before graduating from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1943. His maternal grandfather, Thomas Pryor Gore, a Democratic senator from Oklahoma, profoundly influenced his early interest in politics. During World War II, Vidal served in the United States Army and worked aboard a supply ship in the Aleutian Islands. His experiences inspired his first novel, Williwaw (1946), published shortly after his military service.
Vidal attracted controversy with The City and the Pillar (1948), one of the early American novels to portray male homosexuality openly. Its subject provoked conservative critics and established his reputation as a writer willing to challenge prevailing social conventions. He subsequently explored different genres, writing novels, plays, essays and screenplays. His stage comedy Visit to a Small Planet became a theatrical success, while his work in Hollywood included contributions to the screenplay for Ben-Hur (1959).
His historical novels brought him particular recognition. Julian (1964) examined the Roman emperor's attempt to restore paganism, while Burr (1973) and Lincoln (1984) offered fictional interpretations of American political history. Myra Breckinridge (1968), a provocative satire of Hollywood and gender conventions, further demonstrated his willingness to challenge cultural assumptions. His later historical fiction included 1876, Empire and Hollywood, forming part of his broader exploration of American power and national identity.
Vidal was equally influential as an essayist and public intellectual. His collections addressed American foreign policy, religion, sexuality and the political establishment. United States: Essays 1952-1992 won the National Book Award in 1993. His memoir Palimpsest (1995) offered personal reflections on his family, relationships and literary career. Vidal also became famous for televised confrontations with conservative commentator William F. Buckley Jr. during the 1968 presidential election coverage. Their bitter exchanges made him a prominent figure in American political debate.
His political involvement extended beyond commentary. He ran unsuccessfully for the United States House of Representatives in New York in 1960 and for the United States Senate in California in 1982. He later chaired the People's Party and remained an outspoken critic of American militarism, corporate influence and the expansion of executive power. His views frequently placed him at odds with political leaders and fellow intellectuals, including writer Norman Mailer.
Vidal spent much of his later life in Italy before returning to the United States. He continued writing essays, novels and memoirs into his final years, maintaining his reputation for intellectual independence and irreverence. His work examined the relationship between private ambition and public power, often questioning conventional accounts of American history. He died in 2012, leaving a substantial literary legacy spanning fiction, political criticism and cultural commentary.
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Gore Vidal’s books

Average rating: 3.93 · 101,800 ratings · 8,469 reviews · 240 distinct works • Similar authors

	Burr 4.09 avg rating — 10,968 ratings — published 1973 — 109 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Lincoln 4.25 avg rating — 10,053 ratings — published 1984 — 98 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The City and the Pillar 3.84 avg rating — 10,786 ratings — published 1948 — 107 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Julian 4.23 avg rating — 8,489 ratings — published 1964 — 132 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Creation by Gore Vidal, Anthony Burgess (Foreword) 4.22 avg rating — 5,268 ratings — published 1981 — 69 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Myra Breckinridge 3.57 avg rating — 5,421 ratings — published 1968 — 79 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	1876 3.86 avg rating — 3,438 ratings — published 1976 — 56 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Empire 3.86 avg rating — 2,566 ratings — published 1987 — 71 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Palimpsest 4.01 avg rating — 2,095 ratings — published 1995 — 41 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Washington, D.C. 3.75 avg rating — 2,008 ratings — published 1967 — 94 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Gore Vidal…

Series by Gore Vidal

Narratives of Empire (7 books)
by

Gore Vidal

4.04 avg rating — 31,814 ratings

Quotes by Gore Vidal (?)

“The unfed mind devours itself.”
― Gore Vidal

2579 likes

“How marvelous books are, crossing worlds and centuries, defeating ignorance and, finally, cruel time itself.”
― Gore Vidal, Julian

2061 likes

“Half of the American people have never read a newspaper. Half never voted for President. One hopes it is the same half.”
― Gore Vidal, Screening History

tags: america, american-ts, americans, educated-voters, elections, hope, political-education, politics, vote

661 likes

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Polls

Ater the Summer of Love in 1967 what author published a book in 1968 that would win the 1969 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction?

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test - Tom Wolfe

1 vote, 100.0%

House Made of Dawn - N. Scott Momaday

0 votes, 0.0%

Myra Breckinridge - Gore Vidal

0 votes, 0.0%

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick

0 votes, 0.0%

1 total vote

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Glens Falls (NY) ...: Gore Vidal's American Chronicles series	10	84	Aug 30, 2009 02:00PM
The Seasonal Read...: FALL CHALLENGE 2009 PLANS	167	1539	Oct 14, 2009 08:10AM
The Life of a Boo...: National Book Award 2009	6	146	Nov 23, 2009 02:30PM
The History Book ...: HISTORICAL FICTION POLLS	6	369	Jan 21, 2010 12:04AM
Pick-a-Shelf: 2010-07 - History - What will you read in July?	61	93	Jul 07, 2010 11:44AM

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