When New Journalism Was New: Gay Tale on His Legendary Esquire Profile of Frank Satra ‹ Lerary Hub

Contents:

• GAY TALE
• STYLE HALL-OF-FAMER GAY TALE TAK US INSI HIS AMAZG TOWNHOE, SHOWS US HIS SU COLLECTN, REVEALS INCREDIBLE TAILORG TRICK
• WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT GAY TALEA PANOPLY OF ECCENTRIC BGRAPHIL DATA RE: THE TEEMED THOR AND ATHETE.BY LLEY M. M. BLUMEMAY 27, 2014SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVEGAY TALE’S DISTCTIVE PERSONA APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN MORE OR LS BTOWED AT BIRTH. THE OCEAN CY, NEW JERSEY-BORN WRER BEGAN TERVIEWG HIS PEERS WHILE STILL A TEEN AND WENT ON TO PROFILE SUBJECTS RANGG OM OPERA SGERS TO PRIZEFIGHTERS OVER THE NEXT SEVEN S. TO MOST, HE LIKELY SEEMS THE NSUMMATE SIR (ONLY TMAN CAPOTE MAY HAVE HAD A FATTER ROLOX), BUT, AS THE SON OF AN ITALIAN IMMIGRANT, HE’S LONG NSIRED HIMSELF AN OUTSIR—AN “ADVANTAGEO CIRCUMSTANCE” THAT HAS PROVED TO BE A KEY TO HIS SUCCS. AUTHOR OF 12 BOOKS AND OFTEN LLED A FOUNR OF THE “NEW JOURNALISM” MOVEMENT, TALE WILL SOON RELEASE TWO NEW WORKS, CLUDG A RE-WRTEN EDN OF HIS 1964 CLASSIC, THE BRIDGE. THOUGH HE POLELY FLECTS QUTNS ABOUT THE SEND PROJECT, HE HAPPILY DISH BELOW ABOUT ALMOST EVERY OTHER FACET OF HIS CHARMED LIFE.HIS FATHER, A TAILOR, PROVID EARLY STCTN ON THE ART OF OBSERVG HUMAN NATURE: “IN THE URSE OF [HIS] FTGS . . . HE WOULD MEASURE A MAN AND TAKE THE MEASURE OF A MAN AT THE SAME TIME.”HE NEVER LEARNED ITALIAN (OR ANY LANGUAGE OTHER THAN ENGLISH) AND NEVER WANTED TO BEE A LERARY EXPAT OR FOREIGN RRPONNT: “AMERI WAS FOREIGN ENOUGH TO ME. THE BIG STORY WHEN I WAS [G OF] AGE WAS AMERI.”AS A BOY HE BBED ELBOWS WH A YOUNG GRACE KELLY, WHOSE FAY ME TO THE JERSEY SHORE DURG THE SUMMERS: “[SHE] EPOMIZED GLAMOUR—EVEN BACK THE DAY.”HE GOT “TERRIBLE GRAS” AS A STUNT; 11 LLEG REJECTED HIM. HE EXCELLED NOT AT SCHOOL CURRICULUM BUT AT “CURSY.”HE ENDED UP, SOMEWHAT NGOLY, AT THE UNIVERSY OF ALABAMA, THANKS TO THE LARGSE OF ONE OF HIS FATHER’S CLIENTS, AN ALUM. “I WROTE A H LLEGE-NEWSPAPER LUMN LLED ‘SPORTS GAY-ZG,’ WHICH WAS SO POPULAR . . . THAT I NEVER LACKED FOR A DATE DURG THOSE YEARS.”HIS NAME—AN ABBREVIATED VERSN OF GAETANO, THE NAME OF HIS PATERNAL GRANDFATHER—NFED THE LLEGE ADMISTRATORS: “I RECEIVED A WELG LETTER OM THE AN OF WOMEN.”HE’S BEEN AN IMPECBLE ATHETE, WEARG TAILORED JACKETS AND HATS SCE HE WAS 10: “MY FATHER . . . WANTED ME TO PROPERLY REPRENT [HIS WORK] PUBLIC.” THE SUS HAD WI LAPELS AND NARROW WAISTS: “TANGO-DANCER-STYLE-CUT GARMENTS THAT YOU STILL SEE 1930S AND 40S FILMS.”HIS FIVE-STORY UPPER EAST SI TOWN HOE NTAS A ROOM DITED LARGELY TO THE STORAGE AND DISPLAY OF DOZENS OF SIZE-7 1/8 CTOM HATS; MANY WERE CREATED BY BNO LARAZZA, OF NORTH MIAMI, AND BEAR AN TERR LABEL PROCLAIMG, MADE ESPECIALLY FOR GAY TALESE—HIS HAT’S “BYLE.”CASUAL FRIDAYS ARE AN UNFATHOMABLE NCEPT TO HIM: “I DON’T OWN A PAIR OF BLUE JEANS. EVEN WHEN I’M WORKG I WEAR A JACKET AND TIE.”HE GOES OUT ALMOST EVERY NIGHT OF THE WEEK, OFTEN TO THE SAME NEIGHBORHOOD RTRANTS THAT HE’S EQUENTED FOR 30 TO 40 YEARS, CLUDG LE VE D’OR, BR, AND “AN IRISH CHOPHOE UP THE STREET.” NOT TO EAT FOOD, MD YOU, BUT RATHER TO “EAT UP THE ATMOSPHERE.”HE FAMOUSLY TAK HIS TIME “CULTIVATG” HIS SUBJECTS: “IT’S NOT A ONE-NIGHT STAND; ’S A LONG-TERM AFFAIR. IT BEGS WH A REQUT FOR A DATE, AND, AS WH ANY DATE, THE BEGNG YOU HAVE TO BE REFUL NOT TO OVERSTEP THE BOUNDARI.”HIS FIRST DATE WH HIS WIFE—NAN TALE, THE RENOWNED PUBLISHER—WAS NOT A THUNRO SUCCS: “I TOOK HER TO LUNCH AT TOOTS SHOR [ MANHATTAN]; SHE WASN’T SO IMPRSED AS I THOUGHT SHE WOULD BE.”HE EVENTUALLY WON HER AFFECTNS: THE UPLE MARRIED ROME 1959. FERI FELLI AND MARCELLO MASTROIANNI—THEN TOWN SHOOTG *LA DOLCE VA—*ATTEND A PARTY THROWN FOR THE NEWLYWEDS BY WRER IRW SHAW.NAN SOMETIMES GIV HER OPN ON HIS WORKS PROGRS, BUT JONATHAN SEGAL, HIS EDOR AT KNOPF, “N BE MORE HONT WH ME.”ALWAYS STASHED THE SI POCKET OF HIS (UALLY BPOKE) JACKET: A MONTBLANC PEN OR TWO AND A SHEAF OF OBLONG OVAL RDS HE SNIPS OM SHIRT RDBOARDS TO E FOR TAKG TERVIEW NOT.HE HAS LONG WRTEN EARLY DRAFTS OF STORI BY HAND PENCIL ON YELLOW LEGAL PADS. WHEN HE HAS PLETED THREE OR FOUR PARAGRAPHS TO HIS SATISFACTN, HE TYP THEM UP ON HIS 1980 IBM ELECTRIC TYPEWRER (AN UPGRA OM HIS 1959 OLIVETTI PORTABLE MANUAL TYPEWRER) AND THEN CREAT A FAL DRAFT ON AN OLD POWER MACTOSH G3.IN HIS WRG “BUNKER”—THE GROUND LEVEL OF HIS TOWN HOE—HE VERS A WALL WH STYROFOAM AND HARPOONS DRAFT PAG TO WH “DRSMAKER PS.” THE REASON: “YOU GET A SENSE OF WHAT YOU HAVE WRTEN A FAL FORM.”HE STILL THE SAME LEATHER-BOUND ADDRS BOOK HE’S HAD SCE THE 1950S AND NEVER REMOV NAM. ON PAGE 1 OF THE A’S: ALAN ALDA AND ROBERT ALTMAN. AMONG HIS MORE UNLIKELY ACQUATANC: LORENA BOBBT, WHO SENDS HIM AN ANNUAL CHRISTMAS RD.HE USED TO BE A TENNIS FIEND, BUT A SHOULR AILMENT HAS TURNED HIM TO A SPECTATOR STEAD: “SPORTS IS THE ONLY THG YOU N WATCH ON TELEVISN AND BELIEVE.”HE’S LONG OUTGROWN HIS SUPERSTNS: “YOU FIGURE, WHAT N THEY DO TO ME NOW? AT 82, YOU N DO ANYTHG OR SAY ANYTHG YOU WANT—YOU’RE BULLETPROOF. YOU N THE WORLD YOUR HEAD.”MOST POPULARVANY FAIR’S “IT’S RAG TEENS” COVER AT 20: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?BY SAVANNAH WALSHSOUND OF FREEDOM: THE WILD TE STORY BEHD 2023’S MOST CONTROVERSIAL FILMBY EVE BATEYTHE CAST OF OPPENHEIMER AND THE REAL PEOPLE THEY PLAYBY HILLARY BISLLEY M. M. BLUME
• GAY TALE: PNEER OF NEW JOURNALISM
• STYLE IN GAY TALE: THE DEAN OF LONG-FORM JOURNALISM ON THE NECSY OF SUS (AND THE TERRORS OF NORMRE)
• GAY TALE TURNS 90: THE FIRE AND THE WORD OF THE MAN WHO REVOLUTNIZED JOURNALISM
• GAY TALE TURNS 90: THE FIRE AND THE WORD OF THE MAN WHO REVOLUTNIZED JOURNALISM
• GAY TALE'S LEGACY WILL SURVIVE THE VOYR'S MOTEL SNDAL
• GAY TALE: A MAN OF RERD
• GAY TALE, THE ART OF NONFICTN NO. 2
• ‘VOYR’ REVIEW: NETFLIX’S DEVIANT GAY TALE DOC CAN’T DECI WHAT WANTS TO LOOK AT
• WHEN NEW JOURNALISM WAS NEW: GAY TALE ON HIS LEGENDARY ESQUIRE PROFILE OF FRANK SATRA

GAY TALE

If there were a hall of fame for stylish journalists, Gay Tale wouldn't jt be — would be named after him.

Gay Tale’s distctive persona appears to have been more or ls btowed at birth. “I wrote a h llege-newspaper lumn lled ‘Sports Gay-zg, ’ which was so popular...

”HIS FIVE-STORY Upper East Si town hoe ntas a room dited largely to the storage and display of dozens of size-7 1/8 ctom hats; many were created by Bno Larazza, of North Miami, and bear an terr label proclaimg, MADE ESPECIALLY FOR GAY TALESE—his hat’s “byle.

STYLE HALL-OF-FAMER GAY TALE TAK US INSI HIS AMAZG TOWNHOE, SHOWS US HIS SU COLLECTN, REVEALS INCREDIBLE TAILORG TRICK

Author Gay Tale looks over a mancript at his home Ocean Cy, 1992. paterly style of Gay Tale’s legendaryEsquiremagaze article, ‘Frank Satra Has A Cold’. Some make their livg by wrg; Gay.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT GAY TALEA PANOPLY OF ECCENTRIC BGRAPHIL DATA RE: THE TEEMED THOR AND ATHETE.BY LLEY M. M. BLUMEMAY 27, 2014SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVEGAY TALE’S DISTCTIVE PERSONA APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN MORE OR LS BTOWED AT BIRTH. THE OCEAN CY, NEW JERSEY-BORN WRER BEGAN TERVIEWG HIS PEERS WHILE STILL A TEEN AND WENT ON TO PROFILE SUBJECTS RANGG OM OPERA SGERS TO PRIZEFIGHTERS OVER THE NEXT SEVEN S. TO MOST, HE LIKELY SEEMS THE NSUMMATE SIR (ONLY TMAN CAPOTE MAY HAVE HAD A FATTER ROLOX), BUT, AS THE SON OF AN ITALIAN IMMIGRANT, HE’S LONG NSIRED HIMSELF AN OUTSIR—AN “ADVANTAGEO CIRCUMSTANCE” THAT HAS PROVED TO BE A KEY TO HIS SUCCS. AUTHOR OF 12 BOOKS AND OFTEN LLED A FOUNR OF THE “NEW JOURNALISM” MOVEMENT, TALE WILL SOON RELEASE TWO NEW WORKS, CLUDG A RE-WRTEN EDN OF HIS 1964 CLASSIC, THE BRIDGE. THOUGH HE POLELY FLECTS QUTNS ABOUT THE SEND PROJECT, HE HAPPILY DISH BELOW ABOUT ALMOST EVERY OTHER FACET OF HIS CHARMED LIFE.HIS FATHER, A TAILOR, PROVID EARLY STCTN ON THE ART OF OBSERVG HUMAN NATURE: “IN THE URSE OF [HIS] FTGS . . . HE WOULD MEASURE A MAN AND TAKE THE MEASURE OF A MAN AT THE SAME TIME.”HE NEVER LEARNED ITALIAN (OR ANY LANGUAGE OTHER THAN ENGLISH) AND NEVER WANTED TO BEE A LERARY EXPAT OR FOREIGN RRPONNT: “AMERI WAS FOREIGN ENOUGH TO ME. THE BIG STORY WHEN I WAS [G OF] AGE WAS AMERI.”AS A BOY HE BBED ELBOWS WH A YOUNG GRACE KELLY, WHOSE FAY ME TO THE JERSEY SHORE DURG THE SUMMERS: “[SHE] EPOMIZED GLAMOUR—EVEN BACK THE DAY.”HE GOT “TERRIBLE GRAS” AS A STUNT; 11 LLEG REJECTED HIM. HE EXCELLED NOT AT SCHOOL CURRICULUM BUT AT “CURSY.”HE ENDED UP, SOMEWHAT NGOLY, AT THE UNIVERSY OF ALABAMA, THANKS TO THE LARGSE OF ONE OF HIS FATHER’S CLIENTS, AN ALUM. “I WROTE A H LLEGE-NEWSPAPER LUMN LLED ‘SPORTS GAY-ZG,’ WHICH WAS SO POPULAR . . . THAT I NEVER LACKED FOR A DATE DURG THOSE YEARS.”HIS NAME—AN ABBREVIATED VERSN OF GAETANO, THE NAME OF HIS PATERNAL GRANDFATHER—NFED THE LLEGE ADMISTRATORS: “I RECEIVED A WELG LETTER OM THE AN OF WOMEN.”HE’S BEEN AN IMPECBLE ATHETE, WEARG TAILORED JACKETS AND HATS SCE HE WAS 10: “MY FATHER . . . WANTED ME TO PROPERLY REPRENT [HIS WORK] PUBLIC.” THE SUS HAD WI LAPELS AND NARROW WAISTS: “TANGO-DANCER-STYLE-CUT GARMENTS THAT YOU STILL SEE 1930S AND 40S FILMS.”HIS FIVE-STORY UPPER EAST SI TOWN HOE NTAS A ROOM DITED LARGELY TO THE STORAGE AND DISPLAY OF DOZENS OF SIZE-7 1/8 CTOM HATS; MANY WERE CREATED BY BNO LARAZZA, OF NORTH MIAMI, AND BEAR AN TERR LABEL PROCLAIMG, MADE ESPECIALLY FOR GAY TALESE—HIS HAT’S “BYLE.”CASUAL FRIDAYS ARE AN UNFATHOMABLE NCEPT TO HIM: “I DON’T OWN A PAIR OF BLUE JEANS. EVEN WHEN I’M WORKG I WEAR A JACKET AND TIE.”HE GOES OUT ALMOST EVERY NIGHT OF THE WEEK, OFTEN TO THE SAME NEIGHBORHOOD RTRANTS THAT HE’S EQUENTED FOR 30 TO 40 YEARS, CLUDG LE VE D’OR, BR, AND “AN IRISH CHOPHOE UP THE STREET.” NOT TO EAT FOOD, MD YOU, BUT RATHER TO “EAT UP THE ATMOSPHERE.”HE FAMOUSLY TAK HIS TIME “CULTIVATG” HIS SUBJECTS: “IT’S NOT A ONE-NIGHT STAND; ’S A LONG-TERM AFFAIR. IT BEGS WH A REQUT FOR A DATE, AND, AS WH ANY DATE, THE BEGNG YOU HAVE TO BE REFUL NOT TO OVERSTEP THE BOUNDARI.”HIS FIRST DATE WH HIS WIFE—NAN TALE, THE RENOWNED PUBLISHER—WAS NOT A THUNRO SUCCS: “I TOOK HER TO LUNCH AT TOOTS SHOR [ MANHATTAN]; SHE WASN’T SO IMPRSED AS I THOUGHT SHE WOULD BE.”HE EVENTUALLY WON HER AFFECTNS: THE UPLE MARRIED ROME 1959. FERI FELLI AND MARCELLO MASTROIANNI—THEN TOWN SHOOTG *LA DOLCE VA—*ATTEND A PARTY THROWN FOR THE NEWLYWEDS BY WRER IRW SHAW.NAN SOMETIMES GIV HER OPN ON HIS WORKS PROGRS, BUT JONATHAN SEGAL, HIS EDOR AT KNOPF, “N BE MORE HONT WH ME.”ALWAYS STASHED THE SI POCKET OF HIS (UALLY BPOKE) JACKET: A MONTBLANC PEN OR TWO AND A SHEAF OF OBLONG OVAL RDS HE SNIPS OM SHIRT RDBOARDS TO E FOR TAKG TERVIEW NOT.HE HAS LONG WRTEN EARLY DRAFTS OF STORI BY HAND PENCIL ON YELLOW LEGAL PADS. WHEN HE HAS PLETED THREE OR FOUR PARAGRAPHS TO HIS SATISFACTN, HE TYP THEM UP ON HIS 1980 IBM ELECTRIC TYPEWRER (AN UPGRA OM HIS 1959 OLIVETTI PORTABLE MANUAL TYPEWRER) AND THEN CREAT A FAL DRAFT ON AN OLD POWER MACTOSH G3.IN HIS WRG “BUNKER”—THE GROUND LEVEL OF HIS TOWN HOE—HE VERS A WALL WH STYROFOAM AND HARPOONS DRAFT PAG TO WH “DRSMAKER PS.” THE REASON: “YOU GET A SENSE OF WHAT YOU HAVE WRTEN A FAL FORM.”HE STILL THE SAME LEATHER-BOUND ADDRS BOOK HE’S HAD SCE THE 1950S AND NEVER REMOV NAM. ON PAGE 1 OF THE A’S: ALAN ALDA AND ROBERT ALTMAN. AMONG HIS MORE UNLIKELY ACQUATANC: LORENA BOBBT, WHO SENDS HIM AN ANNUAL CHRISTMAS RD.HE USED TO BE A TENNIS FIEND, BUT A SHOULR AILMENT HAS TURNED HIM TO A SPECTATOR STEAD: “SPORTS IS THE ONLY THG YOU N WATCH ON TELEVISN AND BELIEVE.”HE’S LONG OUTGROWN HIS SUPERSTNS: “YOU FIGURE, WHAT N THEY DO TO ME NOW? AT 82, YOU N DO ANYTHG OR SAY ANYTHG YOU WANT—YOU’RE BULLETPROOF. YOU N THE WORLD YOUR HEAD.”MOST POPULARVANY FAIR’S “IT’S RAG TEENS” COVER AT 20: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?BY SAVANNAH WALSHSOUND OF FREEDOM: THE WILD TE STORY BEHD 2023’S MOST CONTROVERSIAL FILMBY EVE BATEYTHE CAST OF OPPENHEIMER AND THE REAL PEOPLE THEY PLAYBY HILLARY BISLLEY M. M. BLUME

his wife sce 1959, legendary lerary edor Nan Tale, Gay explaed the negotiatns prr to his. Durg the nt days when Gay was immersed.

”Talkg about the salac 1970s wh an ABC TV terviewer, Gay posed the qutns,.

Aged 85, Gay Tale ntu to wre books — he’s currently workg on one about.

GAY TALE: PNEER OF NEW JOURNALISM

Gay Tale is a rake.

Th begs what is probably the bt-known text of gay tal, “Satra has a ld”, nsired a masterful example of the so-lled New journalism that was vogue those days of 1965 and 1966 which he prepared his story. In fact, Gay Tale himself has said: “” Tale arrived Los Angel November 1965, Satra actually had a ld, which put him a terrible mood, and he feared that the journalist would qutn him about his ntacts wh the mob, a thorny issue that was already much discsed the newspaper. We already know the December 2015, Taschen released a llector’s edn of the famo chronicle, featurg photos by Phil Stern – the photographer who me clost to “The Voice” – cludg origal annotatns and work plan that Gay Tale saved as drafts.

STYLE IN GAY TALE: THE DEAN OF LONG-FORM JOURNALISM ON THE NECSY OF SUS (AND THE TERRORS OF NORMRE)

I am there as one of the ma reprentativ of the bt that there is journalism that I reprent: the bt of journalism”Unlike many lleagu today who have to do for different reasons sce before, cludg the social distance forced by the panmic, Gay Tale do not terview by mail or phone, do not e a cell phone, do not e a tape rerr. Gay Tale had somethg to show me.

GAY TALE TURNS 90: THE FIRE AND THE WORD OF THE MAN WHO REVOLUTNIZED JOURNALISM

In full view of a New York magaze wrer who’d been sent to profile Tale, a massse “took hold of Gay’s penis as lmly as if had been a pool cue” and playfully threatened to pate . When I read thgs like Gay Tale’s 2009 Art of Nonfictn terview wh Katie Roiphe for The Paris Review, I fd yet another reason to say that Gay Tale do right. Gay Tale and the Fe Art of Hangg Out on JSTOR.

I'm a practner of puttg up a very fe Italians, well I'm Italian, they ll la bella figura, the good name is Gay Tale.

In orr to get to Gay Tale’s study you have to leave his Upper East Si town hoe and go down the elegantly curlg stairs, to another entrance, wh another set of keys, and down another flight of steps.

GAY TALE TURNS 90: THE FIRE AND THE WORD OF THE MAN WHO REVOLUTNIZED JOURNALISM

GAY TALESE.

Gay Tale was perhaps the most notable of the group. Gay Tale’s outle for “Frank Satra Has a Cold, ” sketched on one of his tramark shirt boards, 1966. © 2015 and urty of Gay other tim I make not unobserved by the terviewee—such as durg those terptns our talks when the person has temporarily left the room, th allowg me moments which to jot down what I believe to be the relevant parts of our nversatn.

© 2015 and urty of Gay chronicle is kept an ever-expandg seri of rdboard folrs ntag such data as the plac where I and my sourc had breakfast, lunch, and dner (rtrant receipts enclosed to document my expens); the exact time, length, lole, and subject matter of every terview; together wh the agreed-upon ndns of each meetg (i.

GAY TALE'S LEGACY WILL SURVIVE THE VOYR'S MOTEL SNDAL

” © 2015 and urty of Gay tryg whout succs to rchle the Satra terview durg my send week Los Angel (I was told that he still had a ld), I ntued to meet wh people who were varly employed some of Satra’s many bs enterpris—his rerd pany, his film pany, his real tate operatn, his missile parts firm, his airplane hangar—and I also saw people who were more personally associated wh the sger, such as his overshadowed son, his favore haberdasher Beverly Hills, one of his bodyguards (an ex–pro leman), and a ltle gray-haired lady who traveled wh Satra around the untry on ncert tours, rryg a satchel his 60 hairpiec.

GAY TALE: A MAN OF RERD

Copyright © 2021 by Gay Tale. By GAY TALESE.

By Gay Tale.

GAY TALE, THE ART OF NONFICTN NO. 2

‘VOYR’ REVIEW: NETFLIX’S DEVIANT GAY TALE DOC CAN’T DECI WHAT WANTS TO LOOK AT

WHEN NEW JOURNALISM WAS NEW: GAY TALE ON HIS LEGENDARY ESQUIRE PROFILE OF FRANK SATRA