Gore Vidal

American playwright, critic, novelist and essayist, one of the great stylists of contemporary American prose. He made his debut as a novelist with "Williwaw" at the age of 19. His books include "Myra Breckenridge," "Washington D.C." and "Blood Kin." He adapted several plays for film, including two for friend Tennessee Williams. An extremely prolific author, he has written 22 novels, at least 200 essays, five plays, a memoir, various screenplays and numerous short stories. As he is perceptive with an inventive wit, he is an iconoclast in each of his professions. The grandson of U.S. Senator from Oklahoma Thomas P. Gore, and cousin of U.S. Vice President Al Gore, he is active in politics. He was an intimate of U.S. President Jack and wife Jackie Kennedy. In 1960 he unsuccessfully ran for Congress, and in 1982 he unsuccessfully ran for the Senate.

Gore Vidal was born at the military academy in West Point, New York, where his father was an instructor. He grew up near Washington, D.C., in his grandfather’s house. As a teenager, Vidal adopted the first name of Gore. Vidal learned about political and social life among notables. He also spent time on the Virginia estate of his stepfather, Hugh D. Auchincloss.

After graduating from Philips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, he served in the Army. When he was discharged, he worked for six months for the publishing firm of E. P. Dutton. From 1947 to 1949 he lived in Antigua, Guatemala. A basically self-taught writer (he has no college degree), his first novel, "Williwaw," was based on his youthful wartime experiences.

In his autobiography, Vidal admitted to being a selfish lover because he likes to receive pleasure rather than give it. So he concluded long ago that sex is an urge, that love is an impossibility, and that you should never have sex with someone you might actually like, which led him to literally thousands of anonymous trysts throughout the years.