Abbott Joseph Liebling (October 18, 1904 – December 28, 1963) was an American journalist who was closely associated with ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'' from 1935 until his death. His ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' obituary called him "a critic of the daily press, a chronicler of the prize ring, an epicure and a biographer of such diverse personages as Gov. Earl Long of Louisiana and Col. John R. Stingo." He was known for dubbing

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

"The Second City" and for the

aphorism An aphorism (from Greek ἀφορισμός: ''aphorismos'', denoting 'delimitation', 'distinction', and 'definition') is a concise, terse, laconic, or memorable expression of a general truth or principle. Aphorisms are often handed down by tra ...

"Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one." Liebling's boxing book ''The Sweet Science'' was named the greatest sports book of all time by ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

''. Liebling was a connoisseur of French cuisine, a subject he wrote about in ''Between Meals: An Appetite For Paris''. Pete Hamill, editor of a

Library of America The Library of America (LOA) is a nonprofit publisher of classic American literature. Founded in 1979 with seed money from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Ford Foundation, the LOA has published more than 300 volumes by authors ...

anthology of Liebling's writings, said "He was a gourmand of words, in addition to food... he retained his taste for 'low' culture too: boxers and corner men, conmen and cigar store owners, political hacks and hack operators. They're all celebrated in ispages."

Early life

Liebling was born into a well-off family on the

Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the boroughs of New York City, borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded approximately by 96th Street (Manhattan), 96th Street to the north, the East River to the e ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

, where his father worked in New York's fur industry. His father was a Jewish immigrant from Austria and his mother, Anna Adelson Slone, came from a Jewish family in San Francisco. After early schooling in New York, Liebling was admitted to

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

in the fall of 1920. His primary activity during his undergraduate career was as a contributor to the ''Jack-O-Lantern'', Dartmouth's nationally known humor magazine. He left Dartmouth without graduating, later claiming he was "thrown out for missing compulsory chapel attendance." He then enrolled in the School of Journalism at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

Career

Early years

After finishing at Columbia, he began his career as a journalist at the ''Evening Bulletin'' of

Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...

. He worked briefly in the sports department of''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', from which he supposedly was fired for listing the name "Ignoto" (Italian for "unknown") as the referee in results of games. In 1926, Liebling's father asked if he would like to suspend his career as a journalist to study in Paris for a year. Liebling later wrote that the unsuitable proposed marriage was a fiction intended less to swindle his father than to cover his own pride at being the recipient of such generosity.. Thus in summer 1926, Liebling sailed to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

where he studied French medieval literature at the Sorbonne in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. By his own admission his devotion to his studies was purely nominal, as he saw the year as a chance to absorb French life and appreciate French food. Although he stayed for little more than a year, this interval inspired a lifelong love for France and the French, later renewed in his war reporting. He returned to Providence in autumn 1927 to write for the ''Journal''. He then moved to New York, where he proceeded to campaign for a job on

Joseph Pulitzer Joseph Pulitzer ( ; born , ; April 10, 1847 – October 29, 1911) was a Hungarian-American politician and a newspaper publisher of the ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' and the ''New York World''. He became a leading national figure in the U.S. Democ ...

's ''

New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 to 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers as a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publisher Jo ...

'', which carried the work of James M. Cain and

Walter Lippmann Walter Lippmann (September 23, 1889 – December 14, 1974) was an American writer, reporter, and political commentator. With a career spanning 60 years, he is famous for being among the first to introduce the concept of the Cold War, coining t ...

and was known at the time as "the writer's paper". In order to attract the attention of the city editor, James W. Barrett, Liebling hired an out-of-work Norwegian seaman to walk for three days outside the Pulitzer Building, on Park Row, wearing sandwich boards that read ''Hire Joe Liebling''. It turned out that Barrett habitually used a different entrance on another street, and never saw the sign. He wrote for the ''World'' (1930–31) and the ''World-Telegram'' (1931–35).

''The New Yorker''

Liebling joined ''The New Yorker'' in 1935. His best pieces from the late thirties are collected in ''Back Where I Came From'' (1938) and ''The Telephone Booth Indian'' (1942). During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Liebling was active as a war correspondent, filing many stories from

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. His war began when he flew to Europe in October 1939 to cover its early battles, lived in Paris until June 10, 1940, and then returned to the United States until July 1941, when he flew to Britain. He sailed to Algeria in November 1942 to cover the fighting on the

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

n front (January to May 1943). His articles from these days are collected in ''The Road Back to Paris'' (1944). He participated in the

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

landings on

D Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

, and he wrote a memorable piece concerning his experiences under fire aboard a U.S. Coast Guard-staffed landing craft off Omaha Beach. He afterwards spent two months in Normandy and

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

, and was with the Allied forces when they entered Paris. He wrote afterwards: "For the first time in my life and probably the last, I have lived for a week in a great city where everybody was happy." Liebling was awarded the Cross of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

by the French government for his war reporting. Following the war he returned to regular magazine fare and for many years after he wrote a ''New Yorker'' monthly feature called "Wayward Press", in which he analyzed the US press. Liebling was also a fan of

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

and food, and frequently wrote about these subjects. In 1947 he published ''The Wayward Pressman'', a collection of his writings from ''The New Yorker'' and other publications.

Hiss case

During the late 1940s, he vigorously criticized the

House Un-American Activities Committee The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative United States Congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives, created in 19 ...

and became friends with

Alger Hiss Alger Hiss (November 11, 1904 – November 15, 1996) was an American government official who was accused of espionage in 1948 for the Soviet Union in the 1930s. The statute of limitations had expired for espionage, but he was convicted of perjur ...

. In 1949, he published ''Of Mink and Red Herring'', a "second book of critical articles on New York newspapers", which included his critique of the "scurrilous journalism" applied to victims of " Elizabeth Bentley and her ilk". On July 23, 1949, ''The New Yorker'' published an article by Liebling entitled "Spotlight on the Jury" in which he opened by stating "The trial of Alger Hiss, which produced some of the best and some of the worst newspaper copy of our time" and concluded "This sort of thing obviously and apparently lessens the chance of a fair trial next time. Perhaps the secrecy of the jury room, like that of the voting booth, should be protected by law."

Last years

In 1961, Liebling published ''The Earl of Louisiana'', originally published as a series of articles in ''The New Yorker'' in which he covered the trials and tribulations of the governor of

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

, Earl K. Long, the younger brother of the Louisiana politician

Huey Long Huey Pierce Long Jr. (August 30, 1893September 10, 1935), nicknamed "The Kingfish", was an American politician who served as the 40th governor of Louisiana from 1928 to 1932 and as a United States senator from 1932 until his assassination i ...

Personal life

He married Ann Beatrice McGinn, a former movie theater ticket taker he had met while she was working in

, on July 28, 1934. McGinn suffered from either manic depression or schizophrenia, which caused her to have hallucinations and go into

fugue state Dissociative fugue ( ), previously referred to as a fugue state or psychogenic fugue,Dissociative Fugue (formerly Psychogenic Fugue) 'DSM-IV 300.13, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition'' is a rare psychiatric con ...

s. Her illness required many lengthy and expensive hospital stays and when she was out of the hospital, she was often heavily sedated. Both Liebling and McGinn committed infidelities during their marriage. In 1946 he and his wife separated. They divorced on August 30, 1949, in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

. Two days later he married Lucille Spectorsky, the ex-wife of Auguste Comte Spectorsky, in

Virginia City, Nevada Virginia City is a census-designated place (CDP) that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada, United States, and the largest community in the county. The city is a part of the Reno, Nevada, Reno–Sparks, Nevada, Sparks Reno, NV Metropolitan ...

. Spectorsky was described by Liebling's friend and ''New Yorker'' editor Gardner Botsford as "a big blonde from rural Kentucky, amiable if dumb." Liebling and Spectorsky divorced in 1959 and he married author

Jean Stafford Jean Stafford (July 1, 1915 – March 26, 1979) was an American short story writer and novelist who shared the same name with country music singer Jean Stafford. She won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for '' The Collected Stories of Jean Staffo ...

the same year. On December 19, 1963, Liebling was hospitalized for

bronchopneumonia Bronchopneumonia is a subtype of pneumonia. It is the acute inflammation of the Bronchus, bronchi, accompanied by inflamed patches in the nearby lobules of the lungs. citing: Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition, Copyright 2014 ...

. He died on December 28 at Mount Sinai Hospital, and was buried in the Green River Cemetery, East Hampton, New York.

Legacy

* Liebling's papers are archived at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

. * In 1995, the Boxing Writers Association of America created the A.J. Liebling Award. The first class of honorees included longtime

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

sportswriters Sam Lacy and Shirley Povich. * In 2008, the

published a volume of Liebling's World War II writings. The book includes the essays ''The Road Back to Paris'', ''Mollie and Other War Pieces'', ''Normandy Revisited'', as well as his uncollected war journalism. In 2009, this was followed by the publication of ''The Sweet Science and Other Writings'', edited by Pete Hamill. * The journalist and sportswriter W. C. Heinz called Liebling "the best essayist." *

The Library of America The Library of America (LOA) is a nonprofit publisher of classic American literature. Founded in 1979 with seed money from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Ford Foundation, the LOA has published more than 300 volumes by authors ...

selected Liebling's 1955 ''New Yorker'' story "The Case of the Scattered Dutchman" for inclusion in its two-century retrospective of American True Crime writing, published in 2008. * Friend and fellow ''

New Yorker New Yorker may refer to: * A resident of New York: ** A resident of New York City and its suburbs *** List of people from New York City ** A resident of the New York (state), State of New York *** Demographics of New York (state) * ''The New Yor ...

'' writer Joseph Mitchell inherited Liebling's book library after his death, and recalls Liebling's once having used bacon as a bookmark. * A later ''New Yorker'' writer, Anthony Lane, wrote favorably of Liebling, whose "delicately gluttonous writings on food keep wandering off (when he can tear himself away) into such equally pressing areas Paris, boxing and sex." *

Anthony Bourdain Anthony Michael Bourdain ( ; June 25, 1956 – June 8, 2018) was an American celebrity chef, author and Travel documentary, travel documentarian. He starred in programs focusing on the exploration of international culture, cuisine, and the huma ...

named '' Between Meals'' as one of his favorite books, adding "He was an enthusiastic lover of food and wine, very knowledgeable but never a snob. It's the benchmark for great food writing." His writing was often memorable, as was his eating, and he nicely combined the two passions in ''Between Meals'' (1962), of which the following extract gives a taste:

Bibliography

Books

* Memoir by the music publisher Edward B. Marks. * ''Back Where I Came From'' (1938)''Back Where I Came From''; 1938 (1990

North Point Press North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

ed: ) Collection of pieces about New York * ''The Telephone Booth Indian'' (1942)''The Telephone Booth Indian''; 1942, Doubleday, Doran and Co.: Garden City, New York (2004

Broadway Books Broadway Books is an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.. It released its first list in Fall 1996. Broadway was founded in 1995 as a unit of Bantam Doubleday Dell, a unit of Bertelsmann. Bertelsmann acquire ...

ed: ) Collection of New Yorker pieces * ''The Road Back to Paris'' (1944)''The Road Back to Paris''; 1944 Doubleday, Doran and Co.:Garden City, New York (1997 Modern Library ed: ) Reporting on World War II, 1939–43 * ''La République du silence'' (1945) / ''Republic of Silence'' (1947), editor, with Eugene Jay Sheffer. Collection of articles from the French underground press. * ''The Wayward Pressman'' (1947)''The Wayward Pressman''; 1947, Doubleday:Garden City, New York (1972 Greenwood Press ed: ) First collection of press criticism * ''Mink and Red Herring'' (1949)''Mink and Red Herring: The Wayward Pressman's Casebook'';1949, Doubleday:Garden City, New York (1972 Greenwood Press ed: ) Second collection of press criticism * ''Chicago: The Second City'' (1952)''Chicago: The Second City''; 1952,

Knopf Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. () is an American publishing house that was founded by Blanche Knopf and Alfred A. Knopf Sr. in 1915. Blanche and Alfred traveled abroad regularly and were known for publishing European, Asian, and Latin American writers ...

: New York (2004 Univ of Nebraska Press ed: ) Portrait of Chicago * ''The Honest Rainmaker'' (1953)''The Honest Rainmaker: The Life and Times of Colonel John R. Stingo''; 1953, Doubleday:Garden City, New York On the New York racing columnist Colonel John R. Stingo * ''The Sweet Science'' (1956)''The Sweet Science''; 1956, Viking Press: New York (1982 Penguin Books ed: ) Collection of boxing pieces * ''Normandy Revisited'' (1958) ''Normandy Revisited''; 1958,

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...

: New York Recollections of events in 1944 and revisiting in the 1950s * ''The Press'' (1961, revised 1964)''The Press'' -

Ballantine Books Ballantine Books is a major American book publisher that is a subsidiary of German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. Ballantine was founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. Ballantine was acquired by Random House in ...

:New York, 1961 (1975 Ballantine ed: ) Third collection of press criticism, including some pieces from ''The Wayward Pressman'' and ''Mink and Red Herring'' * ''The Earl of Louisiana'' (1961)''The Earl of Louisiana'',

Louisiana State University Press The Louisiana State University Press (LSU Press) is a university press at Louisiana State University. Founded in 1935, it publishes works of scholarship as well as general interest books. LSU Press is a member of the Association of University Pres ...

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

, 1961 () On Earl Long and Louisiana politics * ''The Jollity Building'' (1962) Collection reprinting material from ''The Telephone Booth Indian'' and ''The Honest Rainmaker'' * ''Between Meals'' (1962) ''Between Meals: An Appetite for Paris'' - 1962 (1995 ed: ) Memoir of living and eating in France * ''Mollie & Other War Pieces'' (1964)''Mollie and Other War Pieces'' - 1964 (2004 ed: ) Reporting on World War II, 1943–44 ;Later collections * ''Liebling Abroad'' (1981)''Liebling Abroad: The Road Back to Paris / Mollie and Other War Pieces / Normandy Revisited / Between Meals: An Appetite for Paris''; 1981, Wideview Books: New York Collects ''The Road Back to Paris'', ''Mollie'', ''Normandy Revisited'', ''Between Meals'' * ''Liebling At Home'' (1982) Collects ''The Telephone Booth Indian'', ''Chicago'', ''The Honest Rainmaker'', ''The Earl of Louisiana'', ''The Jollity Building'' * ''A Neutral Corner'' (1990) Collection of post-''The Sweet Science'' boxing pieces * ''Liebling at the New Yorker'' (1994) Uncollected ''New Yorker'' pieces * ''A Reporter At Large: Dateline – Pyramid Lake, Nevada'' (1999)''A Reporter At Large Dateline: Pyramid Lake, Nevada'' originally published in The New Yorker, 1955, entitled "The Lake of the Cui-Ui Eaters", University of Nevada Press. 1999. Report on the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Reservation, from 1955 * ''Just Enough Liebling'' (2004)''Just Enough Liebling: Classic Work by the Legendary New Yorker Writer'' 2004 () - A posthumous collection of his writings Selections from Liebling's whole career * ''World War II Writings'' (2009)''World War II Writings: The Road Back to Paris /Mollie and Other War Pieces / Uncollected War Journalism / Normandy Revisited'', Pete Hamill, ed. (New York:

, 2008) Collects ''The Road Back to Paris'', ''Mollie'', uncollected war journalism, ''Normandy Revisited'' * ''The Sweet Science and Other Writings'' (2009) ''The Sweet Science and Other Writings: The Earl of Louisiana / The Jollity Building / Between Meals / The Press'', Pete Hamill, ed. (New York: Library of America, 2009) Collects ''The Sweet Science'', ''The Earl of Louisiana'', ''The Jollity Building'', ''Between Meals'', ''The Press'' * ''Liebling's War'' (2011)''Liebling's War: the World War II Dispatches of A.J. Liebling'';

University of New Mexico Press The University of New Mexico Press (UNMP) is a university press at the University of New Mexico. It was founded in 1929 and published pamphlets for the university in its early years before expanding into quarterlies and books. Its administrativ ...

, 2011 ed: Reporting on World War II, including pieces from ''The Road Back to Paris'', ''Mollie'', ''Normandy Revisited''

Essays and reporting

* On the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

''. * On New York City daily newspapers. * Originally published in the November 15, 1947, issue.Online version is titled "Edith Piaf's thousand (delightful) ways to bum you out". ——————— ;Notes

References

External links

*
"A.J. Liebling's Delectable Political Jambalaya"
by Jonathan Yardley, January 20, 2004, ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

''
"The Church of Liebling: The uncritical worshippers of America's best press critic"
at ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...

''
"Not quite enough A.J. Liebling"
by Allen Barra, ''Salon'', September 23, 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Liebling, A. J. 1904 births 1963 deaths 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American journalists 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers American food writers American male journalists American male non-fiction writers American media critics American war correspondents of World War II Boxing writers Burials at Green River Cemetery Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism alumni Dartmouth College alumni Deaths from bronchopneumonia Deaths from pneumonia in New York City Jewish American journalists Jewish American non-fiction writers The New Yorker people The New Yorker staff writers People from East Hampton (town), New York The Providence Journal people