Norman Mailer

Karsh, Yousuf, 1908-2002 · [1974]

I hope you can spend the evening,' was Norman Mailer’s greeting. 'I’m planning to cook dinner for you.' That was our gracious introduction to the enfant terrible of American letters, the man whose self-advertised penchant for violent excess had caused more than one qualm as we planned this visit. My wife and I had driven through the Berkshire Hills to his home in Stockbridge, Massachusetts... Our visit, far from stormy, proved a warm, intimate family occasion. I hope that my portrait has caught both the restlessness and the gentle concern of this creative American, innovative in his art yet so protective when we left that he drove miles ahead of us in his car to make sure we were on the right road (Karsh, 1976).