The Man in the Flying Lawn Chair: And Other Excursions and

The Man in the Flying Lawn Chair: And Other Excursions and Observations

George Plimpton needed no encouragement. If there was a sport to play, a party to throw, a celebrity to amaze, a fireworks display to ignite, Plimpton was front and center hurling the pitch, popping the corks, lighting the fuse. And then, of course, writing about it with incomparable zest and style. His books made him a legend. The Paris Review, the magazine he founded and edited, won him a throne in literary heaven. Somehow, in the midst of his self-generated cyclones, Plimpton managed to toss off dazzling essays, profiles, and New Yorker â€œTalk of the Townâ€ pieces. This delightful volume collects the very best of Plimptonâ€™s inspired brief â€œexcursions.â€
Whether he was escorting Hunter Thompson to the Fear and Loathing movie premiere in New York or tracking down the California man who launched himself into the upper atmosphere with nothing but a lawn chair and a bunch of weather balloons, Plimpton had a rare knack for finding stories where no one else thought to look. Who but Plimpton would turn up in Las Vegas, notebook in hand, for the annual porn movie awards gala?

Among the many gems collected here are accounts of helping Jackie Kennedy plan an unforgettable childrenâ€™s birthday party, the time he improvised his way through amateur night at Harlemâ€™s famed Apollo Theater, and how he managed to get himself kicked out of Exeter just weeks before graduation.

The grand master of what he called â€œparticipatory journalism,â€ George Plimpton followed his bent and his genius down the most unbelievable rabbit holesâ€“but he always came up smiling. This exemplary, utterly captivating volume is a fitting tribute to one of the great literary lives of our time.

Country	USA
Author	George Plimpton
Binding	Hardcover
EAN	9781400063420
ISBN	1400063426
Label	Random House
Manufacturer	Random House
NumberOfItems	1
NumberOfPages	200
PublicationDate	2004-09-07
Publisher	Random House
ReleaseDate	2004-09-07
SKU	1100324977
Studio	Random House

The Man in the Flying Lawn Chair: And Other Excursions and Observations