Lionel Trilling
Remembering Diana Trilling, Overlooked ‘Lioness’ Of American Literature
Trilling memorably described the title character of Roth’s “Portnoy’s Complaint” as thinking “his parents took the id out of Yid.”
The Man Who Brought Big Ideas to the Small Screen
The reputations of talk show hosts do not have a particularly long shelf life. How many people under the age of 40 recall Jack Paar? Who under 25 knows Johnny Carson? But Stephen Battaglio’s new biography, “David Susskind: A Televised Life,” makes the case for remembering an impresario who brought a brash exuberance to the rough-and-tumble of ideas and social issues.
Jews and Baseball, by the Numbers
The Fox camera kept returning to Jon Daniels, the Texas Rangers’ Jewish General Manager, during Game Two of the World Series last Thursday. Texas’s bullpen was collapsing in spectacular fashion for the second time this postseason, and Daniels was struggling to stay expressionless. Struggling, but you could see him suffering the frustration that comes from having your worldview confirmed.