The World of Jimmy Breslin

Book excerpt: The Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist’s early columns “peopled by some of the funniest, looniest and saddest characters anywhere outside of a zoo” (The New York Times). In the 1960s, as the once-proud New York Herald Tribune spiraled into bankruptcy, the brightest light in its pages was an ebullient young columnist named Jimmy Breslin. While ordinary columnists wrote about politics, culture, or the economy, Breslin’s chief topics were the city and Breslin himself. He was chummy with cops, arsonists, and thieves, and told their stories with grace, wit, and lightning-quick prose. Whether covering the five boroughs, Vietnam, or the death of John F. Kennedy, Breslin managed to find great characters wherever he went. This collection includes some of Breslin’s most famous early writing. Here are the unforgettable New Yorkers Sam Silverware and Larry Lightfingers, the celebrated interview with President Kennedy’s gravedigger, and the classic “People I’m Not Talking To Next Year.” But the most important voice here is Breslin’s—as vibrant as ever. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Jimmy Breslin including rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the author’s personal collection.