One of America's most acclaimed writers and journalists, Gay Talese has been fascinated by athletes throughout his life. At age fifteen he became a sports reporter for the weekly Ocean City Sentinel-Ledger; four years later, as sports editor of the University of Alabama's Crimson-White, he began to employ techniques, such as establishing a "scene" with minute details, that would later make him famous.
As a sports reporter for the New York Times, Talese was drawn to individuals at poignant and vulnerable moments rather than to the spectacle of sports. Boxing held special appeal, and his Esquire pieces on Joe Louis and Floyd Patterson in decline won praise, as would his 1996 essay "Ali in Havana," chronicling Muhammad Ali's visit with Fidel Castro. His profile of Joe DiMaggio, "The Silent Season of a Hero," perfectly captured the great ballplayer in his remote retirement and displayed Talese's journalistic brilliance. More recently, Talese traveled to China to track down and chronicle the female soccer player who missed a penalty kick that would have won China the 1999 World Cup.
Gathering Talese's writing over more than six decades, from high school and college columns to his signature adult journalism-and including several never-before-published pieces, a new introduction by the author, and notes on the background of his writing-The Silent Season of a Hero is a unique and indispensable collection for sports fans and those who enjoy the heights of journalism.
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