Reading from Left to Right
Mailer's letter to the editor of Playboy complaining about being labeled a liberal in his January debate with William F. Buckley Jr. in Playboy (63.15). Notable for Mailer's description of himself, perhaps for the first time, as a 'left conservative.' Reprinted in 14.3.
“Reading from Left to Right.” Letter to the editor. Playboy, April 1963, 8. Letter.
Mailer complains about being labeled a liberal in his January 1963 debate with William F. Buckley Jr. in Playboy (the opening-statement essay 63.15 was titled “A Liberal’s View by Norman Mailer”). Mailer’s letter is notable for his description of himself, perhaps for the first time, as a “left conservative.” The phrase recurs across Mailer’s later political position-pieces and frames the public political identity he carries from this point forward — particularly into The Armies of the Night (1968) and the 1969 New York mayoral campaign. Rpt: 14.3.
Related pages
- 1963 | Playboy | The Real Meaning of the Right Wing in America: Opposing Statements on the Role of the Right Wing in America Today: A Conservative's View by William F. Buckley Jr.; A Liberal's View by Norman Mailer