Norman Mailer: Works and Days

Hang-Up at Harper's

An unsigned Time article on the circumstances of Willie Morris's resignation, quoting Mailer's statement calling it 'the most depressing event in American letters in many a year.'

“Hang-Up at Harper’s,” an unsigned article in Time (15 March 1971), summarizes the circumstances surrounding the resignation of Harper’s editor Willie Morris, “precipitated in large degree by a prominently displayed, controversial article [71.10] by Norman Mailer.” Time quotes Mailer’s statement on the resignation, which he calls “the most depressing event in American letters in many a year.”

First published: 1971-03-15
Form: article
Lennon & Lennon: 71.13
Cite as: /works/1971-03-15-hang-up-at-harpers
Last updated: 2026-06-04