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Richard Yates biography, a tragic honesty, by blake bailey

From:     book reviews
Category: Art
Date:     11 May 2009
Time:     09:39 AM

Review:

A compelling tale of squandered living and fine writing is marred by Bailey's sexism, all women who 
have more than one sexual partner are promiscuous and other pseudonyms for not so good, while 
men can have all the ass they want. Perhaps Bailey has swallowed too much Yates and it has rubbed 
off on him.

The best story is that Larry David dated Yates's daughter and the episode where George and Jerry 
meet Elaine's dad, a famous writer, is based on David's meeting with Dick Yates, where he ruined a 
suede jacket in the rain because he worried that the pink lining was effeminate, so he couldnt turn it 
inside out in front of macho RY. 

Pity that revolutionary road finally made into a film after yates dead and buried, and he could have 
lived the fitzgerald high life rather than squalid povery ala the rest of us.


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