Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America: A Recent History (49 page)

For Anne and Kate and Lucy

My old friends Bruce Birenboim and Bill Cohan and Bonnie Siegler were invaluable readers and advisers. And my new acquaintances Gabriel Chodorow-Reich and Simon Reynolds were also generous with their deep knowledge.

I’m indebted as well to David Andersen, Kristi Andersen, Kate Andersen, Lucy Andersen, Eve Bromberg, Stephen Chao, Stephen Dubner, Nick Goldberg, Ben Goldberger, Jocelyn Gonzales, Joe Hagan, Jim Kelly, Jay Kriegel, Robin Margolis, John Massengale, Lawrence O’Donnell, Liz Phair, Paul Rudnick, and Jacob Weisberg for their help.

Of the great magazine editors I’ve worked with over the years, among the best have been Graydon Carter at
Spy,
Jared Hohlt at
New York,
Ariel Kaminer at
The New York Times Magazine,
and Cullen Murphy at
Vanity Fair,
all of whom improved essays that became inspirations and underpinnings for this book.

Suzanne Gluck is the perfect literary agent, and Andrea Blatt the perfect agent’s deputy.

It’s thanks to Gina Centrello that I wrote
Fantasyland,
and it’s thanks to
Fantasyland
that I wrote this book. In fact, it’s thanks in large part to her and to Andy Ward, the editor of
Fantasyland
and indispensable über-editor of
Evil Geniuses
—because of their unfailing kindness, intelligence, respect, and enthusiasm—that after twenty-four years, Random House remains my home sweet publishing home.

And now thanks also to the kind, intelligent, respectful, and enthusiastic Mark Warren. His work editing this book was heroic. He was an exceptionally knowledgeable collaborator who provided hundreds of essential ideas and challenges and nudges that helped make almost every page clearer and better.

I’m grateful as well to the whole impeccably professional Random House team, in particular Janet Biehl, Benjamin Dreyer, Ayelet Gruenspecht, Greg Kubie, Matthew Martin, Steve Messina, Tom Perry, Robbin Schiff, Erin Richards, Chayenne Skeete, Susan Turner, and Dan Zitt. And Pete Garceau designed a splendid cover.

The Civitella Ranieri Foundation provided me several productive weeks of coddling in their Umbrian utopia.

And to Anne Kreamer—mind-melded daily collaborator, beloved enabler of it all—thank you once more and more than ever.

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