Milestones

By Lev Grossman

DIED. GEORGE PLIMPTON, 76, man of letters; in New York City. Although he wrote and edited more than 30 books, Plimpton also found time to lead one of the more interesting lives of the 20th century. As editor of The Paris Review, he championed the works of Philip Roth and Jack Kerouac. As a participatory journalist, he pitched to Willie Mays and tried out for the Detroit Lions, an experience he described in Paper Lion, among the finest sports books ever written. Plimpton also guest-starred on The Simpsons, danced at Truman Capote's Black and White Ball and witnessed the assassination of Robert Kennedy. Though he loved to play the underdog, he never lost his dignity or his twinkly-eyed patrician charm. --By Lev Grossman