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Gore Vidal

Born the only child to an actress and an aeronautics instructor, Gore Vidal grew up in Washington DC with political ambitions. His dreams of being a politician, however, were not to come to fruition. He ran unsuccessfully in races for Congress in 1960 and in California’s gubernatorial race of 1982.

As a writer, Vidal is prolific with more than 20 novels to his credit, the first, Williwaw, was written in 1946. He is probably best known to us for penning the satirical transsexual comedy, Myra Breckinridge, which was adapted for film in 1970. The film starring Raquel Welch has since become a campy cult classic.

Vidal has become a pop culture icon in his own right. One of the first writers to represent unambiguous homosexuality in his work, Vidal himself refused to be categorized as gay. Linked to both men and women including Diana Lynn and Joanne Woodward, he finally met his life partner Howard Austen in 1950. Austen passed away in 2003.

One of the most renowned novelists, playwrights, and essayists of the 20th and 21st centuries, Vidal continues to provoke with his biting political commentary. He also has appeared in several films and even appeared in animated form in episodes of The Simpsons and Family Guy.