Culture
16 May 18

Tributes Pour In For Tom Wolfe

Twitter is flowing with tributes for the legendary American author and journalist who has died at the age of 87.

An early practitioner of "new journalism", some of his better known books are 'The Right Stuff', which was made into a movie, 'The Bonfire of the Vanities', which was also made into a movie with Tom Hanks and Bruce Willis, and 'The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test'.
“He was an incredible writer. And you couldn’t imitate him. When people tried it was a disaster. They should have gotten a job at a butcher’s shop," said Gay Talese.
While Michael Lewis said: “What I hope people know about him is that he was a sweet and generous man. Not just a great writer but a great soul. He didn’t just help me to become a writer. He did it with pleasure.”

Tom Wolfe was an amazing journalist and author. Thank you for showing us all what it took to have “The Right Stuff”. pic.twitter.com/ObMeU4S92S

— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) May 16, 2018

RIP the peerless Tom Wolfe. How I shall miss that swirling script on the handwritten notes, the flair of your white suit entering a room! Wish we could have read you on the Met Ball. You were the best of the best

— Tina Brown (@TinaBrownLM) May 15, 2018

Tom Wolfe has died. His work changed my life and convinced me to write nonfiction. Fare thee well, Tom.

— Susan Orlean (@susanorlean) May 15, 2018

Yale rejected Tom Wolfe's doctoral thesis because it sounded too much like him. "These stupid fucks," he called them. https://t.co/oPcD82FB3D

— Justin Miller (@justinjm1) May 15, 2018

Saddened to hear of Tom Wolfe’s passing. He changed my life, and I am grateful I was able to thank him for the wildly unrealistic dream he gave me as an 18 year old boy. He was the #RightStuff. Your friendship is missed already. #RIPTomWolfe pic.twitter.com/ehUOXq4CZZ

— Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) May 15, 2018

The thing that sometimes got lost with Tom Wolfe, with his white suits and florid style--that gift for the inimitable phrase--was the strength of his reporting. He did the work of endless hanging around and careful noticing. RIP to one of the greats.

— tad friend (@tadfriend) May 15, 2018