Lewis H. Lapham
Full Name and Common Aliases
#### Lewis Gannett
Lewis H. Lapham is also commonly referred to as Lewis Gannett.
Birth and Death Dates
#### April 5, 1912 – July 14, 2006
Lewis H. Lapham was born on April 5, 1912, in Brooklyn, New York City, USA, and passed away on July 14, 2006, at the age of 94.
Nationality and Profession(s)
#### American Journalist, Editor, Writer
Lapham held both American nationality and worked as a journalist, editor, and writer throughout his career.
Early Life and Background
#### Growing Up in New York City
Born into a family with strong literary traditions, Lapham grew up in Brooklyn, where he developed an early interest in writing. His father was a lawyer, and his mother was a descendant of the prominent Gannett newspaper publishing family.
Lapham attended Columbia University but did not graduate. Instead, he began working as a journalist for various newspapers in New York City during the 1930s.
Major Accomplishments
#### Editor-in-Chief of Harper's Magazine
In 1976, Lapham was appointed editor-in-chief of Harper's Magazine, where he served until 1994. During his tenure, he successfully transformed the magazine into a leading voice in American politics and culture.
Under his leadership, Harper's became known for its in-depth coverage of social issues, politics, and cultural phenomena. Lapham was praised for his editorial vision and ability to attract top writers and thinkers.
Notable Works or Actions
#### Writing Style and Literary Contributions
Lapham was a talented writer with a distinctive style that blended elements of literary journalism, essay writing, and satire. His writing often tackled complex social issues, including politics, economics, and culture.
Throughout his career, Lapham published numerous essays and articles in various publications, including Harper's Magazine, The New Yorker, and Esquire.
Impact and Legacy
#### Shaping American Journalism
Lapham played a significant role in shaping American journalism during the 20th century. His commitment to literary journalism and his willingness to take risks with editorial content paved the way for future generations of journalists and writers.
His legacy extends beyond his work as editor-in-chief; Lapham's writing continues to be widely read and studied today, offering insights into the cultural and social climate of his time.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
#### Influential Editor and Writer
Lapham is widely quoted and remembered for his influential role in American journalism. As a pioneering editor and writer, he left an indelible mark on the world of literary journalism, inspiring countless others to follow in his footsteps.
His commitment to exploring complex social issues and challenging conventional wisdom continues to resonate with readers today, making him one of the most respected voices in 20th-century American journalism.
Quotes by Lewis H. Lapham
The playing field is more sacred than the stock exchange, more blessed than Capital Hill or the vaults of Fort Knox. The diamond and the gridiron – and, to a lesser degree, the court, the rink, the track, and the ring – embody the American dream of Eden.
Unlike any other business in the United States, sports must preserve an illusion of perfect innocence.
Seeing is believing, and if an American success is to count for anything in the world it must be clothed in the raiment of property. As often as not it isn’t the money itself that means anything; it is the use of money as the currency of the soul.
Label celebrity a consumer society’s most precious consumer product, and eventually it becomes the hero with a thousand faces, the packaging of the society’s art and politics, the framework of its commerce, and the stuff of its religion.
It isn’t money itself that causes the trouble, but the use of money as votive offering and pagan ornament.
As a child growing up in the precincts of wealth, and later as a college student, newspaper reporter and resident of New York’s Upper East Side, I got used to listening to the talk of financial killings and sexual misalliance that animates the conversation of the rich and the familiars of the rich.
The gentlemen who wrote the Constitution were as suspicious of efficient government as they were wary of democracy, a “turbulence and a folly” that was associated with the unruly ignorance of an urban mob.
But the line of thought that I’d been chasing for several days was implicit in the ruins of the old Roman Empire, which gradually destroyed itself by substituting the faith in a legion of miraculous words for the strength of armies and the weight of walls.
History is not what happened 200 or 2,000 years ago; it’s a story about what happened 200 or 2,000 years ago.
Let the corporations do as they please – pillage the environment, falsify their advertising, rig the securities markets – and it is none of the federal government’s business to interfere with the will of heaven.