Session: 1234567891011121314151617         Page 12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940 of 824

remember what World War II did to America. We were isolated, isolationists, and so on and so on. So I was getting very far there.

My mother had returned and we were still living in the Blackstone. Twenty-five [dollars] didn't get you very far. The one thing that helped me out was, practically every night, I was sent to the Waldorf where somebody was making a speech, not to write up the speech, which had already been received, but just to make sure the guy didn't die on the platform, or actually did deliver it because here it was already in print in the paper. The great virtue of this was that every night I got chicken. That was my main meal.

You were living back with your mom, yes?

Yes, I was living back in the Blackstone and working at the Herald Tribune.

Where was the Trib at that point located?

41th Street and 7th Avenue, over Blakes, the drinking spot was downstairs, famous place. Did I drink? Yes.

Were you in proximity of the famous reporters of the day?

The Tribune had some famous reporters. I didn't think of them as being that famous at that time. They were just sort of upper grade men, and I was a lower grade man. The city editor was the awesome character. The strangest character was Ogden Reid, the