52 McGs.: The Best Obituaries from Legendary New York Times Reporter Robert McG. Thomas | 
| Authors: Robert Mcg. Thomas, Chris Calhoun
Category: Book
List Price: $20.00
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Avg. Customer Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 735822
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Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 192
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.9
ASIN: B000J3EGRQ
Publication Date: October 23, 2001
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Product Description
Among his devoted fans, his pieces were known simply as McGs. With a "genius for illuminating that sometimes ephemeral apogee in people's lives when they prove capable of generating a brightly burning spark" (Columbia Journalism Review), Robert McG. Thomas Jr. commemorated fascinating, unconventional lives with signature style and wit.The New York Times received countless letters over the years from readers moved to tears or laughter by a McG. Eschewing traditionally famous subjects, Thomas favored unsung heroes, eccentrics, and underachievers, including: Edward Lowe, the inventor of Kitty Litter ("Cat Owner's Best Friend"); Angelo Zuccotti, the bouncer at El Morocco ("Artist of the Velvet Rope"); and Kay Halle, a glamorous Cleveland department store heiress who received sixty-four marriage proposals ("An Intimate of Century's Giants"). In one of his classic obituaries, Thomas described Anton Rosenberg as a "storied sometime artist and occasional musician who embodied the Greenwich Village hipster ideal of 1950's cool to such a laid-back degree and with such determined detachment that he never amounted to much of anything." Thomas captured life's ironies and defining moments with elegance and a gift for making a sentence sing. He had an uncanny sense of the passion and personality that make each life unique, and the ability, as Joseph Epstein wrote, to "look beyond the facts and the rigid formula of the obit to touch on a deeper truth." Compiled by Chris Calhoun, one of Thomas's most dedicated readers, and with a fittingly sharp introduction from acclaimed novelist and critic Thomas Mallon, 52 McGs. will win legions of new fans to the masterful writer who transformed the obituary into an art form.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 Mediocre September 26, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Certainly more wasteful books (in terms of unrecycled paper and deforestation, as well as intellectual inertia) have been published than 52 McGs, edited by Chris Calhoun, which is a collection of fifty-two of the supposedly most interesting, and well-written, of seven hundred or so obituaries published by a New York Times writer named Robert McGill Thomas, Jr. But even the vapid prose of such hacks as Elizabeth Wurtzel, Dave Eggers, Maya Angelou, Joyce Carol Oates, T.C. Boyle, and David Foster Wallace, can at least be defended by stating that there may have actually been an attempt at something creative going on, despite their repeated failures. This book, a 192 page paperback, put out in 2001, a year after Thomas himself died of cancer, by the Citadel Press, however, could not be more pointless, despite its grandiose subtitle: The Best Obituaries From Legendary New York Times Writer Robert McG. Thomas, Jr.
Here is a sample of the `great stylings' from McG., in his obit titled Minnesota Fats, A Real Hustler With A Pool Cue, Is Dead:
Although his frequent claim that he had never lost a game `when the cheese was on the table,' was more fabrication than exaggeration, according to his first wife, Mr. Wanderone [Fats' real name] was in fact a master hustler who tended to be just as good as he needed to be when he needed to be.
Well, sorry, but if this is the sort of prose that makes one a `legend' to the New York Times, these days, I can state with certainty that the truly great journalist/writers of the past- Lardner, Mencken, Mark Twain, Ambrose Bierce, Oscar Wilde- have little to fear in regards to usurpation of their laurels with this work.
Thus, it is not without some irony that I can state that the actually best written and most moving McG. in the book is the only one not written by McG., himself, but about his own death, and written by a Michael T. Kaufman. In it, we get a real sense of a man, not a hit and miss semi-satire, which was the deceased's forte. Clearly, this book was a labor of love, by Calhoun, who is identified merely as a fan of McG.'s (ok, a fan of obits, sheesh!) but it is simply not a joy to read, even for its handful of genuinely funny moments. In a sense, this book could be considered a McG. on the relevance of the modern publishing industry, which is so creatively and ethically bankrupt that it must spoon pabulum like this to readers too lethargic and narcotized to care that they are being insulted.
The industry is survived by millions of disappointed readers still hoping for wit, enlightenment, and publishers who will choose to engage them as beings with a brain
 Good, But Too Short August 8, 2008
I have always loved obituaries. They are a guilty pleasure. To have a final, brief synopsis of a person's life is intimate, touching, and fascinating. Robert McG. Thomas' collection of New York Times obituaries, 52 McGs., is an interesting look at his best work. I found, however, that the book was a bit too brief to justify its $20 price tag.
One of the nicest things about 52 McGs is that the obits here focus on obscure people who enjoyed, at most, 15 minutes of fame. You'll read about a fascinating set of people you've never heard of before. Some of the most-memorable portraits feature a Holocaust survivor who spent his life planting flowers in New York City, a 1950s hipster who was friends with the legendary Beats, and a foul-smelling man who traveled America's back roads with his goats. The book closes with Robert McG. Thomas' own New York Times obituary; this is a poignant, memorable close to the book.
Thomas was also a very fine writer. In 52 McG's you find wit, tragedy, and (in especially large doses) irony. Though subtlety is increasingly rare in our world, you will have to pay attention while reading Thomas' work (or you will fail to appreciate fully some great material).
My only real complaint about this book is that it is too brief. We learn in the introduction that McG wrote over 600 obits for the Times. But 52 McG's is a thin book with those 52 obits and fewer than 200 pages. I felt as though the publisher should have given me much more for $20.
In the end, I do recommend 52 McG's. But I recommend that you look for it at your local library or used bookstore.
 eclectic and witty July 22, 2002
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This was given to me as a present. I had never heard of the book before, and indeed, when I told people about it, I always got strange looks. But the 52 capsules of people's lives--not all of them well-known but they're people you should know about--are fascinating. Some personal favorites are the guy who invented the U.S. zip code and the founder of an AIDS group in a small town.
 You can't go wrong with this one! June 5, 2002
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
When this book was first recommended to me by a friend, I must admit I was a little put off. A book of obituaries? Now there's a fun read! Although I know there are "die-hard" obit enthusiasts out there, I certainly don't count myself among them. All of this is leading to the further admission that I ordered the book with some trepidation. I needn't have worried. This book is an absolute joy. To say that it is well-written would be an understatement of Homeric proportions as Mr. Thomas had a subtle way with words that hints at Twain (I know! I know! They're "just" obituaries, but this gentleman could turn a phrase with the best of them!). Far from being ghoulish or depressing, these 52 McGs are fascinating celebrations of everyday extraordinary lives. Most importantly, each humorous account is filled with such warmth and respect that you don't get the feeling you're snickering at some poor dead guy "behind his back". 52 McGs falls into the category of "little discoveries that you can't wait to share with other people." Heartily recommended as an addition to your library or as a gift to anyone that enjoys highly skilled writing.
A fitting tribute March 31, 2002
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
An enjoyable collection of obituaries written my Robert McG. Thomas Jr. These short (2-3 page) obituaries will make you smile and wonder what would be written about yourself. Some of the people you will recognize, most you will not, but you'll gain an understanding and appreciation for their time on this planet.Recommended
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