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During a career with the New Yorker magazine that spanned more than 50 years, William Shawn (1907-1992) shaped its distinctive content and style, influencing writers across the U.S. and helping to mold public opinion on important issues of the day.
Described by a reporter for Time magazine as "a quiet tyrant of talent and taste," William Shawn made his mark as the longtime editor of the New Yorker, a weekly publication known for witty cartoons, quality fiction, trend-setting nonfiction, and thoughtful social commentary. Nothing on its pages escaped Shawn's careful attention; his painstaking attention to detail and unwavering commitment to truth, logic, and clarity were legendary. So, too, was his gentle, courtly, and self-effacing demeanor, which endeared him to his staff. As an anonymous New Yorker staff member declared upon Shawn's death, "No editor ever ruled a large and complex magazine as absolutely as he ruled this one; yet no editor, perhaps, ever imparted to so many writers and artists as powerful a sense of freedom and possibility."
A Comfortable Childhood
A native of Chicago, Illinois, William Shawn was the youngest of six children born on August 31, 1907 to Benjamin W.
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