Flapper (52 page)

⁴
“When I was your age”:
FSF to Scottie Fitzgerald, July 7, 1938, in Andrew Turnbull, ed.,
Scott Fitzgerald: Letters to His Daughter
(New York: Scribner, 1965).

⁵
“It is the custom”:
F. Scott Fitzgerald, “Echoes of the Jazz Age,” in
The Crack-Up
(New York: New Directions, 1945).

⁶
“No More Flappers”: New York Times
, February 16, 1928, 22.

⁷
Loren Knox:
Knox, “Our Lost Individuality,”
Atlantic Monthly
8 (Dec. 1909), 20.

P
HOTOGRAPHY
C
REDITS

The illustrations and photographs are reprinted by permission of:

Bettmann/CORBIS.

Chicago Daily News
negatives collection; courtesy of the Chicago Historical Society.

CORBIS.

Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, Princeton University Library.

The family of Lois Long.

Gordon Conway Collection, Harry Ransom Humanities Research Collection, The University of Texas at Austin.

Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS.

John Springer Collection/CORBIS.

Library of Congress.

Underwood & Underwood/CORBIS.

A
CKNOWLEDGMENTS

LIKE ALL AUTHORS
, I owe a tremendous debt to the legions of friends, family, and colleagues who provided me with critical support along the way.

At Crown, I had the good fortune to be paired with Rachel Klayman, a veteran editor of uncommon talent and wisdom. Rachel devoted countless hours to this book, reworking the manuscript until it was leaner and stronger, always delivering her sharp—and critical—insights with humor and wit. Ultimately, Rachel’s hard work made this a far better volume, and for that, as well as for her friendship, she has my sincere gratitude. Thanks are also due to assistant editor Lucinda Bartley, who provided much-needed support toward the end of the writing process; Laura Duffy, who designed a brilliant dust jacket; Lauren Dong, who designed the book’s interior; Patty Bozza, who so meticulously oversaw the copyediting and production editing of the book; Leta Evanthes, production manager; Sona Vogel, whose extensive copyedits saved me from many an embarrassing error and poor turn of phrase; Jill Flaxman, director of marketing, and Christine Aronson, senior publicist, for their tremendous work in promoting the book; as well as Kristin Kiser, editorial director, and Steve Ross, publisher, both of whom lent this project early and steadfast support.

I would never have found my way to Crown were it not for Susan Ginsburg, my agent at Writers House, and her assistant, Emily Saladino. Susan read more drafts of this book than either she or I would care to remember, suffered through marathon brainstorm sessions (in
person and by e-mail), and provided both expert skill in guiding this book to publication, and great friendship along the way.

Troy Rondinone, a close friend and fine historian, generously helped me cull through the archives at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills. Kathleen Lawton, Andy Trask, Erik Gillespie, and Andrew Stengel gave the manuscript a skilled read and provided the kind of honest and critical feedback that only friends can really offer up. Thanks go also to Josh Baran for offering sage advice on any number of book-related questions.

Cindi Leive, the editor-in-chief of
Glamour
, generously took time out of her busy schedule to read my manuscript and to share insights about the inner workings of the contemporary fashion cycle. Our conversation greatly informed the introduction and conclusion of my book.

Patricia Arno and her daughter, Andrea Brown, kindly agreed to share family pictures of Lois Long. I also owe a debt of gratitude to the staffs of the Library of Congress, Princeton University Library, Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin, and the Chicago Historical Society, as well as Matthew Bruccoli, a leading Fitzgerald scholar, for their kind help in locating and reproducing some of the pictures that appear in this volume.

Many of the ideas in this book came to me during extended conversations with students at Brown University and Cambridge University. It’s a pleasure and a privilege to work with such bright minds.

I might never have gravitated toward the historical profession were it not for Connie and Peggy Mewborn, dear friends who, over the years, became family to me and to my brother, Nate. Connie and Peggy bought me my first subscription to
American Heritage
when I was ten years old—which they renewed faithfully each year on my birthday—and helped kindle my fascination with the past. At the time, neither they nor I could have anticipated that one day I’d be fortunate enough to write for the magazine.

For five years it has been my privilege to count Richard Snow and Fred Allen, editor and managing editor, respectively, at
American Heritage
, as good friends. They’ve been incredibly supportive of my work
and have shown, by example, that good scholarship and good writing need not be mutually exclusive.

Above all, I am deeply fortunate to have grown up in a house filled with books and ideas, and with two parents—Carl and Elaine Zeitz—who supported their sons’ every whim and dream. My only regret is that my mother didn’t live long enough to see this book in print. She was a modern woman who juggled career and family while balancing strongly held political convictions with a sense of style and grace. She knew that this book was on its way to publication, and I like to think she would have enjoyed reading it. In her memory, I’m pleased to thank a group of extraordinary friends from Bordentown, New Jersey—Randye Bloom, Rhea Goldman, Marsha Dowshen, Phoebe Nissim, Barbara Blair, Jeanette Poole, Heather Vail, Joanne Lutz, and Marlene Thompson—whose kindness to my family has been so great that it defies any adequate expression of gratitude.

Finally, my deepest thanks go to Juli-anne Whitney, who is my best editor, best critic, and best friend, all rolled into one. For her love and support—and for all the laughs along the way—this book is dedicated to her.

A
BOUT THE
A
UTHOR

JOSHUA ZEITZ
is a lecturer on American history and fellow of Pembroke College at the University of Cambridge. He earned his undergraduate degree at Swarthmore College and his PhD at Brown University, where he later served as a faculty member. He was also a lecturer on history and literature at Harvard University and is a contributing editor at
American Heritage Magazine.
His work has appeared in
The New Republic, New York Times, Washington Post, The Forward, Los Angeles Times
, and
Dissent.
He lives with his wife, Juli-anne Whitney, in New York and Cambridge, England.