James Salter on Irwin Shaw: In the Fewest Words. . .

James Salter, in his book Burning the Days, writing about author Irwin Shaw:

There was a game that he liked that he had once played all the time. It was who could get you to cry in the fewest words? There was a line in The Three Sisters: “You mean, I’m being left behind?” But Irwin always quoted the article by Gay Talese about Joe DiMaggio: On their honeymoon Marilyn Monroe had gone off on a USO tour and come back and said, Joe, there were a hundred thousand people  there and they were all cheering and clapping; you’ve never seen anything like it. Yes, I have, DeMaggio said.

Yes, I have! It was Irwin’s favorite story. Yes, I have. Three words, and you cried.

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