The veteran journalist discusses his life and career at The New York Times, sharing recollections of memorable events and personalities, and offering a behind-the-scenes look at the news industry. 30,000 first printing. Arthur Gelb knows the newspaper business. He began working at The New York Times in 1944 as a night copyboy; he retired 45 years later as the managing editor. In this absorbing memoir, he writes lovingly of the days when the sound of manual typewriters filled the air, spittoons were standard furniture, and two bookies worked the city room. Though much has changed, core elements of the paper's culture remain, particularly the intense competition which initially fueled his own curiosity and ambition. For instance, after being on the job for just a month, Gelb and two other copyboys started an in-house newsmagazine that allowed them to learn about the business and to interview everyone at the paper, from the publisher on down. He even used it to publicly request a promotion for himself. (It worked.) Gelb obviously loved working at the paper and his enthusiasm is apparent throughout, whether recalling the thrill of his first byline, describing how significant stories were covered, or discussing how they dealt with mistakes and errors in judgement. Loaded with anecdotes and fascinating gossip, his book is as much a history of second half of the twentieth century as it is a history of the Times . He writes about the colorful characters on the staff, of the many editorial battles, and of the significant cultural changes that took place at the paper as well as the in the country. "Can you imagine what it was like for an editor to arrive at work each morning, to look up from his desk at a sea of the most talented reporters in the newspaper world?" he writes. After reading this book, you can. --Shawn Carkonen When Gelb was still a copyboy at the Times, he edited a chatty internal newsletter called Timesweek, and this voluminous memoir suggests that although he rose to become managing editor, he retained a taste for his old job. His account of five decades at the paper is rich with personalities—from the wartime rewrite men, who had shrapnel in their backs and scorn for college boys, to the sixties-era female reporters who shook up the city room with frank language and countercultural convictions. Gelb is generous with praise, but not above a little score-settling—accusing his rival, Scotty Reston, the longtime Washington bureau chief, of having missed the Watergate story because he was too busy palling around with the White House élite to maintain contacts in the police department. Gelb also enjoys dishing vintage gossip, and cites a once popular dictum: "Liquor is the curse of the Herald Tribune and sex is the bane of the Times." Copyright © 2005 The New Yorker Gelb, former managing editor of the New York Times , offers an expansive, entertaining, and insightful personal memoir, history of the nation's paper of record, and chronicle of the major news events of the past 50 years. Gelb, son of Jewish immigrants, began his career as a copy boy in love with New York and newspapers. He recalls a freewheeling atmosphere of green eyeshades, spittoons, profanity, and beer guzzling. He recounts the paper's shortcomings (early reluctance to identify Holocaust victims) and its highlights (attention to journalism ethics). As a reporter, Gelb covered the police beat, the courts, and the theater, on and off Broadway. As metropolitan editor, he opened a bureau to cover Harlem, and broadened assignments for women. Gelb recalls an assortment of colorful characters--both the reporters and their subjects--and chronicles major social and political events, including the electrocution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, the rise of Joseph McCarthy, the turmoil of the Vietnam War, and the resignation of President Nixon. Readers interested in journalism will love this book. Vanessa Bush Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved ...a fascinating insider's look at the editorial and political quakes that have swept the city room of The Times . -- Mike Wallace ...an affectionate yet clear-eyed memoir... -- San Francisco Chronicle , October 26, 2003 ...compelling visit to about the most interesting place I've ever been, by one of the most interesting and inspiring men -- Richard Reeves ...the chronicler of the ups and downs of America's greatest journalistic institution...his new book is always interesting, insightful, and fair-minded. -- Gay Talese City Room gives us all the news that was fit to print and some of the stories that weren't. -- Jerry Stiller & Anne Meara A sense of intelligent innocence permeates this affectionate memoir... -- The New York Times , October 15, 2003 Anyone yearning for the romance, energy, and integrity of journalism should read this book. -- Wendy Wasserstein For all its forthrightness, City Room is the work of a gentleman reporter of a kinder era