The Ocean Is Closed

“A long-overdue anthology of writings by a great—and now largely forgotten—long-form journalist . . . Exemplary journalism by a writer who deserves to be in every nonfiction anthology and textbook henceforth.”

—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

A forgotten master of the long form, recovered: the essential magazine journalism of Jon Bradshaw, edited by Alex Belth of Esquire Classic, from full-dress profiles of W. H. Auden and Minnesota Fats to reportage on the Baader-Meinhof gang and the Bandit Queen of India.

A variegated and delightful collection of magazine writer Jon Bradshaw’s essential writings, The Ocean Is Closed rediscovers a memorable talent and offers us an entrancing view of mid-century culture beyond the shadow of the literary canon. With droll wit and keen intelligence, Bradshaw’s cinematic prose brings the ’70s to vibrant life—from the lurid pick-up scenes at hotspots like Maxwell’s Plum in New York and the Beverly Hills Hotel in L.A., to full-bodied portraits of literary figures such as W. H. Auden and Tom Stoppard; from affectionate profiles of hustlers and con men like Bobby Riggs and Minnesota Fats, to chilling reportage about street gangs in the Bronx, terrorism in Germany, and mercenary freedom fighters in India.

Jon Bradshaw, a man of tremendous personal charm, good humor and rugged beauty, was a literary concoction of his own devising: the magazine writer as world-weary traveler and man about town. Adored by British royalty, magazine editors, movie executives, and professional mercenaries alike, Bradshaw first made a splash in London during the Swinging Sixties. Pals with the likes of Anna Wintour, Timothy Leary, Gore Vidal, and Martin Amis, his career flourished at a time when magazines were at the center of the cultural conversation, delivering stories that were talked about for weeks. For twenty years, he cut a distinctive figure in this world, before his untimely death. A forgotten master of longform magazine writing, Bradshaw is ripe for rediscovery as one of the sharpest chroniclers of his age.

Edited and introduced by Alex Belth, editor of Esquire Classic and The Stacks Reader, the collection gathers two decades of work for Esquire, New York, Queen and the Sunday Times of London—the years when a single magazine feature could hold a city’s attention for a week.