When the Going Was Good

An Editor's Adventures During the Last Golden Age of Magazines

By: Graydon Carter, James Fox

Narrated by: Graydon Carter

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! Named a Best Book of the Year by critics from both NPR and the New York Post!

"The voice of a man who tasted the best of the American century and still left the party early, with his dignity intact." —The New Yorker

From the pages of Spy and Vanity Fair to the red carpets of Hollywood, editor Graydon Carter revives the riotous worlds of print and glamour at their heyday

After working at both Time and Life and cofounding Spy, Graydon Carter
was offered the editorship of Vanity Fair in 1992. He knew he faced an uphill battle—how to make the esteemed and long-established magazine his own. With curiosity, fearlessness, and a love of recent history and glamour that would come to define his storied career in magazines, Carter succeeded in endearing himself to his editors, contributors, and readers, as well as those who would grace the pages of Vanity Fair. He went on to run the magazine with overwhelming success for the next two and a half decades.

When the Going Was Good is Graydon Carter’s lively recounting of how he made his mark as one of the most talented editors in the business, further planting a flag in Los Angeles with the legendary Vanity Fair Oscar party. With his inimitable voice and signature quip, he brings readers to lunches and dinners with the great and good of America, Britain, and Europe. He assembled one of the most formidable stables of writers and photographers under one roof, and here he re-creates in real time the steps he took to ensure Vanity Fair cemented its place as the epicenter of art, culture, business, and politics. Charming, candid, and brimming with stories, When the Going Was Good perfectly captures the last golden age of print magazines from the inside out.

GC’s reading is great. It’s like a dinner with him, where he tells you his life’s story.

Great book. Some of the chapters are much more entertaining than others. Feels like some punches got pulled and some of the recounts of facts are tailored to meet today’s social requirements. I’d recommend it - truly a reflection of golden days that seem long gone - A double sided gravestone

I loved all his parties

I liked everything and will read again, I miss him being the editor at vanity fair.

You have got to like Grayson the prey

To paraphrase and turn around F Scott the rich and famous are different than you and me. That is not necessarily bad.

Refreshing life story

Funny, enlightening, inspiring and massively entertaining. And the best part: It is read by the author.

The voice

Hearing Graydon’s voice creates a level of intimacy and nuance that can never be duplicated in the written word.