A Passing to Note

[L Verge]

A friend in New York just alerted me that author Gene Smith, who wrote "American Gothic" on the Booths has died. Gene and I were friends dating back to the 80s when he began to write "Gothic." He was the epitome of an English writer - even though he was American - in the way that he dressed. Tweed jackets with patched elbows and a glass of scotch whiskey in his hand while debating history with Joan Chaconas and I.