Stephen Birmingham | Author, 86
Stephen Birmingham, 86, an author whose frothy books of social history, such as Our Crowd and The Rest of Us , were best-selling sagas of American aristocracy, often viewed through the lens of ethnic minorities, died Sunday at his home in New York City. The cause was lung cancer, said his longtime partner, Edward Lahniers.
Stephen Birmingham, 86, an author whose frothy books of social history, such as
Our Crowd
and
The Rest of Us
, were best-selling sagas of American aristocracy, often viewed through the lens of ethnic minorities, died Sunday at his home in New York City. The cause was lung cancer, said his longtime partner, Edward Lahniers.
Mr. Birmingham began his literary career as a novelist, dissecting the manners of the prep-school class, before turning his attention to what he called New York's "other society" - the German-Jewish dynasties that had dominated Manhattan's banking and brokerage circles for a century.
Our Crowd: The Great Jewish Families of New York became a No. 1 bestseller in 1967, was made into a musical, and launched a literary franchise for Mr. Birmingham as a chronicler of wealth and celebrity.
His marriage to Jane Tillson ended in divorce. In addition to Lahniers, survivors include three children; a sister; and a granddaughter. - Washington Post