The Georgetown Set: Friends and Rivals in Cold War Washington

596 Pages·2014·19.81 MB·English

by  Gregg Herken

THIS IS A BORZOI BOOK
PUBLISHED BY ALFRED A. KNOPF
Copyright © 2014 by Gregg Herken All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Alfred
A. Knopf, a division of Random House LLC, New York, and in Canada by Random House Canada
Limited, Toronto, Penguin Random House companies.
www.aaknopf.com
Knopf, Borzoi Books, and the colophon are registered trademarks of Random House LLC.
Letters from Jacqueline Kennedy reprinted with permission.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Herken, Gregg, [date]
The Georgetown set : friends and rivals in Cold War Washington / by Gregg Herken.
—First edition.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-307-27118-1 (hardcover) ISBN 978-0-38535304-5 (eBook)
1. Georgetown (Washington, D.C.)—History—20th century. 2. Washington (D.C.)—History—
20th century. 3. Political culture—Washington (D.C.)—History—20th century. 4. Cold War. 5.
Upper class—Washington (D.C.)—History—20th century. 6. Washington (D.C.)—Social life and
customs—20th century. 7. Georgetown (Washington, D.C.)—Biography. 8. Washington (D.C.)—
Biography. I. Title.
F202.G3H47 2014
975.3—dc23 2013047033
Map illustration by Robert Bull Front-of-jacket photograph: Joseph and Stewart Alsop © Henri
Cartier-Bresson/Magnum Photos
Jacket design by Carol Devine Carson First Edition
v3.1
In memory of
Marguerite M. Herken
1911–2013
The hand that mixes the Georgetown martini is time
and again the hand that guides the destiny of the
Western world.
—HENRY KISSINGER
CONTENTS
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Epigraph
Map
Prologue:
“Salonisma”: When Washington Worked
PART I
THE WASP ASCENDANCY
CHAPTER ONE
“A Political Village”
CHAPTER TWO
“Some Higher Realm of Intellect and Power”
CHAPTER THREE
“Is War Inevitable?”
CHAPTER FOUR
“Would He Go into the Woods?”
CHAPTER FIVE
“To Fight Fire with Fire”
CHAPTER SIX
“Some Brave New Approach”
CHAPTER SEVEN
“A Land of Conspiracy, Run by Conspirators”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Why Has Washington Gone Crazy?”
CHAPTER NINE
“A Rather Serious Border Incident”
CHAPTER TEN
“Venomous, Exciting and Pretty Frightening”
PART II
BOLD EASTERNERS
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“Stray and Gusty Winds”
CHAPTER TWELVE
“The Wild Pigs of Capitol Hill”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“An Act of Very Great Folly”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“A Chap of Great Promise”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“The Prophet of the Missile Gap”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“A Breathless Time, Full of Promise and Energy”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
“We Will All Fry”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“How Great Is One’s Duty to Truth?”
PART III
DÉGRINGOLADE
CHAPTER NINETEEN
“The Other Side of the Coin”
CHAPTER TWENTY
“I’m Afraid Joe Is a Cruel Man”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
“It Was the War That Did Him In”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
“Nobody Plays by the Rules Any More”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
“There Is a Feeling of Doors Closing”
Epilogue:
“We’re All So Old or Dead”: The End of the Georgetown Set
Acknowledgments
Notes
Bibliography
Index
A Note About the Author
Illustrations
Other Books by This Author