The Entertainment of a Nation

Book excerpt: George Jean Nathan (1882-1958) was formative influence on American letters in the first half of this century, and is generally considered the leading drama critic of his era. With H. L. Mencken, Nathan edited The Smart Set and founded and edited The American Mercury, journals that shaped opinion in the 1920s and 1930s. This series of reprints, individually introduced by the distinguished critic and novelist Charles Angoff, collects Nathan's penetrating, witty, and sometimes cynical drama criticism.