City Room

by Arthur Gelb

A New York Times Notable Book

Arthur Gelb was hired by The New York Times in 1944 as a night copyboy—the paper’s lowliest position. Forty-five years later, he retired as its managing editor. Along the way, he exposed crooked cops and politicians, mentored a generation of our most-talented journalists, was the first to praise the as-yet-undiscovered Woody Allen and Barbra Streisand, and brought Joe Papp instant recognition. From D-Day to the liberation of the concentration camps, from the agony of Vietnam to the resignation of a President, from the fall of Joe McCarthy to the rise of the “Woodstock Nation,” Gelb gives an insider’s take on the great events of this nation's history—what he calls “the happiest days of my life.”

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Memoir, Journalism, Biography, Autobiography

672 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Arthur Gelb was an American editor, author, executive and a former managing editor of The New York Times. He enjoyed the plays of Eugene O'Neill so much that he wrote three biographies of the playwright with his wife Barbara Gelb.

Reviews

[Michael Paquette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arthur Gelb's City Room is a thoroughly engrossing and extraordinary memoir of a life in the newsroom of the New York Times from the second world war to the tragic day of September 11. His tale includes his upbringing as a child of immigrant parents in New York City in the early twentieth century and his days as a copyboy for the Times during the second world war. He details so much history with vibrant storytelling and detailed descriptions of his moments on the city police beat, the night beat, the culture scene and the metropolitan news desk. He includes detailed accounts of the d-day invasion, the incredible secret Manhattan project behind the atomic bomb, the polio vaccine discovery, the renaissance of the American theatre on Broadway from the perspective of Eugene O'neil and the extraodinay talents of critic Brooks Atkinson and the sweeping stories of the riots in Harlem, the Woodstock festival and the accounts of police corruption by David Burnham and Frank Serpico. This is a monumental newspaper story about the greatest paper in our nation through the eyes of one of its finest lifelong contributors. A sweeping story about a dying industry during some of its finest hours.

[Jim Cheng · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Gelb's exhaustive, richly detailed memoir is a love letter to The New York Times and to a profession that, in the course of his 45-year career, both observed and helped to bring about seismic change. It is a deep dive into the workings of a newsroom yet it also is a history of New York and America in the 20th century. Gelb is a gifted storyteller who through ambition, talent, good timing and some luck, found himself a witness to political and cultural history.
Some may find the detailed machinations of and personnel changes at the Times too arcane, but the peek behind the curtain can be instructive to those unfamiliar with "how the sausage is made."
"City Room" crackles when describing the Times' investigations and the breaking of major stories such as Frank Serpico's expose of police corruption. Such detailed accounts are valuable particularly in light of the current state of what people simplistically call "the media."
The job is hard, the pressure can be immense, but for Gelb and many other journalists, it is a calling.

[Rebecca Chekouras · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just finished Arthur Gelb's massive, sweeping memoir of his life-long career at The New York Times. It is a helluva good book. Starting as a 20 yr-old copyboy in 1944 and rising some half century later to managing editor (THE big cheese), Gelb was on hand for every major story of my lifetime: the manufacture and use of the atomic bomb, the end of World War II, discovery of the polio vaccine, the rise of the arts and a serious theater in the U.S., the Kennedy assassination, the hippies and various social movements--feminism, civil rights, gay rights, the collapse of New York in the 1970s, Serpico, Attica, AIDS, . . . all of it up to September 11th. As we say in Oakland, this book is the shit!

Gelb's book makes a fascinating bookend to Jill Abramson"s Merchants of Truth. Read Gelb first to understand just how far the New York Times has fallen.
#tinyreview

[Pat Rolston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arthur Gelb’s journey from copy boy at the age of 20 to Managing Editor 50 years later at the New York Times is brilliantly portrayed by his own hand. This is a book capturing his complete devotion and love for for the NY Times during his life long career at that iconic American newspaper. There is much in the way of personal reflection that captures the feel for the charismatic characters who reported the news and were part of it in their own right. This is light reading with more Damon Runyon than a Seymour Hersh in evidence. Mr Gelb’s skills as a journalist are evident as the 641 pages passed by very quickly. The history is superficial with focus on the direct experiences of Mr Gelb’s career, but very much worth the time for anyone interested in journalism and great story telling involving New Your City.

[Chandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps the most perfect memoir of all time, and certainly the best newspaper memoir. Gelb explores his lengthy history with the New York Times in a focused, deliberate, and entertaining manner that is filled with joy.The ironies of the shifting landscape of journalism are not lost, despite the changes that have happened since the books early 2000s publication. I re-read this around every 5 years and it is always a welcome experience.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting review of the author's career at the New York Times, where he started as a copyboy and worked his way up to managing editor. Gelb had a varied career, with stints as a drama critic and as metropolitan editor. His love for journalism, at least the way it used to be conducted, is evident. He also settles a few scores along the way. Always interesting, but not great.

[Steven · Rating 2 out of 5]

Memoir of Arthur Gleb about his time working at The New York Times.

[Frank Taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Insightful read. About one of the greatest newspapers in the USA; The New York Times. His take on journalistic objectivity is interesting in 'the age of trump' and fake news.

[Jack Goodstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

The thing about writing memoirs is the need to avoid continually talking about how wonderful everything you did was, how smart you were, how talented--this is especially difficult when the usual reason for anyone wanting to read your memoir is that you were smart and talented and did wonderful things. Arthur Gelb doesn't always manage this avoidance. He certainly gives others credit, but he has no compuctions against taking credit himself.

Moreover, there is somwthing odd reading about the glories of the Tmes in these days when little more than doom and gloom characterizes the newspaper publishing world. Gelb's book reads something like a eulogy.

Still, perhaps because of his position, he gives the reader an immensely readable account of almost every significant event in the middle of the 20th century.

[Siobhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a former journalist, I found this a fascinating book. I'm not sure if non-journalist types would enjoy it as much, but the inside stories of how major -- and minor -- stories are covered is intriguing, IMHO. I remember when The NYT was going through its redesign phase in the 1970s. Reading about how it was done and why, and the internal conflicts it caused was wonderful.

The author, Arthur Gelb, comes across as a man of great integrity, kindness and compassion. The booko provided a chance to get to know him in a small way, and that was great.

[Ruth Sternberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Because I was a journalist for most of my adult life, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Friends in the profession have remarked that it's too nostalgic and sugar-coated; the the NYT was not the warm and quirky place Gelb reminisces about. But I didn't read it looking for a critique of The Times. I read it to immerse myself in fond memories of a workplace that meant a lot to the person who spent so much of his life among colleagues and friends there. People obviously mean a great deal to Arthur, and they do to me, too. More than the work itself.

[Tera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arthur Gelb worked for the New York Times for 45 years, these are his memoirs. If you enjoy reading Americana, you'll love this book. I wish I could read this book again but I gave my copy up to save space, it's 672 pages, and hardcover, that is a good four inches or so of shelf space.

[Ronni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Behind the scenes of The New York Times from its early days. Very interesting. It was particularly interesting to see how the editors downplayed the holocaust because they didn't want the paper to be viewed as a "Jewish newspaper." The story was buried.

[Jamie Hardy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What's not to love about the days when the Times and the City and things in general were really happening?

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating New-York-Times-eye view of the city from WWII to the mid-eighties. Gelb was in the middle of all things cultural and all things New York.

[Brandie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone keeps talking about "the good ol' days." I guess I want to know what they're talking about.

[Juliusnajab · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful story of a newspaperman's life and times at the new york times.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Long and tedious at times. But interesting nonetheless and good insight on what used to be the inner workings of a newspaper.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great story about The New York Times when newspapers were the only game in town.

[Aaron]

Mentioned in a Maureen Dowd column 10/21/09