Thomas Kennerly Wolfe, better known as Tom Wolfe, was a renowned American author and journalist, born on March 2, 1930, in Richmond, Virginia, United States. He was a key figure in the New Journalism movement, which combined literary techniques with journalism, and is also famous for coining the term "fiction-absolute".
Wolfe began his journalism career as a reporter for a small regional newspaper during the 1950s, eventually achieving national prominence with the publication of his bestselling books in the following decade. His writing often delved into the inner workings of the human mind, focusing on unconscious decisions and eccentricities of behavior and language. Wolfe's attention to these aspects of human nature, as well as his exploration of social status, are considered unmatched in American literature.
Throughout his career, Wolfe wrote for several prestigious publications, including The Washington Post, the New York Herald Tribune, Esquire, and New York magazine. He penned contemporary classics such as 'The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test', 'The Right Stuff', and 'Radical Chic & Mau-Mauing the Flak Catchers', as well as novels like 'The Bonfire of the Vanities', 'A Man in Full', and 'I Am Charlotte Simmons'. Among his numerous accolades, Wolfe received the National Book Award, the National Humanities Medal, and the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.