John Nixon Brooks Jr. ’42

JOHN DIED July 27, 1993, at the Southampton (L.I.) Nursing Home, following a debilitating stroke, his second, suffered more than two years ago. He was the author of three novels and 10 nonfiction books, including THE GoGo YEARS and THE TAKEOVER GAME. The most prolific writer in the class, he became a preeminent chronicler of the intrigues in the world of Wall Street.

His first job, with TIME magazine, formed the basis for a bestselling novel, THE BIG WHEEL. Beginning in 1949, his continuing association with the NEW YORKER nourished an extraordinary talent for writing lucid and entertaining prose, and gaining for him the reputation for having invented the style of treating business and finance as a human adventure. A standout among his many witty magazine pieces was "The Fate of the Edsel."

Arriving from Kent, where he edited the school newspaper, he prepared for his career as a writer on the DAILY PRINCETONIAN, becoming chairman. He majored in English and graduated with high honors. He was a communications officer aboard the First Army headquarters ship on DDay during the invasion of Normandy.

Born in NYC, but raised in Trenton, N.J., he lived most of his adult life in Greenwich village. John was active in literary circles, serving as president of the Authors Guild from 19751979; officer of PEN and the Society of American Historians; and trustee of the New York Public Library.

To his widow, Barbara; his daughter, Carolyn; his son, Alex; his three stepsons; three grandchildren; and two sisters, Elizabeth Berg and Gertruda Lushington, the class extends its sympathies in the loss of a spirited and gifted person.

The Class of 1942