2006

On 24 January, The Big Empty (06.2) is published. It is warmly, but not widely reviewed.

In the spring, Mailer submits the manuscript of The Castle in the Forest (07.10) to his new editor at Random House, David Ebershoff, who replaces Jason Epstein after his retirement.

On 4 May, Judith McNally, Mailer’s secretary for nearly three decades, dies. Mailer’s health worsens, and his weight loss concerns his family and doctors. Two of his old friends die, Styron on 1 November, and Robert F. Lucid on 12 December. Mailer speaks at a Boston memorial for Styron on 14 December.

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  Norman Mailer in Provincetown, 2006. Photo by Gerald R. Lucas.
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  French Legion of Honor Invitation, 2006.