Uncle Mame

Edward Everett Tanner III wrote novels under the names Patrick Dennis and Virginia Rowans, and he produced sixteen of them, the majority of which sold very well. Among them are Little Me and Auntie Mame, both now regarded as classics. His books were turned into hit stage shows, musicals, television programs, and movies, and the money came quickly. Tanner was welcomed into the upper echelons of Manhattan society.

Tanner nevertheless gave away everything he earned. He took jobs as a servant for wealthy households while keeping his identity hidden, and he built such an elaborate public persona that even his wife and children never fully knew who he was. This biography draws on a wide range of interviews with colleagues, companions, and family members to present an intimate look at the man behind the pen names.

The book shows how Tanner brought camp sensibility into mainstream American culture, and how the glamour and wit of his fiction remained part of him even during his darkest periods.