The Press: Four on Hearst

At 73, William Randolph Hearst continues to be one of the most fabulous figures in the land. Not the least extraordinary thing about him is the fact that, until two months ago, only one full-length Hearst biography between covers was available. That was John K. Winklers IT—. R. Hearst: An American Phenomenon, published in 1928. By last week, as if in competitive haste to turn literary light on the aging publisher, four biographers in quick succession had added three full-length prose portraits to the Hearstian gallery.

Two months ago, first of this new biographical...