Matthew Josephson

About the Author

Matthew Josephson was a prolific American writer, critic, and historian whose works illuminated the cultural and economic forces shaping modern America. Born in 1893 in St. Louis, Missouri, he immersed himself in the literary circles of Paris during the 1920s, befriending expatriates like Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, before returning to the United States to chronicle its industrial titans and artistic revolutions. His incisive biographies and historical narratives, blending meticulous research with vivid storytelling, captured the ambition and excess of the Gilded Age. Josephson's enduring legacy lies in his ability to humanize the powerful figures who built America's economic empire, offering readers a critical lens on capitalism's triumphs and excesses. He passed away in 1978, leaving behind a body of work that continues to influence historians and biographers alike.