Gore Vidal's quotes, quips memorialized on Twitter

Gore Vidal, who died Tuesday at his Hollywood Hills home, was known for his unmatched wit and one-liners.

The Times' obituary, written by Elaine Woo, noted that the prolific author "demolished intellectual rivals like Norman Mailer and William F. Buckley Jr. with acidic one-liners, establishing himself as a peerless master of talk-show punditry." She also described him as a "glorious gadfly on the national conscience."

"Style," Vidal once said, "is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn."

PHOTOS: Gore Vidal | 1925 - 2012

That quote -- and numerous others -- are circulating on the Internet and in social media on Wednesday, as a new generation is introduced to Vidal's greatest quips, including this gem: "The United States was founded by the brightest people in the country -- and we haven't seen them since."

 

The quotable Gore Vidal

Author Gore Vidal died Tuesday at his home in the Hollywood Hills of complications from pneumonia, his nephew said. Vidal was 86.

Storified by Kimi Yoshino · Wed, Aug 01 2012 09:28:34

Gore Vidal, iconoclastic author, dies at 86Gore Vidal was impossible to categorize, which was exactly the way he liked it. The reading public knew him as a literary juggernaut who ...

The reading public knew him as a literary juggernaut who wrote 25 novels —from the historical "Lincoln" to the satirical "Myra Breckinridge" — and volumes of essays critics consider among the most elegant in the English language. He also brought shrewd intelligence to writing Broadway hits, Hollywood screenplays, television dramas and a trio of mysteries still in print after 50 years, The Times' Elaine Woo wrote in his obituary.

When he wasn't writing, he was popping up in movies, playing himself in "Fellini's Roma," a sinister plotter in sci-fi thriller"Gattaca" and a U.S. senator in "Bob Roberts."

Gore Vidal's colorful career behind (and in front of) the cameraGore Vidal was best known as an author, pundit and raconteur. But the writer, who died Tuesday at 86, also had time for movies - both wri...

 In other spare moments, he demolished intellectual rivals like Norman Mailer and William F. Buckley Jr. with acidic one-liners, establishing himself as a peerless master of talk-show punditry.

Many paid homage to Vidal, quoting some of his best-known one-liners.

Gore Vidal quotes: 26 of the best http://gu.com/p/39dnq/tfGuardian Books

Norman Mailer punched Gore Vidal at a party after a bad review. Still on the floor, Vidal declared: 'Once again, words fail Norman Mailer.'joshuafoust

“We are the United States of Amnesia, we learn nothing because we remember nothing.” —Gore Vidal: http://tnat.in/cF0SLThe Nation

"Half of the American people have never read a newspaper. Half never voted for president. One hopes it is the same half." -- Gore Vidal”Javier Solana

I do many different things rather better than most people do one thing. -Gore Vidal #RIP http://bit.ly/Oo95efThe Paris Review

Sad to hear that Gore Vidal died but slightly comforted by the fact that I never read anything he wrote.Michael Ian Black

RIP Gore Vidal, 1925-2012 http://pwne.ws/MQXDMu and see this collection of "26 of the best" Gore Vidal quotes http://pwne.ws/QuTAqKPublishers Weekly

RIP Gore Vidal. Last year I heard him say: "Cemeteries are the most beautiful things in America; I know more people in them than outside.”Amitav Ghosh

Norman Mailer and Gore Vidal Feud on the Dick Cavett Showcehitchens33

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