author
Lee Mortimer
1904–1963
A fast-talking mid-20th-century journalist and columnist, he became known for sensational crime writing and hardboiled looks at American cities. His books, often written with Jack Lait, promised readers a tour of the nation’s underworld and scandals.
2 Audiobooks
Washington Confidential
by Jack Lait, Lee Mortimer
New York: Confidential!
by Jack Lait, Lee Mortimer
About the author
Born Mortimer Lieberman in Chicago, Lee Mortimer was an American newspaper columnist, radio commentator, crime lecturer, nightclub show producer, and author. He is best remembered for the pen name he adopted early in his career and for the brisk, provocative style that made his journalism stand out.
Mortimer reached his widest readership through a series of bestselling "Confidential" books co-written with Jack Lait, including New York Confidential, Chicago Confidential, and Washington Confidential. These works mixed reportage, gossip, and exposé, helping define a sensational strand of popular nonfiction in the 1940s and 1950s.
His career moved across newspapers, radio, live entertainment, and books, giving his writing an energetic show-business edge. Even when his work was controversial, it captured a certain mood of urban America in the mid-20th century, which is part of why his name still turns up in histories of crime writing and tabloid journalism.