The Smart Set (Fiction

H. L. Mencken (1880-1956) was an author and editor whose reputation preceded him-courting controversy at every turn and projecting. As co-editor of The Smart Set and The American Mercury with George Jean Nathan, he gave more writers their first chance than most editors of his time.

George Jean Nathan (1882-1958) was a theater critic and editor. As co-editor of The Smart Set and The American Mercury with H.L. Mencken, he had an outsize influence on American literature and drama.

Willard Huntington Wright (1888-1939), an art critic known as S. S. Van Dine-a name under which he published detectives novels-edited The Smart Set between 1913-1914, turning the periodical into one of America's most ambitious literary magazines.