Born in 1925, Eugene Luther Vidal was the scion of one of America's grandest political dynasties.

BBC: US author Gore Vidal dies aged 86

True, Mr Vidal's father, Eugene Luther Vidal, came from a more modest background, the descendant of immigrants, possibly Jewish, who settled in South Dakota.

ECONOMIST: American literature: Comeback kid | The

He was born Eugene Luther Gore Vidal on October 3, 1925.

CNN: Gore Vidal, chronicler of American life and politics, dies