How, exactly, is your cousin Al Gore related to you? They keep explaining it to me, and I keep forgetting.  What about your grandfather, Thomas Gore of Oklahoma ? He invented the whole state. It was Indian territory. There was no state until Senator Gore.  In 1968, during the Nixon-Humphrey race, you became the voice of liberalism in a series of televised debates with William Buckley. Any plans to be a pundit at the coming presidential conventions? No.  How did you feel when you heard that Buckley died this year? I thought hell is bound to be a livelier place, as he joins forever those whom he served in life, applauding their prejudices and fanning their hatred.  You live in California , where last month the State Supreme Court overturned the ban on same-sex marriage . As someone who lived with a male companion for 50-plus years, do you see this as a victory for equality? People would ask, How could you live with someone for so long without any problems of any kind? I said, There was no sex.  Were you chaste during those years? Chased by whom?  Are you a supporter of gay marriage? I know nothing about it. I don’t follow that.  Why doesn’t it interest you? The same reason heterosexual marriage doesn’t seem to interest me.  If we look at the situation apart from you — It’s my interview, so we’ve got to stay with me.  Have you ever considered leaving the United States permanently? No, it’s my subject.  Do you read a lot of contemporary fiction these days? Like everyone else, no, I don’t.  Anyone in the 20th century you might have a kind word about? Yes, I liked Italo Calvino, and I thought he was the greatest writer of my time.  Your new collection includes an essay in which you note, “Calvino does what very few writers can do: he describes imaginary worlds with the most extraordinary precision and beauty.” What about American novelists? Can’t think of one.  Norman Mailer? Oh, dear, we’re not going to go into pluses and minuses now.  I admire Roth. He never became complacent. He had no reason to. He’s a good comic writer.  What do you think is your own best novel? I don’t answer questions like that. Ever. And you ought not to ask them.  Well, it was a great pleasure talking to you. I doubt that.  INTERVIEW CONDUCTED, CONDENSED AND EDITED BY DEBORAH SOLOMON  A version of this interview appears in print on , on Page MM17 of the Sunday Magazine with the headline: Literary Lion. Today's Paper|Subscribe
The writer talks about the trouble with critics, what West Point taught him about John McCain and why he doesn’t care about gay marriage.