The research was so rich with material that "it grabbed me," said Wilner. "When I read the oral history reminiscences I really got excited. Hadden and Luce had an intellectual friendship, a meeting of the minds. I think they loved each other. Their partnership gives us a new take on the '20s. F. Scott Fitzgerald talked about 'the lost generation' — but Hadden and Luce were go-getters."

Wilner discovered that Hadden was the creative member of the team, while Luce was the financial mind and the promoter. "The title — 'The Man Time Forgot' — just popped into my head. When I told my mother, she said I should write that one down. Don Wooten, from Cleveland, drew the caricature of Hadden on the jacket. It's a brilliant likeness because it showed his sense of humor. The photos of Hadden show him standing in exactly the same way, shoulders squared, advancing almost like a boxer into the ring."

Wilner found that Hadden slept little because he was so driven. He started getting some release by going out to drink at night. When he got sick, he could not slow down. He was embarrassed to be sick. He was something of the permanent child.

"Thornton Wilder, the writer, said Hadden 'was never less than magnanimous, burning himself up, but always a prince."'

It is Wilner's belief that "Hadden's relationship with girls was peculiar. The speculation itself keeps us from getting the right answer. We may never know. He had problems with intimacy, but there is no evidence that he was gay. He always communicated great energy. He had a forceful personality."

In ruminating on what was most profound about his study of the men who started Time, Wilner said, "Reading Time was an eye-opening experience. It really shaped my identity as a storyteller. Hadden's writing style was so informative, yet it was also wildly entertaining. He was a master of narrative, and he helped me see the possibility of bringing history to life today."

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E-mail: dennis@desnews.com