This book was completed with a lot of help: from the many scholars on whose work I relied, from the direct assistance I received from others, and from the first-rate publishing team that gave me a platform to do my work.
No work of scholarship is unique in itself. Everything builds on the work of others. I turned to a body of historians, scholars, and journalists without whose achievements this book would be inconceivable. Chief among them are Michelle Anderson, Elizabeth Bernstein, Allan Bérubé, Lisa Carstens, Douglas Charles, Janie Chuang, John Colapinto, Alice Dreger, Andrea Dworkin, William Eskridge, Susan Estrich, David Finklehor, Estelle Friedman, Julie Greenberg, Karen Gustafson, Marjorie Heins, Dagmar Herzog, Philip Hoare, David Johnson, Roger Lancaster, Judith Levine, Catherine MacKinnon, Mary Odem, Paul Okami, Peggy Pascoe, Elizabeth Pleck, William Prosser, Kavita Ramakrishnan, Heike Schmidt, Vicki Schultz, Na’ama Shik, Gretchen Soderlund, Robert Sommer, Yuki Tanaka, and Jeffrey Weeks. These are just a few of the giants on whose shoulders I stand.
Building on my efforts was the research assistance I received from Marine Galvez, an impressive young woman who will certainly be making waves in the years to come, as well as the insights of Lawrence G. Walters, a First Amendment and obscenity lawyer of the first rank, and Diana Adams, a New York attorney at the forefront of issues regarding sexuality and marriage. Along the way, I received critical input on drafts from Adam Kaufman and Tony DeToro. Most important in this regard was the editing and guidance I received from Mitchell Albert, whose advice on structure, style, tone, and focus were indispensable. Thanks again, Mitch.
On the business end were my terrific agent, Andrew Stuart, and my tireless publicist, Elizabeth Shreve. At Counterpoint, this project was expertly shepherded by Jack Shoemaker, Rolph Blythe, Kelly Winton, Megan Fishman, and Sharon Wu, among others. Making sure the text was right was copy editor extraordinaire Ryan Quinn and Claire Berkowitz, who made the first effort at untangling her dad’s often mangled bibliography and end notes.
And every day was made possible by Lawrence, Claire, and Gillian, my children, and Jennifer, the love of my life.