FILE  From left: The writers Susan Sontag, Gay Talese, E.L. Doctorow and Norman Mailer, who took part in the PEN American Center program in support of Salman Rushdie, in New York, February 22, 1989. Doctorow, whose critically admired and award-winning novels situated fictional characters in recognizable historical contexts, died July 21, 2015. He was 84.
FILE  From left: The writers Susan Sontag, Gay Talese, E.L. Doctorow and Norman Mailer, who took part in the PEN American Center program in support of Salman Rushdie, in New York, Feb. 22, 1989.  Doctorow, whose critically admired and award-winning novels situated fictional characters in recognizable historical contexts, died July 21, 2015. He was 84. (Sara Krulwich/The New York Times) ORG XMIT: XNYT160 Photo: SARA KRULWICH / NYTNS