Arnold Gingrich (1903-1976), born in Grand Rapids, MI, founded Esquire (magazine) with David Smart (a Chicago publisher) in 1933. He remained the editor of the magazine until 1961. A pioneer, Gingrich published such authors as Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, Thomas Wolfe, John Dos Passos, Garry Wills, Truman Capote, and Norman Mailer. He also published stories by Jack Woodford whom he befriended when they worked together at an advertising agency in the 1920s. Cover of an issue of Esquire magazine. ... Ernest Hemingway, 1950 Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist and short story writer whose works, drawn from his wide range of experiences in World War I, the Spanish Civil War, and World War II, are characterized by terse minimalism and understatement; they exerted... William Faulkner photographed 1954 by Carl Van Vechten William Cuthbert Faulkner (September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was a Nobel Prize-winning novelist from Mississippi. ... John Ernst Steinbeck III (February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was one of the most famous American writers of the 20th century. ... Photo by Carl Van Vechten For the modern, currently living author and journalist, see Tom Wolfe Thomas Clayton Wolfe (October 3, 1900–September 15, 1938) was a famous American novelist. ... John Rodrigo Dos Passos, born January 14, 1896, in Chicago, Illinois, United States - died September 28, 1970, in Baltimore, Maryland, was a novelist and artist. ... Garry Wills (born May 22, 1934) is a celebrated author and historian, and a frequent contributor to the New York Review of Books. ... Truman Capote photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1948 Truman Capote (September 30, 1924 – August 25, 1984) was an American writer. ... Norman Mailer, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1948 Norman Kingsley Mailer (born January 31, 1923) is an American writer and, along with Truman Capote, is considered an innovator of the nonfictional novel. ... Jack Woodford (1894-1971) was a successful pulp novelist of the 1930s and 1940s. ...

The magazine’s name Esquire was selected after Gingrich received a letter that was addressed to "Arnold Gingrich, Esq."

He was an avid fan of fly-fishing. In 1974, he wrote an book about the sport called The Fishing in Print.

He married his childhood sweetheart, Helen Mary when they were still teenagers.