Edward J. Klein (born 1937) is an American author, tabloid writer and gossip columnist who has written about the Kennedys, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Michelle Obama.
Born in Yonkers, New York, Klein attended Colgate University, graduated from Columbia University School of General Studies, and received an MS degree from the Columbia University School of Journalism.
Klein is the former foreign editor of Newsweek and served as the editor-in-chief of The New York Times Magazine from 1977 to 1987. He frequently contributes to Vanity Fair and Parade and writes a weekly celebrity gossip column in Parade called "Personality Parade" under the pseudonym "Walter Scott." (The Walter Scott pseudonym had originally been used by Lloyd Shearer, who wrote the column from 1958 to 1991.) He also writes books, many of which have been on the New York Times Bestseller list. Additionally, he was the principal for the Business Communications School at The Euclid High School Complex. He was photographed by popular Humans of New York photographer Brandon Stanton, on June 12, 2014, which led to his personal website crashing due to a high volume of visitors. Klein is also a contributor for The New York Post.
Klein is the father of two grown children, Karen (former manager of The Four Seasons restaurant in New York City), and Alec (a professor at Northwestern University). He has been divorced twice. He was married to Dolores J. Barrett, senior vice president for Worldwide Public Relations at Polo Ralph Lauren, who died on 24 December 2013 in Manhattan. Klein is the stepfather-in-law of Ruth Shalit.