Ely Jacques Kahn, Jr.

Ely Jacques Kahn, Jr.
Born (1916-12-04)December 4, 1916
New York City
Died May 28, 1994(1994-05-28) (aged 77)
Holyoke, Massachusetts
Nationality American
Alma mater Harvard University
Occupation Writer
Parent(s) Ely Jacques Kahn, Elsie Plaut Mayer
Relatives Joan Kahn

Ely Jacques Kahn, Jr. (December 4, 1916 – May 28, 1994) was an American writer under the byline E.J. Kahn, Jr. with The New Yorker for five decades.

Biography

Born in New York City, he was the son of architect Ely Jacques Kahn, and the brother of mystery editor and anthologist, Joan Kahn. He attended the Horace Mann School and Harvard University, where he took his B.A. in 1937. He was hired by St. Clair McKelway at The New Yorker in 1937[1] and his first byline appeared there in the April 3, 1937 issue. Before World War II, he was drafted and served in the U.S. Army from 1941 to 1945. His Army experience resulted in The New Yorker publishing thirty-nine of his pieces on Army life; they were later collected in book form.

His long career with the magazine resulted in numerous books on such varied subjects as Coca Cola, Leslie McNair, the Trust Territory of the Pacific, Harvard University, Herbert Bayard Swope, Frank Sinatra, Dwayne O. Andreas of Archer Daniels Midland, and the Postal Inspection Service. However, his multi-part series on grain, which was published in book form as "Staffs of Life" in 1985, was criticized by some as an example of the self-indulgent journalism that marked The New Yorker during the 1970s and '80s.

Kahn lived in Scarborough-on-Hudson for more than 20 years, and was a member of the Briarcliff Manor Fire Department.[2] He taught writing at Columbia University from 1974 to 1977.

His book The New Yorker and Me (New York: G.P. Putnam's, 1979) is a diary interspersed with memories of his life, the magazine, and its editor William Shawn—whom Kahn calls "The Iron Mouse." His 1987 diary was released as Year of Change: More about the New Yorker and Me (New York: Viking, 1988).

Bibliography

Incomplete - to be updated

Books

Articles

References

  1. Weingarten, Marc (14 February 2010). "On the crime beat with St. Clair McKelway". Los Angeles Times.
  2. A Century of Volunteer Service: Briarcliff Manor Fire Department 1901–2001. Briarcliff Manor Fire Department. 2001. LCCN 00-093475.
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