A.M. Klein - biography, career, poetry
This is the place to search for a free poet biography. The best resource for quotes and poetry.
|
A.M. Klein |
|||||||||
1909 born to Kalman and Yetta Klein, orthodox Jews, in Ratno, a small town in the Ukraine, and brought to Montreal with his family probably the following year (officially claimed to have been born in Montreal, 14 February 1909).
1915 attended Mt Royal School. Received Jewish education from private tutors and at Talmud Torah.
1922 attended Baron Byng High School.
1926 attended McGill University, majoring in classics and political science and economics. Active in Debating Society with close friend David Lewis. Founded literary magazine, the McGilliad, with Lewis in 1930. Associated with ’Montreal Group’ of poets and writers, including A.J.M. Smith, F.R. Scott, Leo Kennedy, and Leon Edel. Began publishing poems in the Menorah Journal, the Canadian Forum, Poetry (Chicago), and elsewhere.
1928 served as educational director of Canadian Young Judaea, a Zionist youth organization, and edited its monthly magazine, the Judaean, in which many of his early poems and stories appeared.
1930 studied law at the Université de Montréal.
1934 established law firm in partnership with Max Garmaise, and struggled to earn a living during the Depression. Served as national president of Canadian Young Judaea.
1935 married Bessie Kozlov, his high school sweetheart.
1936 active in publicity and educational work, and on speaking tours, for the Zionist Organization of Canada, and editor of its monthly, the Canadian Zionist.
1937 moved to Rouyn, a small mining town in northern Quebec, to join Garmaise in law practice there.
1938 returned to Montreal, and re-established law practice in association with Samuel Chait. Assumed editorship of the Canadian Jewish Chronicle, to which he contributed numerous editorials, essays, book reviews, poems, and stories.
1939 began his long association with Samuel Bronfman, noted distiller and philanthropist and president of the Canadian Jewish Congress, working as a speech-writer and public relations consultant.
1940 first volume of poems, Hath Not a Jew ..., published by Behrman’s in New York.
1942 associated with the Preview group of poets--F.R. Scott, Patrick Anderson, P.K. Page, and others--and with the First Statement group, in particular Irving Layton.
1944 The Hitleriad published by New Directions in New York. Poems published by the Jewish Publication Society in Philadelphia. Nominated as CCF candidate in federal riding of Montreal-Cartier, but withdrew before the election of 1945.
1945 visiting lecturer in poetry at McGill University.
1946 wrote his first novel, an unpublished spy thriller, ’Comes the Revolution’ (later retitled ’That Walks Like a Man’), based on the Igor Gouzenko affair.
1948 The Rocking Chair and Other Poems published by Ryerson in Toronto.
1949 published the first of several articles on James Joyce’s Ulysses. Ran unsuccesszfully as CCF candidate in the federal election of June 1949. Awarded the Governor-General’s Medal for The Rocking Chair. Journeyed to Israel, Europe, and North Africa in July and August, sponsored by the Canadian Jewish Congress, and published his ’Notebook of a Journey’ in the Canadian Jewish Chronicle.
1949 travelled widely in Canada and the United States, addressing Jewish audiences, principally concerning the State of Israel.
1951 The Second Scroll published by Knopf in New York.
1952 increasing signs of mental illness. Hospitalized for several weeks in the summer of 1954 after a thwarted suicide attempt.
1955 resigned from editorship of the Canadian Jewish Chronicle. Ceased writing and began to withdraw from public life.
1956 resigned from law practice and became increasingly reclusive. Awarded the Lorne Pierce Medal by the Royal Society of Canada.
1971 death of Bessie Klein, 26 February.
1972 died in his sleep, 20 August.
About the author:
Professor Zaillig Pollock, Trent University
http://www.library.utoronto.ca
| Free Poetry Contest Poetry.com will award over 1,200 awards and prizes totaling over $100,000 to amateur poets in the coming months. All contestants are eligible for both of our contests. Join Now!  |
Copy and paste this into the code of
your webpage:
Various information on poets - their biographies and other info.
