Arnold, Melvin

Melvin Luxton Arnold (1913-2000) was born in Portland, Oregon to Daniel and Letitia Luxton Arnold. While attending Franklin High School, he secured a position with The News Telegram ( Portland, Oregon ) which was the beginning of a long and distinguished publishing career. Arnold married Valerie Hendricksen and had one child, Alexandra, born in 1933. In 1946 he became the director of the Beacon Press, the Unitarian publishing house, and he transformed it into a widely recognized voice for liberal religious values. At the same time he also became director of the Unitarian newspaper, The Christian Register. Arnold is well known for being an editor for Albert Schweitzer, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and a number of other well-known figures in American society.