Hale, William Harlan, 1910-1974

An early pen name of William H. Hale was Harlan Thomas.

William Harlan Hale: founded Yale magazine, Harkness Hoot, with Selden Rodman; published first book in 1932; associate editor of Vanity Fair, 1932; columnist on Washington Post, 1933-1934; editorial associate, Fortune, 1934-1936; worked for Office of War Information, 1941-1945, in connection with psychological warfare operations in Europe; senior editor of New Republic, 1946-1947; Lt. Col., Military Intelligence, in Europe, 1948-1949, and civilian tours of duty in same connection, 1950, 1952-1953; senior writer and editor for The Reporter, 1948-1958; managing editor of Horizon, 1958-1963; editor of Horizon Books, 1963-1968; author of numerous books and articles.

William Harlan Hale: founded Yale magazine Harkness Hoot with Selden Rodman; published first book in 1932; associate editor of Vanity Fair, 1932; columnist on Washington Post, 1933-1934; editorial associate, Fortune, 1934-1936; worked for Office of War Information, 1941-1945, in connection with psychological warfare operations in Europe; senior editor of New Republic, 1946-1947; Lt. Col., Military Intelligence, in Europe, 1948-1949, and civilian tours of duty in same connection, 1950, 1952-1953; senior writer and editor for The Reporter, 1948-1958; managing editor of Horizon, 1958-1963; editor of Horizon Books, 1963-1967; author of numerous books and articles.

Born 1910, New York City, son of William Bayard and Olga Unger Hale. Educated at Riverdale Country School and schools abroad; B.A. Yale University 1931. Married Jean Laughlin Barker of Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1931; children: Katherine Laughlin, Jonathan Bayard, Elizabeth Douglas. Episcopalian. Democrat.

Pursuits have ranged over three fields: writing (history, biography, criticism, current affairs, fiction, and satire), editing (numerous magazines), and government service (recurrent).

Began as founder (with Selden Rodman) of the widely publicized Yale undergraduate magazine, the Harkness Hoot . Published first book, Challenge to Defeat: Goethe's World and Spengler's Century, in 1932. Joined Vanity Fair as associate editor in the same year, also contributing stories and sketches; columnist on Washington Post, 1933-1934; editorial associate, Fortune, 1934-1936. After contributing also to Harper's, the Atlantic Monthly, Story in its prime, etc., turned freelance to write a novel, Hannibal Hooker (1938), an adventure yarn, A Yank in the RAF (1940) before interruption by war service. Returned from the latter to write The March of Freedom (1946), a layman's history of America. Served on the New Republic 1946-1947 as senior editor and occasional contributor, leaving it on political grounds. Joined The Reporter at its inception (1948) as senior writer, and after a four-year time-out first to write Horace Greeley, a biography (1950) and then to serve in the Department of the Army and the Foreign Service abroad. Rejoined The Reporter as contributing editor, again writing essays and articles. Switched to Horizon as managing editor at its inception (1958), writing fairly frequent satirical and other pieces for it besides, while also engaged on a historical series for American Heritage that resulted in a book on prominent American movers and shakers overseas, Innocence Abroad (1958).

Continued as editor of Horizon until 1963; editor of Horizon Books 1963-1967, senior writer 1967-1968. In this period produced two further books, The Horizon Book of Ancient Greece (1965) and The Horizon Book of Eating and Drinking Through the Ages (1968). Also delivered occasional lectures and wrote documentary television scripts.

Government service: Office of War Information 1941-1945, first in charge of German language broadcasts from New York, then of various psychological warfare operations conducted from London; second to SHAEF as chief of Radio Luxembourg (September 1944) and subsequently to United States Forces European Theater as policy advisor on information control matters in Germany. In 1948-1949, tours of duty with Department of the Army as Lt. Col., Military Intelligence. In 1950, civilian tour of duty for the same in Austria, followed by appointment as Foreign Service Reserve Officer and First Secretary at Vienna, first as head of U.S. information activities in that country under quadripartite occupation, then as director of all U.S. Public Affairs there, 1952-1953.

Home: Woods End Lane, Wesport, Connecticut.

Died: July, 1974.

Based on a curriculum vitae prepared by W. H. Hale, 1961 June.