Lerner, Max, 1902-

Max Lerner was born in Minsk, Russia, in 1902. Lerner was editor of The Nation (1936-1938); editorial director of the newspaper, PM (1943-1948); columnist for its successor, the New York Star (1948-1949); and regular columnist for the New York Post (1949-1970s). Lerner taught political science at various institutions, including Williams College (1938-1943), and was a founder of and professor at Brandeis University (1949-1973). He wrote numerous articles and books and lectured on a wide range of topics. Max Lerner died in 1992.

Max Lerner was born in Minsk, Russia, in 1902 and came to the United States in 1907. His family lived first in New York City and then in New Haven, Connecticut, where he attended high school. Lerner received his B.A. degree from Yale University in 1923 and attended Yale Law School for one year. He received his M.A. degree from Washington University in 1925 and his Ph.D. from the Robert Brookings Graduate School of Economics and Government in 1927. He worked as assistant editor of the Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences and became managing editor. From 1932 until 1935 he taught political science at Sarah Lawrence College; he also taught at the Wellesley Summer Institute and the Harvard Summer School. From 1936 until 1938 he was editor of The Nation . In 1938 Lerner became professor of political science at Williams College, remaining there until 1943.

Throughout his career Lerner has been an active writer, commentator, and lecturer. From 1943 until 1948 he was editorial director of the newspaper PM and in 1948 and 1949 he was a columnist for its successor the New York Star . In 1949 Lerner became a regular columnist for the New York Post ; his column appeared three times weekly for more than twenty years. Active in the founding of Brandeis University, Lerner became professor of American Civilization there in 1949 and remained there until his retirement. His well-known book, America as a Civilization, in large part grew out of his Brandeis course.

Lerner wrote many magazine articles and in the 1950s and 1960s spoke frequently before educational associations, college and university groups, religious and civic organizations, and on television and radio programs. He is the author of It is Later Than You Think (1938 rev. ed 1943), Ideas are Weapons (1939), Ideas for the Ice Age (1941), The Mind and Faith of Justice Holmes (1943), Public Journal (1945), The Portable Veblen (1948), Actions and Passions (1949), America as a Civilization (1957), The Unfinished Country (1959), The Essential Works of John Stuart Mill (1961), The Age of Overkill (1962), Education and a Radical Humanism (1962), and Tocqueville and American Civilization (1969).

Lerner married Anita Marburg in 1928, and they had three daughters: Constance, Pamela (dec.), and Joanna. They were divorced in 1940, and in 1941 he married Edna Albers; they had three sons: Michael, Stephen, and Adam. Max Lerner died mid 1992.

From the guide to the Max Lerner papers, 1927-1998, (Manuscripts and Archives)