Edgar Calmer
Edgar Calmer was an American journalist and novelist born in Chicago, who spent significant parts of his early life in Boston and New York. He attended the University of Virginia in the mid-1920s but left before completing his degree to pursue a career in journalism in Paris. Between 1927 and 1934, Calmer worked for various publications, including the Paris Tribune and the Paris Herald, while establishing deep connections within the literary community, befriending renowned writers like Henry Miller and Ernest Hemingway. He published his first novel, *Beyond the Street*, in 1934, followed by *When Night Descends* in 1936.
Calmer's most notable work, *All the Summer Days*, released in 1961, vividly captures the lives of American expatriates in Paris during the 1920s and 1930s, intertwining historical events into its narrative. In addition to his writing, he had a long career at CBS, where he covered significant events, including World War II. Calmer married three times and had a daughter and a son. He dedicated his later years to writing fiction full-time until his death in 1986 in New York City. His works remain a significant contribution to the understanding of American literary life abroad.
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Edgar Calmer
Writer
- Born: July 16, 1907
- Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois
- Died: March 9, 1986
- Place of death: New York, New York
Biography
Edgar Calmer was born in Chicago to Henry Edgar and May Regan Calmer; he spent his childhood in Boston and later in New York. He attended the University of Virginia in the mid- 1920’s but did not complete his degree before leaving the United States for Paris. Between 1927 and 1934, Calmer worked as a reporter, first for the Paris Tribune, and later for the Paris Herald. As a journalist, Calmer traveled widely through Europe, but Paris always remained his center. While in Paris in March, 1929, Calmer married Priscilla A. Hatch; the couple later had a daughter.
Calmer wrote his first novel, Beyond the Street, in Paris in 1934, and he published short prose works and poems intransition,, an international magazine for experimental writers. Calmer kept company with many notable authors, including Henry Miller and Ernest Hemingway. Returning to the United States in 1934 for the publication of Beyond the Street, Calmer remained in New York until 1939. During this time he worked as a news editor while he wrote his second novel,When Night Descends, which was published in 1936.
His experiences as a journalist and a fiction writer led Calmer to work for the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) in the early 1940’s. He remained at CBS for the next twenty- seven years in positions ranging from radio reporter to television news commentator. As a reporter, Calmer traveled to London, Paris, and to the front lines during World War II. He married his second wife, Carol Church, in August, 1957, and they later had a son, Regan.
In 1961, Calmer published what may be considered his most significant work,All the Summer Days This novel describes with vivid and authentic detail the lives of American writers and journalists in Paris during the 1920’s and 1930’s. Calmer uses actual news events, like Charles Lindbergh’s transatlantic flight, Babe Ruth’s batting records, Isadora Duncan’s dancing, and the Sacco-Vanzetti trial, to add realism to the plot unfolding within the novel. Calmer’s novel stands as an important record of American expatriates in Paris.
In 1967, Calmer retired from CBS to devote himself to writing fiction full time. In 1974 he married Gloria Hercik. He died in 1986 in New York City.