Wambly Bald
Wambly Bald was an American writer and journalist born in 1902, known for his contributions to literature and journalism in the early 20th century. Educated in philosophy at the University of Chicago, Bald moved to Paris in 1929, where he became a prominent voice on the Left Bank, a hub for American expatriate artists and writers between the World Wars. He wrote a column for the Paris Tribune, a French version of the Chicago Tribune, and continued to work there until its merger with the Paris Herald in 1934. His writings, later compiled in the memoir "On the Left Bank, 1929-1933," reflect a unique blend of surrealism and factual prose, capturing the vibrant Bohemian atmosphere of Paris. Although some critics dismissed his work as poor writing, others celebrated his engaging storytelling and insightful commentary on literary figures such as F. Scott Fitzgerald. Wambly Bald passed away in New York in 1990, leaving behind a legacy that highlights both the struggles and inspirations of the expatriate experience in Paris.
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Subject Terms
Wambly Bald
Fiction and Nonfiction Writer
- Born: February 12, 1902
- Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois
- Died: October 15, 1990
- Place of death: New York, New York
Biography
Wambly Bald was born in 1902 and educated in philosophy at the University of Chicago. A humble man, Bald traveled to Paris in 1929 and wrote a column on the Left Bank, the place where many American artists had gone to look for inspiration between the two World Wars, for the Paris Tribune, a French version of the Chicago Tribune. He worked as a proofreader and editor in his spare time. Despite a host of job offers, Bald stayed on at the Paris Tribune until the paper merged with the Paris Herald in 1934.
His columns were later compiled into On the Left Bank, 1929-1933, a memoir edited by Benjamin Franklin V, in 1987. Bald’s other literary endeavors included fiction pieces in New Review, Boulevardier, and several anthologies. Some lambasted Bald’s work as poor writing, but others appreciated his exaggerated stories, which mixed surrealism with factual prose and were entertaining to thousands. His pieces on authors such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and painter Henry C. Lee have been called insightful, and he was praised for conveying the Bohemian mood in Paris to the masses. Wambly Bald died in New York in 1990 at the age of eighty-eight.