Laura Z. Hobson
Laura Z. Hobson was an influential American writer and social advocate, born on June 19, 1900, to Russian immigrant parents. Growing up in Jamaica, New York, she became attuned to social issues early in life, influenced by her father's work as the editor of the Jewish Daily Forward. Hobson pursued an education at Hunter College and Cornell University, where she began honing her writing skills, which led to a career in journalism and advertising.
She gained recognition for her novel "Gentleman's Agreement," which addressed anti-Semitism and social biases in post-World War II America, becoming a bestseller and later adapted into an Academy Award-winning film. Throughout her career, Hobson wrote for various notable publications and advocated for immigrant rights and tolerance through her work. Despite criticism of her writing style, her contributions significantly raised awareness of social issues, particularly concerning the Jewish community in the United States. Hobson's legacy endures, reflecting her commitment to social justice and literary expression until her passing in 1986.
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Subject Terms
Laura Z. Hobson
Author
- Born: June 19, 1900
- Birthplace: New York, New York
- Died: February 28, 1986
- Place of death: New York, New York
Biography
Laura Kean Zametkin Hobson was born just after midnight on June 19, 1900, an hour after her twin sister Alice, to socialist Russian immigrants, Michael Zametkin and Adella Kean Zametkin. Hobson became aware of social issues during her childhood in Jamaica on Long Island, New York, where her parents moved when she was seven. In addition to organizing laborers and teaching English as a second language, Hobson’s father edited the Jewish Daily Forward, and her mother wrote a column for The Day.
Hobson attended local schools with her two older brothers and twin sister. She served as assistant editor of Jamaica High School’s magazine and earned money writing school news published in the New York Evening Mail. Hobson began studies at Hunter College, later transferring to Cornell University. She submitted articles about college life to Women’s Wearand the New York Globeto earn tuition money. She received an A.B. degree with honors in 1921. Employed by the George Batten Company from 1923 to 1926, Hobson wrote advertising copy. She worked as the only female reporter at the New York Evening Postfrom 1926 to 1927. She married publisher Francis Thayer Hobson in 1930, and divorced him five years later; the couple had no children. She later adopted a son in 1937 and gave birth to a son in 1941.
From 1934 to 1940, Hobson wrote promotional campaigns for Henry Luce’s periodicals, including Fortuneand Life, and briefly directed promotional campaigns at Timeuntil she resigned in 1941 to write full time. By 1952, she agreed to provide consulting services for several national magazines, including Time, Fortune, and Sports Illustrated, continuing until 1962. She also was an editorial consultant for the Saturday Reviewfrom 1960 through 1984. Diagnosed with cancer, Hobson died on February 28, 1986.
In the early 1930’s, Hobson used the pen name Peter Field when collaborating with her husband to write two Western novels. After her divorce, Hobson devoted herself to her writing and aspirations, publishing a children’s book and short stories in Collier’sand other magazines. In 1941, Richard L. Simon of the Simon & Schuster publishing house gave Hobson an advance and contract for a novel. Hobson voiced political and social concerns in her work, denouncing quotas for refugee immigrants and anti-Semitic behavior. She encouraged readers to recognize biases and emphasized tolerance.
Hobson’s best-known novel, Gentleman’s Agreement, serialized in Cosmopolitan, provided her financial and creative freedom. Some reviewers criticized Hobson’s writing style for not being sufficiently literary, even suggesting her work was propaganda. However, several critics thought her writing was significant because it raised public conscience regarding how Jews were often excluded and mistreated in the United States, particularly after the Holocaust. With more than two million copies sold, Gentleman’s Agreementstayed on best-seller lists for several months. Director Elia Kazan adapted Hobson’s story into a 1947 Academy Award-winning motion picture. Many of Hobson’s works were translated, issued as book club selections, or adapted for radio and television broadcasts.