Leo Rosten
Leo Calvin Rosten was a multifaceted writer and social scientist, born on April 11, 1908, in Lodz, Poland, and later immigrating to the United States as an infant. He became a prominent figure in literature and academia, earning degrees from the University of Chicago and teaching English to immigrant students during the Great Depression. Rosten's writing career began in the mid-1930s under the pseudonym Leonard Q. Ross, and he is best known for his humorous book, *The Education of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N*, which features a beloved character who epitomizes the immigrant experience.
Throughout his life, Rosten produced a wide array of fiction and nonfiction, including *The Joys of Yiddish*, a humorous exploration of Jewish language and culture, as well as the acclaimed novel *Captain Newman, M.D.*, which was adapted into a successful film. His extensive contributions to magazines and screenplays, particularly during his time at Look magazine, showcased his versatility as a writer. Rosten also ventured into mystery writing later in his career, creating detective stories featuring unique characters and settings. He passed away on February 19, 1997, leaving behind a rich legacy of cultural commentary and humor.
Leo Rosten
Polish-born American novelist, short fiction writer, screenwriter, and nonfiction writer.
- Born: April 11, 1908
- Birthplace: Lodz, Poland
- Died: February 19, 1997
- Place of death:New York City, New York
Biography
Leo Calvin Rosten was born on April 11, 1908, in Lodz, Poland, and as an infant immigrated with his parents to the United States, settling in Chicago, Illinois. He graduated from the University of Chicago and during the Depression taught English classes at night to immigrant students, an experience he would later use in his fiction. He studied in London and Moscow and earned a PhB degree in 1930 and a PhD in 1937, both from the University of Chicago. A respected social scientist, Rosten produced studies on Washington correspondents and a statistical analysis of the Hollywood film industry. He also taught at several universities.
In the mid-1930s, Rosten, often using the pseudonym Leonard Q. Ross, began a writing career that would span some fifty years, publishing stories in The New Yorker about a night school prodigy who was always wrong. The collected stories were published in 1937 as the humorous book, The Education of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N. The main character also served as the focus of two sequels, The Return of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N and O K*A*P*L*A*N! My K*A*P*L*A*N!.
Rosten wrote dozens of works of fiction and nonfiction throughout his life, contributed to magazines and penned screenplays, many of them during his tenure as a staff member at Look magazine from 1949 to 1971. One of his best-known books was the bestseller The Joys of Yiddish, a humorous guide to Jewish language and culture. He wrote the short story that provided the basis for the classic noir film, The Dark Corner, and also wrote the critically acclaimed novel, Captain Newman, M.D., which was adapted for the popular 1963 movie starring Gregory Peck. His nonfiction books include The Story Behind the Painting, People I Have Loved, Known, or Admired, Rome Wasn’t Burned in a Day: The Mischief of Language, Leo Rosten’s Treasury of Jewish Quotations, and the The Joys of Yinglish: An Exuberant Dictionary of Yiddish Words, Phrases, Locutions. . . .
Late in life, Rosten turned his hand to mystery, producing a pair of novels, Silky! A Detective Story and King Silky!. Both concerned the exploits of Sid “Silky” Pincus, a former policeman and Vietnam veteran who runs a detective agency in Manhattan and owns a dog that only obeys commands in Yiddish and only eats kosher dog food.
Rosten died on February 19, 1997, at the age of eighty-eight.
Author Works
Long Fiction:
Adventure in Washington, 1940
Captain Newman, M.D., 1961
A Most Private Intrigue, 1967
Dear "Herm": With a Cast of Dozens, 1974
Silky! A Detective Story, 1979
King Silky!, 1980
Nonfiction:
The Washington Correspondents, 1937
The Strangest Places, 1939 (as Leonard Ross)
Hollywood: The Movie Colony, the Movie Makers, 1941
The Story Behind the Painting, 1962
The Many Worlds of L*E*O R*O*S*T*E*N, 1964 (also known as The Leo Rosten Bedside Book)
The Joys of Yiddish, 1968
People I Have Loved, Known, or Admired, 1970
Rome Wasn't Burned in a Day: The Mischief of Language, 1972
Leo Rosten's Treasury of Jewish Quotations, 1972
A Trumpet for Reason, 1974
The 3:10 to Anywhere, 1976
The Power of Positive Nonsense, 1977
Passions and Prejudices: Or, Some of My Best Friends Are People, 1978
Leo Rosten’s Giant Book of Laughter, 1985
Hebrew-English Lexicon of the Bible, 1987
Hooray for Yiddish! A Book about English, 1982
The Joys of Yinglish, 1989
Leo Rosten’s Carnival of Wit, 1994
Screenplay(s):
All Through the Night, 1942
Mechanized Patrolling, 1943
The Conspirators, 1944 (with Vladimir Pozner)
Sleep, My Love, 1947 (with St. Clair McKelway)
Lured, 1947
The Velvet Touch, 1948
Where Danger Lives, 1950
The Whistle at Eaton Falls, 1951
Double Dynamite, 1952
Walk East on Beacon, 1952
Mister Cory, 1957
Short Fiction (as Leonard Q. Ross):
The Education of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N, 1937
Dateline: Europe, 1939 (also known as Balkan Express)
The Return of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N, 1959
O K*A*P*L*A*N! My K*A*P*L*A*N!, 1976
Bibliography
Bermant, Chaim. “Obituary: Leo Rosten.” The Independent, 21 Feb. 1997, www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-leo-rosten-1279762.html. Accessed 30 June 2017. An obituary with an overview of Rosten’s life and career.
Fox, Margalit. “Leo Rosten, a Writer Who Helped Yiddish Make Its Way into English, Is Dead at 88.” The New York Times, 20 Feb. 1997, www.nytimes.com/1997/02/20/books/leo-rosten-a-writer-who-helped-yiddish-make-its-way-into-english-is-dead-at-88.html. Accessed 30 June 2017. An obituary with an overview of Rosten’s life and career.
“Leo Rosten.” The New Yorker, www.newyorker.com/contributors/leo-rosten. Accessed 30 June 2017. A selection of Rosten’s articles and stories published in The New Yorker, from 1936 to 1939.
Quarels, Philip. “Leo Rosten Analyzes Humor.” WNYC, 18 Aug. 2016, www.wnyc.org/story/leo-rosten-analyzes-humor/. Accessed 30 June 2017. An overview of Rosten’s career, focusing on his view of the role of humor in society.