ARN THORN

ARN THORN (December 26, 1904-December 13, 1985)

            He was born in Lodz, Poland.  He studied in religious primary school, yeshiva, and secular subjects privately.  In 1925 he moved to Paris, in 1930 to Canada, and in 1940 to New York.  He debuted in print in Mashḥit (Ruin), a weekly newspaper in Lodz.  He published translated French stories in Naye folksblat (New people’s newspaper) in Lodz, anarchistic articles in Dos fraye vort (The free word) in Buenos Aires, Der frayer gedank (The free idea) in Paris, Problemen (Problems) in Tel Aviv, and Fraye arbeter shtime (Free voice of labor) in New York, at which he was assistant editor (1951-1955) and editor (1975-1977).  On socio-economic topics, he wrote for: Forverts (Forward), Tog-morgn-zhurnal (Day-morning journal), Gerekhtikeyt (Justice), Tsukunft (Future), Unzer tsayt (Our time), and Afn shvel (At the threshold)—all in New York.  He translated from German a volume of Rudolf Rocker’s Di yugnt fun a rebel (The youth of a rebel) (Buenos Aires, 1965-1971).  He also wrote under the pen names: P. Konstan, V. Kortlandt, and A. T. Hespyaner.  He died in New York.

Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), cols. 277-78, 543.