Carolina Israelite

March 1, 2015
A warts-and-all portrait of Harry Golden (1903-1981), founder of the North Carolina newspaper Carolina Israelite.Hartnett pulls no punches in describing the life and career of the Jewish American humorist perhaps best known for his bestselling first book, Only in America (1958). She makes clear that he was a charming man who tricked people out of money and reneged on promises. Born Hershel Goldhirsch in present-day Ukraine, he told various versions of when he was born and when he arrived in New York City's Lower East Side. Hartnett notes his discrepancies but does not attempt to sort them out. She passes briefly over his short career on Wall Street and his prison sentence for mail fraud, focusing instead on his life in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he settled during World War II and where he founded the Carolina Israelite. Liberal quotes give the flavor of Golden's style, his warm humor about the Jewish experience in America, his deep sympathy for the underdog, and especially his views on race relations. Hartnett shows us his friendship with Carl Sandburg, who wrote the foreword for his first book, his work for Adlai Stevenson, his relations with the Kennedy White House, and the disdain he received from Jewish intellectuals, who found him sentimental, even corny. The popularity he enjoyed in the 1950s and '60s waned in the '70s, as a younger generation disagreed with his views on the Vietnam War and were not charmed by his romanticized Lower East Side stories. Much more than the biography of one man, however, this is a well-told account of the civil rights movement, describing significant milestones in its history, the splits among its leaders, and the various forms that activism took. A solid piece of research that reveals both the strengths and weaknesses of a now-forgotten man who loved a good story and could put a comic spin on important social issues.

Starred review from April 15, 2015

Journalist and humorist Harry Golden's best seller Only in America secured him a place in mid 20th-century Jewish American popular culture. This comprehensive biography of Golden's fascinating life (1902-81) by journalist Hartnett sheds light on other facets of this important figure and his role in the cultural and social scene in that era. Through this well-written narrative, we get a glimpse into the civil rights movement and the New York literary and publishing scene as Golden was an valuable adjunct to both. Golden founded a newspaper in Charlotte, NC, called Carolina Israelite that he published well into the 1960s, using his journalistic skills and celebrity to advocate for civil rights. He was an articulate and passionate spokesman for social inclusion, and his enormous popularity as a journalist prompted Life magazine to send him to Israel to cover the trial of Nazi Adolf Eichmann. This irked the so-called New York intelligentsia who, until this time, had largely ignored Golden. His critics included the Partisan Review crowd and novelist Philip Roth. VERDICT This highly readable and recommended biography will be a welcome addition to public and university libraries, especially those with interests in Jewish American culture, the civil rights movement, and the American South.--Herbert E. Shapiro, Lifelong Learning Soc., Florida Atlantic Univ., Boca Raton

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