François Bondy (1 January 1915 – 27 May 2003) was a Swiss journalist and novelist.

Biography

François Bondy was born on 1 January 1915 in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. As a pupil at the ''lycée de Nice'' (1928–1933), he became one of the friends of

Romain Gary Romain Gary (; 2 December 1980), born Roman Kacew (, and also known by the pen name Émile Ajar), was a French novelist, diplomat, film director, and World War II aviator. He is the only author to have won the Prix Goncourt under two names. He i ...

, then Roman Kacew.

Career

He worked for Swiss and German newspapers and was reputed for his political commentaries. He translated all of Ionesco's books into German. In 1940, Bondy worked for ''

Die Weltwoche ''Die Weltwoche'' (German for "The World Week") is a Swiss weekly magazine based in Zürich. Founded in 1933, it has been privately owned by Roger Köppel since 2006. The magazine's regular columnists include the former president of the Social D ...

''; in 1950, he joined the

Congress for Cultural Freedom The Congress for Cultural Freedom (CCF) was an anti-communist advocacy group founded in 1950. At its height, the CCF was active in thirty-five countries. In 1966 it was revealed that the CIA was instrumental in the establishment and funding of the ...

and established the monthly magazine '' Preuves'' in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. From 1970, he lived in

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

. Bondy was the first Western intellectual who promoted among others the work of the Polish exile writer

Witold Gombrowicz Witold Marian Gombrowicz (August 4, 1904 – July 24, 1969) was a Polish writer and playwright. His works are characterised by deep psychological analysis, a certain sense of paradox and absurd, anti-nationalist flavor. In 1937 he published his f ...

.see Note sur "Ferdydurke", ''Preuves'' 32/1953

Death

He died on 27 May 2003 in

Bibliography

Articles

*"Letter from Paris: Two French Voices" ''Quadrant'' 1/1 (Summer 1956/57): 63–66. 20th-century male writers 20th-century Swiss journalists 20th-century Swiss novelists 1915 births 2003 deaths Journalists from Berlin Swiss magazine founders Swiss male novelists {{switzerland-journalist-stub