Martin Ebon (May 27, 1917 – February 11, 2006) was the pen-name of Hans Martin Schwarz, a

German American German Americans (german: Deutschamerikaner, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. With an estimated size of approximately 43 million in 2019, German Americans are the largest of the self-reported ancestry groups by the Unite ...

journalist and author of non-fiction books and articles from the

paranormal Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Nota ...

to politics, particularly as an

anti-communist Anti-communism is Political movement, political and Ideology, ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, w ...

Background

Hans Martin Schwarz was born on May 27, 1917, in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Career

During the 1930s, Schwarz published in '' Israelitisches Familienblatt'' among other German-Jewish periodicals. In 1938, Schwarz emigrated to the USA, lived in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

from 1938 onwards, and changed his name from Hans Martin Schwartz to Martin Ebon. During World War II, he served in the

U.S. Office of War Information The United States Office of War Information (OWI) was a United States government agency created during World War II. The OWI operated from June 1942 until September 1945. Through radio broadcasts, newspapers, posters, photographs, films and other ...

(formed June 1942), the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

(as an information officer), and by 1948 had joined the staff of ''

Partisan Review ''Partisan Review'' (''PR'') was a small-circulation quarterly "little magazine" dealing with literature, politics, and cultural commentary published in New York City. The magazine was launched in 1934 by the Communist Party USA–affiliated John ...

'' magazine. In January 1948, Ebon published his first book in English, ''World Communism Today''. The book reviewed a century of

Marxism Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...

, following the publication of the ''Communist Manifesto'' by

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

and

Friedrich Engels Friedrich Engels ( ,"Engels"
'' Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. Arthur Meier Schlesinger Jr. (; born Arthur Bancroft Schlesinger; October 15, 1917 – February 28, 2007) was an American historian, social critic, and public intellectual. The son of the influential historian Arthur M. Schlesinger Sr. and a s ...

praised the book as an "outstanding work on communist penetration and strategy." The book was cited as an expert source, e.g., 60,000 members in the Korean Communist Party as of 1949. In March 1948, he appeared on WMAL AM radio in Washington, DC, to discuss "Which Way America – Fascism, Communism, Socialism, or Democracy?" with

Raymond Moley Raymond Charles Moley (September 27, 1886 – February 18, 1975) was an American political economist. Initially a leading supporter of the New Deal, he went on to become its bitter opponent before the end of the Great Depression. Early life and ...

(

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Norman Thomas Norman Mattoon Thomas (November 20, 1884 – December 19, 1968) was an American Presbyterian minister who achieved fame as a socialist, pacifist, and six-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America. Early years Thomas was the ...

(

Socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

), and

Leon Milton Birkhead Rev. Leon Milton Birkhead (April 28, 1885– Dec. 1, 1954) was an American Unitarian minister who founded the Friends of Democracy in 1937 "after two trips to Germany had caused him alarm over the growth of the Nazi movement and what he believed to ...

( Unitarian). His July 1948 article "Communist Tactics in Palestine" in the ''

Middle East Journal ''The Middle East Journal'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by the Middle East Institute (Washington, D.C.). It was established in 1947 and covers research on the modern Middle East, including political, economic, and social ...

'' received a favorably review as "carefully documented" and "objective and non-partisan." In 1953, his book ''

Malenkov Georgy Maximilianovich Malenkov ( – 14 January 1988) was a Soviet politician who briefly succeeded Joseph Stalin as the leader of the Soviet Union. However, at the insistence of the rest of the Presidium, he relinquished control over the par ...

Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...

's Successor'' received mixed reviews as "short," quickly published (weeks after Stalin's death), and carefully appraising thanks to the author's previous book on world communism. It drew favorable comparison to

Eugene Lyons Eugene Lyons (July 1, 1898 – January 7, 1985) was an American journalist and writer. A fellow traveler of Communism in his younger years, Lyons became highly critical of the Soviet Union after several years there as a correspondent of United ...

' ''Our Secret Allies''. Ebon held various positions in book and magazine retailing, including: * Managing Editor of foreign language division, Overseas News Agency;

U.S. Information Agency The United States Information Agency (USIA), which operated from 1953 to 1999, was a United States agency devoted to " public diplomacy". In 1999, prior to the reorganization of intelligence agencies by President George W. Bush, President Bill ...

, New York City * Information Officer on Far Eastern desks, 1950–52;

Hill & Knowlton Hill+Knowlton Strategies is an American global public relations consulting company, headquartered in New York City, United States, with over 80 offices in more than 40 countries. The company was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1927 by John W. Hil ...

, Inc. (public relations), New York City * Account Executive, 1952–53;

Parapsychology Foundation The Parapsychology Foundation is a non-profit organisation founded in 1951 by the medium Eileen J. Garrett and Frances Payne Bolton, Ohio's first female representative in Congress. The foundation is based in New York. They offer grants and scholar ...

, Inc., New York City, administrative secretary and editor, 1953–65, working closely with its founder, Eileen J. Garrett * Lombard Associates, Inc. (public relations and publications consultants), New York City, president, 1962–82 * Consulting Editor,

New American Library The New American Library (also known as NAL) is an American publisher based in New York, founded in 1948. Its initial focus was affordable paperback reprints of classics and scholarly works as well as popular and pulp fiction, but it now publishe ...

(publishers), 1966–83 * Executive Editor of hardcover book division,

Playboy Press PLBY Group, Inc. is an American global media and lifestyle company founded by Hugh Hefner as Playboy Enterprises, Inc. to oversee the ''Playboy'' magazine and related assets. Its headquarters are in Los Angeles, California. The company is focus ...

, 1971–72 * Lecturer in Division of Social Sciences,

The New School The New School is a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for progressive thinkers. ...

, 1949–50, 1955–56, 1967 * Consultant, Foundation for Research on the Nature of Man, 1966–67 * Free-lance writer from 1967 on

Personal life and death

Ebon married Chariklia Baltazzi; they had one son. Martin Ebon died age 82 on February 11, 2006, in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

Legacy

The

Center for Jewish History The Center for Jewish History is a partnership of five Jewish history, scholarship, and art organizations in New York City: American Jewish Historical Society, American Sephardi Federation, Leo Baeck Institute New York, Yeshiva University Museum, ...

houses articles written by Ebon between 1934 and 1938 for German-Jewish newspapers, plus reviews of his German-language books.

Works

Ebon published dozens of books on world affairs and parapsychology. ;Books in German * ''Einer wie Du und Ich'' (1937) * ''Heiteres, Besinnliches, Nachdenkliches'' (1937) ;Books in English *''World Communism Today'' (1948) * ''

's Successor'', McGraw-Hill, 1953 * ''Svetlana: The Story of Stalin's Daughter'', New American Library, 1967 * ''Prophecy in Our Time'', New American Library, 1968. * ''The Making of a Legend'', Universe Books, 1969. * ''Lin Pao: The Life and Writings of China's New Ruler'', Stein & Day. * ''Witchcraft Today'', New American Library, 1971. * ''Every Woman's Guide to Abortion'', Universe Books, 1971. * ''They Knew the Unknown'', World Publishing, 1971. * ''The Truth about Vitamin E'', Bantam, 1972. * ''The Devil's Bride: Exorcism, Past and Present'', Harper, 1974. * ''The Essential Vitamin Counter'', Bantam, 1974. * ''Which Vitamins Do You Need?'', Bantam, 1974. * ''Saint Nicholas.- Life and Legend'', Harper, 1975. * ''The Satan Trap: Dangers of the Occult'', Doubleday, 1976. * ''What's New in ESP?'', Pyramid, 1976. * ''The Relaxation Controversy'', New American Library, 1976. * ''The Evidence for Life after Death'', New American Library, 1977. * ''Miracles'', Signet, 1981. * ''Psychic Warfare: Threat or Illusion'', McGraw-Hill, 1983. * ''The Andropov File'', McGraw-Hill, 1983. * ''Nikita Khrushchev'', Chelsea House, 1986. * ''The Soviet Propaganda Machine'', McGraw-Hill, 1987. * ''KGB: Death and Rebirth'', Greenwood/Praeger, 1994 ;Books as "Eric Ward" * ''The President's Daughter'' with Ursala Russell, Bantam, 1973 ;Articles * "World Communism Has Passed Its Peak," ''American Mercury'' (January 1948) * "Communist Tactics in Palestine," ''

'' (July 1948) * "Psychic Studies: The Soviet Dilemma," ''Skeptical Inquirer'' (1985) ;Miscellaneous * Letter to

Joshua Lederberg Joshua () or Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' lit. 'Yahweh is salvation') ''Yēšūaʿ''; syr, ܝܫܘܥ ܒܪ ܢܘܢ ''Yəšūʿ bar Nōn''; el, Ἰησοῦς, ar , يُوشَعُ ٱبْنُ نُونٍ '' Yūšaʿ ...

(15 November 1985)

References

External links

Guide to the Hans Martin Schwarz collection
at the

Leo Baeck Institute The Leo Baeck Institute, established in 1955, is an international research institute with centres in New York City, London, and Jerusalem that are devoted to the study of the history and culture of German-speaking Jewry. Baeck was its first intern ...

, NY. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ebon, Martin 1917 births 2006 deaths American health and wellness writers American occult writers American political writers German occultists American occultists Parapsychologists People of the United States Office of War Information German emigrants to the United States Writers from Hamburg American male non-fiction writers 20th-century American male writers