Eugene Arthur Davidson, author, born Sept. 22, 1902 in New York City, died Jan. 15, 2002 in Santa Barbara. His parents were William Arthur and Bertha Passarge Davidson. After receiving his B.A. degree from Yale in 1927 he continued at Yale Graduate School in English. He married Louise Keil, April 6, 1928 (now deceased). After his year of post graduate work he joined the staff of the Yale Review and in 1931 he was appointed editor of the Yale University Press, a post he held with distinction and helped bring the Yale University Press into its outstanding position in the book publishing world. He became widely recognized during this time for his criticism of poetry and as a poet in his own right, published in The American Mercury, the Yale Review and other magazines. His reviews and articles appeared in the Saturday Review, the Yale Review and The Progressive. He was a linguist of unusual talent. He read and to some extent spoke five or six languages, including Chinese. From 1957-70 he also was Director of the Foundation for Foreign Affairs in Washington because of his keen interest in international relations. During his tenure at the Yale University Press he was sent abroad to make first hand observations and to make contact with the creative and scholarly writing that had been done under cover during the war. It was after this trip that he began his research and prolific writing about Germany. His first book was underway when he left Yale to become editor of Modern Age in Chicago, a post he held from 1960-70. His first book, “The Death and Life of Germany” was published in 1959, “The Trial of the Germans” in 1967. After leaving Chicago and moving with his wife, Suzette Morton Zurcher, to Santa Barbara his writing continued in earnest succession, “The Nuremberg Fallacy”, 1973, “The Making of Adolf Hitler”, 1977, “The Unmaking of Adolf Hitler”, 1996. His continuing interest in foreign affairs led him to Chair the Conference on European Problems over several years, becoming honorary president in 1986. The University of Missouri Press republished his first four volumes in paperback after they were no longer in print. They published the original hardcover edition of “The Unmaking of Adolf Hitler” and “Reflections on a Disruptive Decade” in 2000. “The Narrow Path of Freedom and other Essays” will be published in 2002. After Suzette’s death in 1996, Mr. Davidson continued to live in their home in Santa Barbara where he maintained a lively interest in the publication of these editions. He is survived by his son Ben Davidson and daughter Lisa Nelte; two grandchildren; and three stepchildren, Ariel Herrmann, Sterling Hamill and Victor Zurcher. Memorial donations may be made in his name to the University of Missouri Press, 2910 LeMone Blvd., Columbia, MO 65201 or the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, 1130 State St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Arrangements by Welch-Ryce-Haider Funeral Chapels.
