The usually astute Jonathan Mark does an injustice to Peter Bergson, slighting him as “a sidekick of Ben Hecht.” Bergson came to America in 1939, with other Jewish militants, to raise money for the rescue of Jews in Europe. Hecht did not meet him, much less join the Bergson Group, until 1941.
A brilliant writer, Hecht was invaluable in raising public awareness of the group’s work. But it’s a mistake to confuse the public face of the group with its leader.
Manhattan
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