Priscilla Langford Buckley (October 17, 1921 – March 25, 2012) was an American journalist and author who was the longtime managing editor of ''

National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich L ...

''.

Education

Buckley graduated with a degree in history in 1943 from

Smith College Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts, United States. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smit ...

, while there, one of her best friends was

Betty Friedan Betty Friedan (; February 4, 1921 – February 4, 2006) was an American feminist writer and activist. A leading figure in the women's movement in the United States, her 1963 book '' The Feminine Mystique'' is often credited with sparking the s ...

. Nancy Reagan was in the same graduating class at Smith as Buckley.

Work for the CIA

She worked for the CIA in the 1950s and for

United Press United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ...

from 1944 to 1948 (in New York) and again from 1953 to 1956 (in Paris).

Work for National Review

Priscilla Buckley started working at William F. Buckley's publication, ''

'', in 1956. She became managing editor of the publication in 1959 following the retirement of the publication's original managing editor,

Suzanne La Follette Suzanne Clara La Follette (June 24, 1893 – April 23, 1983) was an American journalist and author who advocated for libertarian feminism in the first half of the 20th century. As an editor she helped found several magazines. She was an early and ...

Whittaker Chambers Whittaker Chambers (born Jay Vivian Chambers; April 1, 1901 – July 9, 1961) was an American writer and intelligence agent. After early years as a Communist Party member (1925) and Soviet spy (1932–1938), he defected from the Soviet u ...

recommended Buckley for the position. Buckley served as managing editor until 1985 and continued working at ''National Review'' until 1999. She worked at ''National Review'' for a total of 43 years. According to ''The New York Times'', Buckley's influence at ''National Review'' led some to refer to the publication as "Miss Buckley’s Finishing School for Young Ladies and Gentlemen of Conservative Persuasion". Writers whom she helped to train include

Paul Gigot Paul Anthony Gigot (; born May 24, 1955) is an American Pulitzer Prize–winning conservative political commentator and editor of the editorial pages for ''The Wall Street Journal''. He is also the moderator of the public affairs television se ...

, Bill McGurn,

Mona Charen Mona Charen Parker ( ; born February 25, 1957) is an American conservative columnist, journalist, and political commentator. She has written four books. Early life and education Charen was born in New York City and raised in Livingston, New Jer ...

, and Anthony R. Dolan.

Pro-life stance

Buckley was opposed to abortion and in the 1970s and 1980s served on the board for the Ad Hoc Committee in Defense of Life.

Publications

Buckley authored ''String of Pearls'', a 2001 memoir about international journalism, and a 2005 book entitled ''Living It Up with National Review: A Memoir''.

Personal life

Buckley was born in New York City. She was the third of 10 children of William Frank Buckley Sr., and Aloise Josephine Antonia Steiner. Buckley's siblings included future

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

and federal judge

James L. Buckley James Lane Buckley (March 9, 1923 – August 18, 2023) was an American politician, jurist, diplomat, and author. Buckley served in the United States Senate as a member of the Conservative Party of New York State, held multiple positions within ...

and

William F. Buckley Jr. William Frank Buckley Jr. (born William Francis Buckley; November 24, 1925 – February 27, 2008) was an American conservative writer, public intellectual, political commentator and novelist. Born in New York City, Buckley spoke Spanish as his ...

, a future conservative author. Her nickname was "Pitts".

Later years

Buckley died of kidney failure on March 25, 2012, at the age of 90 at Great Elm, the house in

Sharon Sharon ( 'plain'), also spelled Saron, is a given name as well as a Hebrew name. In Anglosphere, English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name, but historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In Israel, ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, where she lived and where she and her siblings had grown up.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buckley, Priscilla Langford 1921 births 2012 deaths Buckley family National Review people Writers from Connecticut Writers from New York City People from Sharon, Connecticut 21st-century American women writers American women non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers Smith College alumni