Thomas Sancton (January 11, 1915 – April 6, 2012) was an American novelist and journalist.
Biography
Sancton was born in the
Panama Canal Zone
The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a U.S. state, state in the Deep South and South Central United States, South Central regions of the United States. It is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 20th-smal ...
. Sancton graduated from
Tulane University
Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pu ...
in 1935 and became a reporter at
The Times-Picayune
''The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate'' is an American newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana, since January 25, 1837. The current publication is the result of the 2019 acquisition of ''The Times-Picayune'' (itself a result of th ...
. He studied at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
as a
Nieman Fellow
The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University awards multiple types of fellowships.
Nieman Fellowships for journalists
A Nieman Fellowship is an award given to journalists by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. ...
in 1941 and 1942. He wrote extensively on
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life ...
and the South while serving as the managing editor of ''
The New Republic
''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hu ...
'' and, later, as Washington editor of ''The Nation''. In the 1950s he was a reporter and feature writer for The
New Orleans Item-Tribune
The ''New Orleans Item-Tribune'', sometimes rendered in press accounts as the ''New Orleans Item and Tribune'', was an American newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana, in various forms from 1871 to 1958.
Early history
The newspaper, ref ...
, and taught feature writing at Tulane. He also reported for ''Life'' magazine, and for the
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. n ...
. In the 1960s he represented clients of Walker Saussy Inc., a New Orleans-based public relations firm, before launching his own public relations business. In 2013, his extensive papers and correspondence were donated to the Historic New Orleans Collection.
Sancton's son is Thomas Sancton Jr., a noted jazz clarinetist, author, and former Paris bureau chief for
Time magazine
''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on M ...
. He had two daughters, Bethany Villere and Wendy Aucoin. Sancton's wife, Seta Alexander Sancton (1915–2007), was the author of "The World From Gillespie Place," a popular memoir of growing up in
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the Capital city, capital of and the List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi, ...
.
Writings
Books
* ''By Starlight''
* ''Count Roller Skates''
The Nation
* "The Case of Alger Hiss" (September 4, 1948)
* "Hiss and Chambers: a Tangled Web" (December 18, 1948)