Edgar Snow (b. 17 July 1905 in Kansas City, Missouri, d. 15 February 1972) was an American journalist known for his books and articles on communist China.

Biography

He briefly studied journalism in college but moved to New York City before graduating. He made some money in the stock market and sold out before the crash of 1929. He moved to China in 1928 and stayed until 1941. While in China, he wrote and published numerous articles and books. He also worked for the Chinese government in Beijing. In 1937 he published the work that was to make him famous, Red Star Over China , an account of the revolutionary movement that led to the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Snow returned to the United States in 1941 with his American wife, Helen Foster . Because of his communist ties, McCarthyism made life difficult for Snow, forcing him to leave America in the 1950s. He moved to Switzerland, but retained his American citizenship.

He returned to China in 1961 and 1964 and interviewed Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai. In 1970, he made a final trip to China and was told that President Richard Nixon would be welcome to visit either officially or as a private citizen. This eventually led to renewed Sino-American relations.

Snow died of cancer on February 15, 1972, the week President Nixon was travelling to China.

External link

• Edgar Snow Archives at the University of Missouri in Kansas City