Midge Decter (25 July, 1927-9 May, 2022) was an essayist, activist and social critic who described herself as an “ardent ideologue”.
Fun Facts about Midge Decter:
- Midge Rosenthal was the youngest of three daughters born in in Saint Paul, Minnesota to Rose and Harry Rosenthal was a sporting goods merchant.
- Even though she attended the University of Minnesota, the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, as well as New York University, Ms. Decter never graduated from college.
- In 1948, Midge married Moshe Decter, a prominent New York intellectual. The couple had two daughters, Naomi and Rachel. Rachel married Elliot Abrams and was a successful writer, sculpture and editor. They divorced in 1954.
- In 1956 Midge married neoconservative Norman Podhoretz, they were married until her death. The couple had two kids, Ruthie Blum, a known journalist and editor, and John Podhoretz, a journalist and conservative commentator.
- Midge Decter’s writings have appeared in Harper’s, The American Spectator, andThe National Review.
- Later Ms. Decter became the executive director of Harper’s and worked in the publishing industry.
- Among Mrs. Decter’s most notable books are 1970’s The Liberated Woman & Other Americans, a 2003 biography of Donald Rumsfeld, and her memoir, published in 2002, An Old Wife’s Tale.
- She acted as the director of the Committee for a Free World (co-chaired with Rumsfeld). This was an anti-communist organization whose goal was to protect American democracy. The organization was disbanded after the fall of the Berlin Wall
- At the time, Midge Decter was the leading anti-feminist in the United States, arguing for traditional gender roles and criticizing the women’s liberation movement.
- In 2003 she was honored by receiving the National Humanities Medal from President George W. Bush.
Zohar – Man of la Book
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