George W. Crane
Encyclopedia
Dr. George W. Crane was a psychologist and physician
, best known as a conservative
syndicated
newspaper columnist (Worry Clinic, Test Your Horse Sense) for 60 years (he had previously written campaign speeches for Calvin Coolidge
), and published at least three books. He was the father of Republican
U.S. congressmen
Phil
and Dan Crane
.
In the 1930s, Crane developed and distributed many pamphlets concerning life, emotional health and marriage. One of them, "Tests for Husbands and Wives," remains a topic of discussion even into the 21st century. This pamphlet contained evaluation charts for both husbands and wives, who could score themselves and others according to a 100-point scale. The tests were composite opinions of 600 husbands and wives, and included their most frequently voiced flaws and virtues. Crane summarized these opinions, and allocated points that reflected his "judgement as a psychologist and physician." While many of the evaluations reflect lifestyles of the day, taking points off for wives with crooked stocking seams or wearing red nail polish, the pamphlet advocated a degree of sexual equality; the only twenty-pointer in the test was for the husband: "Ardent lover - sees his wife has orgasm in marital congress."
In 1957, he founded the Scientific Marriage Foundation, which claimed to have arranged over 5,000 marriages. Applicants would fill out forms, provide character references and photographs, and interview a local counselor of the foundation, who would provide an assessment of the candidate. The information was sent to the foundation in Mellott, Indiana, which would process the data with an IBM sorting machine, and pair up men and women according to their expected compatibility. Advised by religious leaders of the day, such as Rev. Norman Vincent Peale
, Rabbi George Fox and Methodist Bishop Gerald Kennedy, it was one of the first computer dating organizations. Crane's Foundation predated the pioneering Tarr, Crump, and Ginsberg computer dating system by several years.
His articles consistently emphasized the use of logic in approaching life and solving problems. However, the logic presented in his columns was often unorthodox. As an example, in an article entitled,"Why Men are Superior to Women," Crane offered the argument in support of his thesis, "How many women have you heard about, [sic] who were shepherds?"
One of Dr. Crane's long-standing philosophies theorised that the reason for marital conflict was a lack of sufficient quantities of "boudoir cheesecake," i.e., connubial bliss.
He wrote a psychology textbook entitled "Psychology Applied" which was in print from 1932 to 1967.
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, best known as a conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
syndicated
Print syndication
Print syndication distributes news articles, columns, comic strips and other features to newspapers, magazines and websites. They offer reprint rights and grant permissions to other parties for republishing content of which they own/represent copyrights....
newspaper columnist (Worry Clinic, Test Your Horse Sense) for 60 years (he had previously written campaign speeches for Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
), and published at least three books. He was the father of Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
U.S. congressmen
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
Phil
Phil Crane
Philip Miller "Phil" Crane is a former American politician. He was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1969 to 2005, representing the 8th District of Illinois in the northwestern suburbs of Chicago...
and Dan Crane
Dan Crane
Daniel Bever Crane is a dentist and a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives. He served as a Republican congressman from 1979 to 1985. In 1983, he was censured by the House....
.
In the 1930s, Crane developed and distributed many pamphlets concerning life, emotional health and marriage. One of them, "Tests for Husbands and Wives," remains a topic of discussion even into the 21st century. This pamphlet contained evaluation charts for both husbands and wives, who could score themselves and others according to a 100-point scale. The tests were composite opinions of 600 husbands and wives, and included their most frequently voiced flaws and virtues. Crane summarized these opinions, and allocated points that reflected his "judgement as a psychologist and physician." While many of the evaluations reflect lifestyles of the day, taking points off for wives with crooked stocking seams or wearing red nail polish, the pamphlet advocated a degree of sexual equality; the only twenty-pointer in the test was for the husband: "Ardent lover - sees his wife has orgasm in marital congress."
In 1957, he founded the Scientific Marriage Foundation, which claimed to have arranged over 5,000 marriages. Applicants would fill out forms, provide character references and photographs, and interview a local counselor of the foundation, who would provide an assessment of the candidate. The information was sent to the foundation in Mellott, Indiana, which would process the data with an IBM sorting machine, and pair up men and women according to their expected compatibility. Advised by religious leaders of the day, such as Rev. Norman Vincent Peale
Norman Vincent Peale
Dr. Norman Vincent Peale was a minister and author and a progenitor of the theory of "positive thinking".-Early life and education:...
, Rabbi George Fox and Methodist Bishop Gerald Kennedy, it was one of the first computer dating organizations. Crane's Foundation predated the pioneering Tarr, Crump, and Ginsberg computer dating system by several years.
His articles consistently emphasized the use of logic in approaching life and solving problems. However, the logic presented in his columns was often unorthodox. As an example, in an article entitled,"Why Men are Superior to Women," Crane offered the argument in support of his thesis, "How many women have you heard about, [sic] who were shepherds?"
One of Dr. Crane's long-standing philosophies theorised that the reason for marital conflict was a lack of sufficient quantities of "boudoir cheesecake," i.e., connubial bliss.
He wrote a psychology textbook entitled "Psychology Applied" which was in print from 1932 to 1967.