William Dufty
Encyclopedia
William Francis Dufty was an American writer, and nutrition activist. Including ghostwriting
, he wrote approximately 40 books.
in Detroit
for a few years but left before finishing a degree. Yet even in his final decade, he spoke often to students there about one of his most beloved causes, unionism
. Dufty was an organizer for the United Auto Workers
, wrote speeches for former UAW President Walter Reuther
, edited Michigan Congress of Industrial Organizations
(CIO) News and handled publicity for Americans for Democratic Action
.
He served in the Army during World War II with French soldiers, because he could speak the language. He also spoke German and Japanese. After the war he moved to New York and began a newspaper career. His columns and exposés for the New York Post
drew acclaim, including one that charged that the FBI bungled cases under J. Edgar Hoover
's leadership. He was awarded the George Polk Award for an expose on immigrants.
Dufty had one son, Bevan Dufty
, with first wife Maely Bartholomew, who had arrived in New York City during World War II after losing most of her family in the Nazi concentration camps. She settled near Harlem
where she met her best friend and Bevan's godmother
, Billie Holiday
. They later divorced and Maely raised Bevan as a single mother. Bevan Dufty announced on September 24, 2009, that he would be a candidate for Mayor of San Francisco in the 2011 election.
in the title role.
His most popular book is Sugar Blues
, first published in 1975, which cautions against white refined sugar, and presents its history and cultural influence.
In the 1960s, he met Gloria Swanson
, an enthusiast for macrobiotic diets, who introduced him to the macrobiotic culture and convinced him that white sugar was unsafe.
He became good friends with Japanese artist Yoko Ono
and her husband, musician and former Beatle, John Lennon
after producing an English edition of Nyoiti Sakurazawa's You Are All Sanpaku; the book credited with starting the macrobiotic food movement in America.
, Portugal
, and Palm Springs, California.
After Swanson's death in 1983, he returned to his home state and birthplace of Michigan, settling in Metro Detroit
. From there he continued to lecture, write newspaper and magazine articles and teach macrobiotics to a new generation. Dufty died from cancer at the age of 86, on June 28, 2002, at his home in Birmingham, Michigan
.
Ghostwriter
A ghostwriter is a professional writer who is paid to write books, articles, stories, reports, or other texts that are officially credited to another person. Celebrities, executives, and political leaders often hire ghostwriters to draft or edit autobiographies, magazine articles, or other written...
, he wrote approximately 40 books.
Biography
Dufty attended Wayne State UniversityWayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
in Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
for a few years but left before finishing a degree. Yet even in his final decade, he spoke often to students there about one of his most beloved causes, unionism
Unionism
-Trades:*Community Unionism, describes the various ways in which trade unions can work with communities and community organizations*Craft unionism, an approach to union organizing in the United States and elsewhere that seeks to unify workers in a particular industry along the lines of the...
. Dufty was an organizer for the United Auto Workers
United Auto Workers
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers , is a labor union which represents workers in the United States and Puerto Rico, and formerly in Canada. Founded as part of the Congress of Industrial...
, wrote speeches for former UAW President Walter Reuther
Walter Reuther
Walter Philip Reuther was an American labor union leader, who made the United Automobile Workers a major force not only in the auto industry but also in the Democratic Party in the mid 20th century...
, edited Michigan Congress of Industrial Organizations
Congress of Industrial Organizations
The Congress of Industrial Organizations, or CIO, proposed by John L. Lewis in 1932, was a federation of unions that organized workers in industrial unions in the United States and Canada from 1935 to 1955. The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 required union leaders to swear that they were not...
(CIO) News and handled publicity for Americans for Democratic Action
Americans for Democratic Action
Americans for Democratic Action is an American political organization advocating progressive policies. ADA works for social and economic justice through lobbying, grassroots organizing, research and supporting progressive candidates.-History:...
.
He served in the Army during World War II with French soldiers, because he could speak the language. He also spoke German and Japanese. After the war he moved to New York and began a newspaper career. His columns and exposés for the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
drew acclaim, including one that charged that the FBI bungled cases under J. Edgar Hoover
J. Edgar Hoover
John Edgar Hoover was the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation of the United States. Appointed director of the Bureau of Investigation—predecessor to the FBI—in 1924, he was instrumental in founding the FBI in 1935, where he remained director until his death in 1972...
's leadership. He was awarded the George Polk Award for an expose on immigrants.
Dufty had one son, Bevan Dufty
Bevan Dufty
Bevan Dufty is an American politician and former Member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. He represented San Francisco's District 8, encompassing the 71,000 residents of Ashbury Heights, Buena Vista, The Castro, Diamond Heights, Dolores Park, Duboce Triangle, Glen Park, Noe Valley,...
, with first wife Maely Bartholomew, who had arrived in New York City during World War II after losing most of her family in the Nazi concentration camps. She settled near Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
where she met her best friend and Bevan's godmother
Godparent
A godparent, in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who sponsors a child's baptism. A male godparent is a godfather, and a female godparent is a godmother...
, Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
. They later divorced and Maely raised Bevan as a single mother. Bevan Dufty announced on September 24, 2009, that he would be a candidate for Mayor of San Francisco in the 2011 election.
Ghostwriting and publishing
Dufty was the ghostwriter of Holiday's autobiography Lady Sings the Blues in 1956, which in turn was made into a 1972 movie starring Diana RossDiana Ross
Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
in the title role.
His most popular book is Sugar Blues
Sugar Blues
Sugar Blues is a book by William Dufty that was released in 1975 and became a commercial success. According to the publishers, over 1.6 million copies have been printed....
, first published in 1975, which cautions against white refined sugar, and presents its history and cultural influence.
Macrobiotic diets
It was, however, the marriage of his devotion to healthy eating, spirituality and writing for which he is best known. Dufty practiced and promoted macrobiotics; a low-fat, high-fiber diet of whole grains, vegetables, sea algae, and seeds, that are prepared in accordance with specific principles, said to synchronize eating habits with the cycles of nature.In the 1960s, he met Gloria Swanson
Gloria Swanson
Gloria Swanson was an American actress, singer and producer. She was one of the most prominent stars during the silent film era as both an actress and a fashion icon, especially under the direction of Cecil B. DeMille, made dozens of silents and was nominated for the first Academy Award in the...
, an enthusiast for macrobiotic diets, who introduced him to the macrobiotic culture and convinced him that white sugar was unsafe.
He became good friends with Japanese artist Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
and her husband, musician and former Beatle, John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
after producing an English edition of Nyoiti Sakurazawa's You Are All Sanpaku; the book credited with starting the macrobiotic food movement in America.
Marriage and death
Dufty and Swanson were married, she for the sixth time, he for the second time, in 1976. He helped her write her autobiography, Swanson on Swanson. They were prominent socialites and had homes and lived in many places, including New York City, RomeRome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, and Palm Springs, California.
After Swanson's death in 1983, he returned to his home state and birthplace of Michigan, settling in Metro Detroit
Metro Detroit
The Detroit metropolitan area, often referred to as Metro Detroit, is the metropolitan area located in Southeast Michigan centered on the city of Detroit which shares an international border with Windsor, Ontario. The Detroit metropolitan area is the second largest U.S. metropolitan area...
. From there he continued to lecture, write newspaper and magazine articles and teach macrobiotics to a new generation. Dufty died from cancer at the age of 86, on June 28, 2002, at his home in Birmingham, Michigan
Birmingham, Michigan
Birmingham is a city in Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan and an affluent suburb of Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the population was 20,103...
.
List of co-authored books
- Lady Sings the Blues, Billie Holiday with William Dufty, 1956
- My Father- My Son, Edward G Robinson, Jr. with William Dufty, 1958
- Spoiled Priest: the Autobiography of an Ex-Priest, Gabriel Longo, University Books, 1966.
- Mannequin My Life as a Model, Carolyn Kenmore, Bartholomew House Press, 1969.
- Swanson on Swanson, Gloria Swanson, Random House, 1980