Biographical Note

Carol Montgomery Newman Jr., the son of Carol and Caroline Fain Newman, was born in Bristol, Virginia on September 1, 1910. Reared in Blacksburg, Virginia, he attended Virginia Tech and served as editor of the school newspaper during his senior year. After graduating in 1931 as class valedictorian with a a BS degree in biology, Newman held a number of writing jobs at public relations firms and newspapers in Washington, DC; New York; Richmond; and New Brunswick, New Jersey. He also served as an English instructor at Virginia Tech from 1934 to 1942, joining the department in which his father (1879-1941) had served as head for many years. Newman married Jean Mills (1913-1994) in 1942, and the couple would have two children.

During World War II, Newman served in the US Navy. Following his discharge as a lieutenant commander in 1945, Newman obtained an MA in English from the University of Virginia and resumed his position at Virginia Tech. He was hired by The New Yorker as a reporter (writing under the name "Montgomery Newman") and later served as a fiction editor for the magazine. After retiring from the The New Yorker in 1972, Newman again returned to Blacksburg and rejoined the university's English department before finally retiring. Carol M. Newman died on June 2, 1997, and was buried in Blacksburg's Westview Cemetery.

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