David F. Kessler
David Francis Kessler | |
|---|---|
| Born | 6 June 1906 Pretoria, South Africa |
| Died | 24 November 1999 (aged 93) Stoke Hammond, Buckinghamshire, England, U.K. |
| Education | Leighton Park School University of Cambridge |
| Occupations | Publisher, author |
| Spouse | Matilda Kessler |
| Children | 1 son, 3 daughters |
| Parent | Leopold Kessler |
David Francis Kessler,[a] OBE, (6 June 1906 - 24 November 1999) was a British publisher and author. He was the managing director of The Jewish Chronicle.
Early life
David Kessler was born on 6 June 1906 in Pretoria, South Africa.[2][3][4] His father, Leopold Kessler, was a friend of Theodor Herzl, an early proponent of Zionism, and a shareholder of The Jewish Chronicle.
Kessler was educated at Leighton Park School in Reading before graduating from the University of Cambridge, where he earned a bachelor's degree in law and economics.[2][3][4]
Career
Kessler began his career by working for Antonin Besse,[4] an oil and shipping businessman with ties to the Royal Dutch Shell in Aden, Yemen.[2] He subsequently worked for the Palestine Potash Company, later known as the Dead Sea Works, in Jerusalem.[2][3][4]
Kessler became the managing director of The Jewish Chronicle in London in 1935.[2] In 1946, he dismissed the editor, Ivan Greenberg, who was deemed too divisive.[2] Instead, he appointed John Maurice Shaftesley, who remained in the post until 1958, when he hired William Frankel.[3]
Kessler wrote two books.[2] He was a founding member of the Minority Rights Group.[2] He served as the chairman of the Falasha Welfare Association and the Wiener Library in London.[2][3] He was awarded the OBE in the 1996 New Year Honours "for services to the Jewish Chronicle and to the Jewish community".[2][3]
Personal life and death
Kessler had a wife, Matilda, a son, and three daughters.[2] They resided in Stoke Hammond, Buckinghamshire, England, where he died on 24 November 1999.[2][3]
Works
Further reading
- Crown, Alan D. (1998). Noblesse Oblige: Essays in Honour of David Kessler OBE. London: Vallentine Mitchell. ISBN 9780853033561. OCLC 38549790.
Notes
References
- ↑ "The Jewish Chronicle in New Premises". The Australian Jewish News. Victoria, Australia. 5 August 1949. p. 9. Retrieved 24 August 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Paul, Geoffrey (1 December 1999). "David Kessler". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Finkelstone, Joseph (29 November 1999). "Obituary: David Kessler". The Independent. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Cesarani, David (1994). The Jewish Chronicle and Anglo-Jewry, 1841-1991. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press. p. 158. ISBN 9780521434348. OCLC 27146108.