A much weightier and more thorough biography than one has a right to expect from a fairly unknown writer who is not sympathetic to the subject. Coogan is particularly good in his survey of the geopolitical writers and philosophers who influenced the young Yockey in his college years (e.g., Haushofer, Mackinder, Schmitt, and of course Spengler). Much of the meat of the book is effectively a collaboration between Coogan and Yockey's old friend H. Keith Thompson, who was always generous with his time and anecdotes.
There are some dubious spots in Coogan's narrative, which would have been easily remedied if he had had access to the sort of online databases we are familiar with today via Ancestry, etc. For example, Coogan argues that Yockey's putative grandfather, the German-born Valentin Yocky/Jacky could not have been Yockey's grandfather because the old man's gravestone says he died in 1883, while Yockey's dad wasn't born until 1886. Censuses, draft registrations, and consular records mostly state that Yockey's father Louis was born in May 1883. Additionally Coogan couldn't discover why Louis Yockey and his family were living in Europe before World War I. He describes Louis as a stockbroker, but at the time Louis was actually an employee of the American Radiator Company's overseas branches in Paris and Brussels. The family returned to America in 1915.
Another fuzzy bit: Coogan conflates the person of Mrs Virginia Allen (Harry Benjamin's office manager) with Mrs Virginia Johnson, who supposedly ran off with Yockey from Baltimore to New York in 1951. Did Yockey indeed have two girlfriends around the same time, both named Virginia? I don't know whether they were one and the same person, but in a 1986 interview H. Keith Thompson denied that they were. There is a forthcoming biography of Yockey; perhaps this will clear the matter up.
I never looked at this book till recently, since I supposed it was merely unfriendly and error-laden. I was interviewed for it by the author back in 1993, but thankfully am not mentioned in Acknowledgments. I had little new to contribute other than some bits and pieces that the author left out. Fortunately, Mr Thompson and the others mentioned therein were very informative.
Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime
and start saving today with fast, free delivery
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now
Customers who viewed this item also viewed
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
About the author
Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
