Matt Cohen (writer)

Matt Cohen
Born	Matthew Cohen December 30, 1942 Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Died	December 2, 1999 Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupation	Novelist, Children's writer
Period	1960s-1990s
Notable works	Emotional Arithmetic,Elizabeth and After

Matthew Cohen(30 December 1942 – 2 December 1999) was a Canadian writer who published both mainstream literature under his own name and children's literature under the pseudonymTeddy Jam.

History

Matt Cohen was born inMontreal,son of Morris Cohen and Beatrice Sohn,and was raised inKingstonand Ottawa.He studied political economy at theUniversity of Torontoand taught political philosophy and religion atMcMaster Universityin the late 1960s before publishing his first novelKorsoniloffin 1969.

His fiction was translated into German, Dutch, French, Greek, Spanish and Portuguese.The Spanish Doctor,his biggest international success, continues to sell well in the French and Spanish markets.

His greatest critical success as a writer was his final novelElizabeth and Afterwhich won the1999 Governor General's Awardfor English-language Fiction only a few weeks before his death.He had been nominated twice previously, but had not won, in 1979 forThe Sweet Second Summer of Kitty Maloneand in 1997 forLast Seen.

A founding member of theWriters' Union of Canada,he served on the executive board for many years and as president in 1986. During his presidency, the Writer's Union was finally able to persuade the government of Canada to form a commission and establish aPublic Lending Rightprogram. He also served on the Toronto Arts Council as chair of the Literary Division and was able to obtain increased funding for writers. In recognition of this work, he was awarded a Toronto Arts Award and the Harbourfront Prize.

He also published a number of children's books under the pseudonym Teddy Jam. Cohen's authorship of the Teddy Jam books was not revealed until after his death.Dr. Kiss,illustrated by Joanne Fitzgerald won the Governor General's Award in 1991 andFishing Summerwas also nominated for a Governor General's Award for children's literature in 1997, making Cohen one of the few writers ever to be nominated for Governor General's Awards in two different categories in the same year.

He was married three times; first to Arden Ford, next to Susan Bricker and then to Patsy Aldana.

Cohen died at home in Toronto after a battle withlung cancer.His final book of short stories,Getting Lucky,and his final Teddy Jam title,The Kid's Line,were posthumously published in 2001. A Canadian literary award, theMatt Cohen Award,is presented in Cohen's memory by theWriters' Trust of Canada.

A film adaptation of his 1990 novelEmotional Arithmetichas been produced by Triptych films starringMax von Sydow,Christopher Plummer,Gabriel ByrneandSusan Sarandon.It was the closing gala at the2007 Toronto International Film Festival.

Bibliography

Years link to correspondingyear in literatureor, for poetry, toyear in poetry.

Novels

• Korsoniloff(1969)
• Johnny Crackle Sings(1971)
• The Disinherited(1974)
• Wooden Hunters(1975)
• The Colours of War(1977)
• The Sweet Second Summer of Kitty Malone(1979)
• Flowers of Darkness(1981)
• The Spanish Doctor(1984)
• Nadine(1987)
• Emotional Arithmetic(1990)
• Freud: The Paris Notebooks(1991)
• The Bookseller(1993)
• Last Seen(1997)
• Elizabeth and After(1999)

Short stories

• Columbus and the Fat Lady(1972)
• Too Bad Galahad(1972)
• Night Flights(1978)
• The Leaves of Louise(1978)
• The Expatriate(1982)
• Café le Dog(1983)
• Life on This Planet(1985)
• Living on Water(1988)
• Racial Memories(1990)
• Lives of the Mind Slaves(1994)
• Getting Lucky(2001)

Poetry

• Peach Melba(1974)
• In Search of Leonardo(1985)

Non-fiction

• Typing: A Life in 26 Keys(2000)

Children's literature (as "Teddy Jam" )

• Night Cars(1987) illustrated byEric Beddows
• Doctor Kiss Says Yes(1991) illustrated byJoanne Fitzgerald
• The Year of Fire(1993) illustrated byIan Wallace
• The Charlotte Stories(1994)
• Jacob's Best Sisters(1996) illustrated by Joanne Fitzgerald
• The Fishing Summer(1997) illustrated byAnge Zhang
• This New Baby(1998)
• The Stoneboat(1999) illustrated by Ange Zhang
• ttuM(1999)
• The Kid Line(2001) illustrated by Ange Zhang

See also

• Canadian literature
• Canadian poetry
• List of Canadian poets
• List of Canadian writers

Externals

• Matt CohenatIMDb