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Daniel Edward Cohen (March 12, 1936 – May 6, 2018) was an American non-fiction writer who has produced over one-hundred books, mainly for young audiences.

Biography

Cohen attended Chicago public schools in the early 1950s. He attended the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, and graduated with degree in journalism in 1958. After graduation he worked as a proofreader at Time Inc. before becoming an editor for Science Digest. Cohen married Susan Handler, a writer, on February 2, 1958. In 1969 he moved to upstate New York with his wife to begin a career as a freelance children’s writer. The couple had one daughter, named Theodora.

Career

Daniel Cohen writes about a variety of subjects of interest to young readers. Including movies and television, extraterrestrials, and the supernatural. While the majority of Cohen’s books deal with the mysterious and other worldly, he approaches these topics with a certain amount of skepticism.

Cohen enrolled at the two-year branch of the University of Illinois at Chicago. He majored in biology and worked on the student newspaper. Cohen found he had a knack for journalism; he was eventually promoted to editor in chief. After two years at the Chicago campus he transferred to the University's central campus at Urbana-Champaign. He studied journalism, but found the curriculum uninteresting.

Cohen graduated with a degree in journalism and shortly thereafter married Susan Handler. He worked briefly as a proofreader for Time magazine in Chicago. Cohen eventually quit Time for Science Digest where he was able to put his journalistic talents to better use. Cohen followed Science Digest to New York City where he assumed greater editorial responsibilities and began contributing articles on a regular basis.

Despite being named managing editor, Cohen eventually left Science Digest to pursue a career as a freelance writer. He initially wrote science books for the non-specialist, but had difficulty interesting publishers in these works. On the other hand his writings on UFOs and the supernatural were quite popular. In the course of researching his work, Cohen developed a genuine interest in the occult. However, despite having crept around haunted houses, attending seances, and spending a night in a graveyard, he admitted he had never seen a ghost. Cohen maintains though that the lack of evidence does not disprove anything.

Cohen’s science books have been praised for the straightforward manner they explain basic principles.

Cohen was also a history buff and wrote historical introductions to the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece, and Rome.

Cohen and his wife Susan have collaborated on books for teens. Susan's background in sociology helped the couple write ‘Teenage Competition : a survival guide. ‘ and ‘When someone you know is gay’. While writing books for a teenage audience, the Cohens were able to anticipate their success by paying attention to their daughter’s taste in fashion and entertainment.

Writing

Cohen was well known for his books about UFOs, ghosts, psychic phenomena, cryptozoology, and the occult. Though Cohen is a self-described skeptic and onetime member of CSICOP, his books on paranormal phenomena take a more light-hearted, open-minded stance. Some of these books include The World of UFOs (1978), The Encyclopedia of Monsters (1981), The Great Airship Mystery (1981), How to Test Your ESP (1982), Phone Call from a Ghost (1988), Ghostly Tales of Love and Revenge (1992), and The Ghost of Elvis and Other Celebrity Spirits (1994). Cohen is also the author of the controversial Curses, Hexes and Spells (1974), which has appeared on several “banned books” lists due to its perceived advocacy of magic and witchcraft. Curses, Hexes, and Spells is number 73 on the American Library Association's list of the 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000.

Cohen has written on numerous other topics, including sports, history, dinosaurs, nature, technology, and folklore.

Bibliography

Library of Congress lists 191 Daniel Cohen books, eight with his wife as co-author.

The Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) says Daniel has created 238 works in 708 publications in 4 languages

Pan Am 103

Thirty-eight minutes into its flight from Heathrow to JFK in New York, Pan Am Flight 103 exploded at 31,000 feet over rural Lockerbie, killing 243 passengers, 16 crew members and 11 villagers in their homes. On that flight was the only child of Susan and Dan Cohen, Theodora (“Theo”). Susan Cohen calls Dec. 21, 1988, not only the worst day of her life, but the last day of her life. “I’m not the same person ... There is not a day that will ever go by that is not filled with what happened.” The Cohens have been, and continue to be, perhaps the most vocal activists among the Pan Am 103 families. He and his wife Susan cowrote a book about it, entitled Pam Am 103: The Bombing, The Betrayals, and a Bereaved Family's Search for Justice. They have incessantly castigated Pan Am, the U.S. and British governments, and dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was murdered by his own people in 2011. Cohen maintains that with Gaddafi’s death came the only justice she was ever to receive. A documentary was made about the aftermath of the bombing. “Since: The Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.” The film follows three sets of parents, including Susan and Dan Cohen, in the years since the loss of their children. The Cohens were chosen because they are “outspoken, and angry, and embittered.”

Health

He lived in Middle Township, New Jersey with his wife, Susan. By 2011 Cohen had suffered a stroke.

References

1. Library of Congress Online Catalog https://catalog.loc.gov/vwebv/search?searchType=7&searchId=17401&maxResultsPerPage=25&recCount=25&recPointer=0&resultPointer=0&. Retrieved March 9, 2018. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
2. WorldCat Identities. OCLC http://0-www.worldcat.org.novacat.nova.edu/identities/lccn-n79023281/. Retrieved March 9, 2018. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
3. Allen, Jamie (June 21, 2000). "'Pan Am 103': Parents of one victim tell their tale". CNN.com. Archived from the original on June 7, 2008. Retrieved July 13, 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
4. DeMono, Pat. "New film follows Port couple who lost child in Flight 103 bombing". recordonline.com. GateHouse Media. Retrieved March 9, 2018.