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TCA PASADENA-GLENDALE PRESENTS PROGRAM ON LEVON ZAVEN SURMELIAN
http://www.mirrorspectator.com/2011/06/16/tca-pasadena-glendale-presents-program-on-levon-zaven-surmelian/
Posted on June 16, 2011 by Editor
Zareh Sapszian and Sona Khandjian
PASADENA, Calif. - Tekeyan Cultural Association's Pasadena-Glendale
Chapter organized an evening dedicated to the life and literature
of the Armenian-American author Levon Zaven Surmelian on Thursday,
May 26, at the Beshgeturian Center in Altadena.
Zareh Sapszian, a fiction writer and contributor to Nor Or,
was invited to deliver the lecture. Sapszian was born in Aleppo,
Syria. He graduated from Karen Yeppe High School, and became a teacher
of Armenian language and literature at the Armenian Evangelical High
School in Ainjar, Lebanon. He then moved to the United States, due
to the civil war in Lebanon and settled in Los Angeles. He is married
and has one daughter.
Sapszian first presented a biographical sketch of the late Surmelian,
who was born in Trabzon, Turkey in 1905. Surmelian's father, Garabed,
was a pharmacist and had three other children. He lost his parents
during the Armenian Genocide.
When Russia occupied Trabzon in 1916, Surmelian escaped to Batumi,
Georgia. In 1918, he moved to Istanbul, Turkey, which was under the
control of the Allied Nations, and studied rural economy at Armash. In
1920, he traveled to Armenia with his classmates, to help improve
Armenian agriculture. Disappointed in the Soviet regime, he fled back
to Batumi, and then returned to Istanbul.
Finally in 1922, Surmelian immigrated to the United States and
settled in Kansas. His first order of business was to study English,
then further his studies in rural economy. Two years later, he became
infected with tuberculosis and traveled to Los Angeles, where he spent
four years in a sanitarium to recover from his emaciating disease. He
married Zarmig Geurdjian in 1957, but had no children. His wife passed
away in 1992 and only two years later, he died.
Introducing Surmelian, Sapszian noted that first and foremost, he was
a poet. His first book of poems, titled Joyous Light, was published
in 1924. At this point, Sona Khandjian presented a poetic recitation
of some of his most famous poems, leaving a lasting impression on
the audience.
Surmelian's first book in English, titled I Ask You Ladies and
Gentlemen, was published in 1945 by E. P. Dutton. This autobiographical
book became a best seller quickly. His second book, titled 98.6,
was published in 1950. The title, 98.6, refers to the temperature
of the human body and it tells the story of a young man suffering
from tuberculosis.
In 1968, Surmelian published two more books, Apples of Immorality
and Techniques of Fiction Writing. The latter became a textbook for
literature in universities throughout the United States.
It's noteworthy to mention that Surmelian's library and entire wealth
was bequeathed to the Armenian General Benevolent Union, which in
turn dedicated a state-of-the-art printing facility to honor him in
Yerevan, to be used by the writers' union.
- Kevork Keushkerian
http://www.mirrorspectator.com/2011/06/16/tca-pasadena-glendale-presents-program-on-levon-zaven-surmelian/
Posted on June 16, 2011 by Editor
Zareh Sapszian and Sona Khandjian
PASADENA, Calif. - Tekeyan Cultural Association's Pasadena-Glendale
Chapter organized an evening dedicated to the life and literature
of the Armenian-American author Levon Zaven Surmelian on Thursday,
May 26, at the Beshgeturian Center in Altadena.
Zareh Sapszian, a fiction writer and contributor to Nor Or,
was invited to deliver the lecture. Sapszian was born in Aleppo,
Syria. He graduated from Karen Yeppe High School, and became a teacher
of Armenian language and literature at the Armenian Evangelical High
School in Ainjar, Lebanon. He then moved to the United States, due
to the civil war in Lebanon and settled in Los Angeles. He is married
and has one daughter.
Sapszian first presented a biographical sketch of the late Surmelian,
who was born in Trabzon, Turkey in 1905. Surmelian's father, Garabed,
was a pharmacist and had three other children. He lost his parents
during the Armenian Genocide.
When Russia occupied Trabzon in 1916, Surmelian escaped to Batumi,
Georgia. In 1918, he moved to Istanbul, Turkey, which was under the
control of the Allied Nations, and studied rural economy at Armash. In
1920, he traveled to Armenia with his classmates, to help improve
Armenian agriculture. Disappointed in the Soviet regime, he fled back
to Batumi, and then returned to Istanbul.
Finally in 1922, Surmelian immigrated to the United States and
settled in Kansas. His first order of business was to study English,
then further his studies in rural economy. Two years later, he became
infected with tuberculosis and traveled to Los Angeles, where he spent
four years in a sanitarium to recover from his emaciating disease. He
married Zarmig Geurdjian in 1957, but had no children. His wife passed
away in 1992 and only two years later, he died.
Introducing Surmelian, Sapszian noted that first and foremost, he was
a poet. His first book of poems, titled Joyous Light, was published
in 1924. At this point, Sona Khandjian presented a poetic recitation
of some of his most famous poems, leaving a lasting impression on
the audience.
Surmelian's first book in English, titled I Ask You Ladies and
Gentlemen, was published in 1945 by E. P. Dutton. This autobiographical
book became a best seller quickly. His second book, titled 98.6,
was published in 1950. The title, 98.6, refers to the temperature
of the human body and it tells the story of a young man suffering
from tuberculosis.
In 1968, Surmelian published two more books, Apples of Immorality
and Techniques of Fiction Writing. The latter became a textbook for
literature in universities throughout the United States.
It's noteworthy to mention that Surmelian's library and entire wealth
was bequeathed to the Armenian General Benevolent Union, which in
turn dedicated a state-of-the-art printing facility to honor him in
Yerevan, to be used by the writers' union.
- Kevork Keushkerian