John Train
Encyclopedia
John Train is an American investment advisor and author. He attended Groton School
and Harvard University
(B.A. and M.A.), where he was head of the Lampoon and the Signet Society. In 1953 Train co-founded and became the first managing editor of The Paris Review, which won attention by publishing extended interviews with such authors as Ernest Hemingway
, Thornton Wilder
and William Faulkner
.
for "steadfast resistance to evil at great personal risk." The Prize was inspired by the career of Aleksander Solzhenitsyn, with whom Train once worked closely. Asked whether he would prefer to receive the prize, or have it named after him, or be a judge, Solzhenitsyn chose the latter, which he did to the end of his life. The trustees and directors of the Civil Courage Prize include five ambassadors: American, English and South African.
He is an overseer of the Whitehead School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University
(affiliated with the United Nations
), and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
and the International Institute of Strategic Studies (London).
, George H. W. Bush
and Bill Clinton
as a director of government agencies and entities dealing with Africa, Asia, and Central Europe respectively.
. In 1980, he helped to establish the Afghanistan Relief Committee to provide medicine and food to the victims of the Soviet invasion, serving first as its treasurer and later as president. The ARC merged with the International Rescue Committee
, whose board he joined. He was an original trustee of the American University in Bulgaria
.
, a district attorney in New York City
and the author of the popular "Ephraim Tutt" stories that appeared in the Saturday Evening Post in the 1930s and 1940s. A descendent of an old New England family, he is a cousin of the late Senator Claiborne Pell
, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and of Russell E. Train
, head of the United States Environmental Protection Agency
under Richard Nixon
and founding trustee and former chairman of the World Wildlife Fund. His siblings include ambassadors, military officers and other officials.
He has three daughters, one of whom became an active member of his firm and another who was married to the late Forbes editor Paul Klebnikov
.
Groton School
Groton School is a private, Episcopal, college preparatory boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts, U.S. It enrolls approximately 375 boys and girls, from the eighth through twelfth grades...
and Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
(B.A. and M.A.), where he was head of the Lampoon and the Signet Society. In 1953 Train co-founded and became the first managing editor of The Paris Review, which won attention by publishing extended interviews with such authors as Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
, Thornton Wilder
Thornton Wilder
Thornton Niven Wilder was an American playwright and novelist. He received three Pulitzer Prizes, one for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and two for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, and a National Book Award for his novel The Eighth Day.-Early years:Wilder was born in Madison,...
and William Faulkner
William Faulkner
William Cuthbert Faulkner was an American writer from Oxford, Mississippi. Faulkner worked in a variety of media; he wrote novels, short stories, a play, poetry, essays and screenplays during his career...
.
Career
After serving in the U.S. Army and working in Wall Street, he founded the New York investment counsel firm now known as Train, Babcock Advisors. During this period he became the principal owner of Chateaux Malescasse, a Cru Bourgeois wine producer. He is chairman of the Montrose Group, investment advisors and tax accountants, and is a director of a major emerging markets mutual fund. He is the founder-chairman of the Train Foundation, which since 2000 has annually awarded the Civil Courage PrizeCivil Courage Prize
The Civil Courage Prize is a human rights award which is awarded to "steadfast resistance to evil at great personal risk — rather than military valor." It is awarded by the Trustees of The Train Foundation annually and may be awarded posthumously....
for "steadfast resistance to evil at great personal risk." The Prize was inspired by the career of Aleksander Solzhenitsyn, with whom Train once worked closely. Asked whether he would prefer to receive the prize, or have it named after him, or be a judge, Solzhenitsyn chose the latter, which he did to the end of his life. The trustees and directors of the Civil Courage Prize include five ambassadors: American, English and South African.
He is an overseer of the Whitehead School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University is a private Roman Catholic university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by Archbishop James Roosevelt Bayley, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan university in the United States. Seton Hall is also the oldest and largest Catholic university in the...
(affiliated with the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
), and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
and the International Institute of Strategic Studies (London).
Presidential appointments
Train received part-time appointments from Presidents Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
and Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
as a director of government agencies and entities dealing with Africa, Asia, and Central Europe respectively.
Other distinctions
Train has two decorations from the Italian government for humanitarian work, and is an officer of the (British) Order of St. JohnVenerable Order of Saint John
The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem , is a royal order of chivalry established in 1831 and found today throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Hong Kong, Ireland and the United States of America, with the world-wide mission "to prevent and relieve sickness and...
. In 1980, he helped to establish the Afghanistan Relief Committee to provide medicine and food to the victims of the Soviet invasion, serving first as its treasurer and later as president. The ARC merged with the International Rescue Committee
International Rescue Committee
The International Rescue Committee is a leading nonsectarian, nongovernmental international relief and development organization based in the United States, with operations in over 40 countries...
, whose board he joined. He was an original trustee of the American University in Bulgaria
American University in Bulgaria
American University in Bulgaria is a private, selective, residential liberal arts university located in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria. Courses are taught in English by high-quality faculty coming from four continents, experienced in teaching in a multicultural, learner-centered environment...
.
Personal life
John Train is the son of Arthur TrainArthur Train
Arthur Cheney Train was an American lawyer and legal thriller writer, particularly known for his novels of courtroom intrigue and the creation of the fictional lawyer Mr Ephraim Tutt.-Life:...
, a district attorney in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and the author of the popular "Ephraim Tutt" stories that appeared in the Saturday Evening Post in the 1930s and 1940s. A descendent of an old New England family, he is a cousin of the late Senator Claiborne Pell
Claiborne Pell
Claiborne de Borda Pell was a United States Senator from Rhode Island, serving six terms from 1961 to 1997, and was best known as the sponsor of the Pell Grant, which provides financial aid funding to U.S. college students. A Democrat, he was that state's longest serving senator.-Early years:Pell...
, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and of Russell E. Train
Russell E. Train
Russell Errol Train was the second Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency , from September 1973 to January 1977, and the Founder Chairman Emeritus of World Wildlife Fund . As head of the EPA under U.S...
, head of the United States Environmental Protection Agency
United States Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...
under Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
and founding trustee and former chairman of the World Wildlife Fund. His siblings include ambassadors, military officers and other officials.
He has three daughters, one of whom became an active member of his firm and another who was married to the late Forbes editor Paul Klebnikov
Paul Klebnikov
Paul Klebnikov was a Russian-American journalist and historian of Russian history. He worked for Forbes Magazine for over 10 years and at the time of his death was Chief editor of the Russian edition. His murder in Moscow in 2004 was seen as a blow against investigative journalism in Russia...
.
External links
- John Train's The Broadside : Blog, with excerpts from his columns and books
- Train, Babcock Advisors LLC
- Civil Courage Prize