Peggy Adler
Encyclopedia
Peggy Adler is an American
author
and illustrator
of children's books and investigative researcher
. She is the daughter of Irving Adler
and Ruth Adler and younger sister of Stephen L. Adler
.
" for 20th Century Fox
and handled the ticket sales and management of the premiere for Yale University
. At that same time, and for years to come, she continued illustrating, with work published by the John Day Company
. Little, Brown & Company, the Journal of Theoretical Biology
, the Journal of Algebra
, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
, the Bronx Zoo
, and the Humane Society of the United States
. In the mid-1970s Adler returned to writing, as well as illustrating, when Franklin Watts
published her book, Metric Puzzles, followed shortly thereafter by Math Puzzles and Geography Puzzles. In 1976 Adler remarried and for a brief time, in the early 1990s, worked under the name of Peggy Adler Robohm.
, doing research and document retrieval at town halls and court houses in Connecticut
, for civil and criminal cases for the defense.
In 1991, she was retained by self proclaimed arms dealer and money launderer, Richard Brenneke, to co-author his autobiography. Discovering that he was a con artist who was drawing her into literary fraud, she contacted former CIA agent-turned-journalist, Frank Snepp
, and with him, exposed Brenneke and subsequently proved that the October Surprise conspiracy
was a hoax, as chronicled in the series of articles Snepp wrote for the Village Voice with Adler's research assistance. Her work was the subject of a chapter in Robert Parry
's book, "Trick or Treason: The October Surprise Mystery" and she was interviewed by PBS' "Frontline" in this regard. In mid-1992, learning that a Congressional Task Force was investigating whether or not there actually had been an October Surprise, she contacted investigative journalist and author Steven Emerson
, who put her in touch with the Task Force so that she could turn over to them the seventy cartons of documents she'd hauled east from Brenneke’s home in Portland, Oregon, in order to write his memoirs. Subsequently, she worked as a consultant to the Task Force, and assisted in drafting and editing a portion of the Brenneke section of their final report. Adler divorced Robohm in the mid-1990s and resumed the use of her maiden name.
In 2000 and 2001, she was the researcher for journalist and author Ron Rosenbaum
's "long but not probing" articles about Yale's fabled Skull and Bones
, which were published in The New York Observer.
selectman Arthur Isaacson had violated conflict of interest rules by voting on the city's purchase of properties. Isaacson was cleared of any wrongdoing by the Board of Ethics, although Adler claimed that the Board had misinterpreted both state law and the town charter. Adler subsequently asked John Bennett, Town Attorney for Clinton, to review the Board's decision. Bennett's official opinion was that the Board of Ethics had the final say over such matters and that its decision would stand. Adler also sought unsuccessfully to have the Board's decision reviewed by Richard Blumenthal
, the Connecticut Attorney General at the time. She is currently a Police Commissioner in Clinton, having been elected to that position in 2005. There, she has also served on the Design Review Board, Historic District Commission, and Charter Revision Commission.
held a meeting in Northampton, Massachusetts
. Adler served as the program coordinator; as such one of her duties was to prevent the entry of uninvited guests. Describing the purpose of the association, Adler was quoted as saying "A big part of what we try to do is to dispel the misconception that intelligence work is just like what they show in James Bond movies." The meeting was also attended by approximately 20 protestors, about whom Adler said "Well, I suppose it's their constitutional right." In 2001, Adler was awarded the General
Richard G. Stilwell
Chairman’s Award by the Association of Former Intelligence Officers.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and illustrator
Illustrator
An Illustrator is a narrative artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text...
of children's books and investigative researcher
Researcher
A researcher is somebody who performs research, the search for knowledge or in general any systematic investigation to establish facts. Researchers can work in academic, industrial, government, or private institutions.-Examples of research institutions:...
. She is the daughter of Irving Adler
Irving Adler
Irving Adler is an author, mathematician, scientist, and educator. He is the author of 56 books about mathematics, science, and education, and the co-author of 30 more, for both children and adults. His books have been published in 31 countries in 19 different languages...
and Ruth Adler and younger sister of Stephen L. Adler
Stephen L. Adler
Stephen Louis Adler is an American physicist specializing in elementary particles and field theory.-Biography:Adler was born in New York City. He received an A.B. degree at Harvard University in 1961, where he was a Putnam Fellow, and a Ph.D. from Princeton University in 1964...
.
Early career
Adler began her professional career as an illustrator in 1958, at the age of sixteen, when she was co-illustrator of her father's book Weather In Your Life. That same year, she was the sole illustrator of Hot and Cold. She later illustrated the children's book Numbers Old and New, as well as authoring and illustrating The Adler Book of Puzzles and Riddles; and The Second Adler Book of Puzzles and Riddles.Authorship
In September 1969 Adler coordinated the world premiere of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance KidButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a 1969 American Western film directed by George Roy Hill and written by William Goldman...
" for 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
and handled the ticket sales and management of the premiere for Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
. At that same time, and for years to come, she continued illustrating, with work published by the John Day Company
John Day Company
The John Day Company was a New York publishing firm that specialized in illustrated fiction and current affairs books and pamphlets from 1926-1968. It published books by, among others, Pearl Buck, Irving Adler, Peggy Adler and Sidney Hook. It was founded by Richard Walsh in 1926 and named after...
. Little, Brown & Company, the Journal of Theoretical Biology
Journal of Theoretical Biology
The Journal of Theoretical Biology is a scientific journal about theoretical biology; dealing with theoretical issues, as well as mathematical and computational aspects of biology. Some research areas covered by the papers published in the journal are population genetics, morphogenesis,...
, the Journal of Algebra
Journal of Algebra
Journal of Algebra is a leading international mathematical research journal in algebra. An imprint of Academic Press, it is presently published by Elsevier. Journal of Algebra was founded by Graham Higman, who was its editor from 1964 to 1984. From 1985 until 2000, Walter Feit served as its...
, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics was founded in 1920. It has grown to be the world's largest organization concerned with mathematics education, having close to 100,000 members across the USA and Canada, and internationally....
, the Bronx Zoo
Bronx Zoo
The Bronx Zoo is located in the Bronx borough of New York City, within Bronx Park. It is the largest metropolitan zoo in the United States, comprising of park lands and naturalistic habitats, through which the Bronx River flows....
, and the Humane Society of the United States
Humane Society of the United States
The Humane Society of the United States , based in Washington, D.C., is the largest animal advocacy organization in the world. In 2009, HSUS reported assets of over US$160 million....
. In the mid-1970s Adler returned to writing, as well as illustrating, when Franklin Watts
Franklin Watts
-History:Franklin Watts Inc. was formed in 1942. The company was sold to Grolier in 1957. When the namesake founder retired in 1967, he moved to London to start Franklin Watts Ltd. in 1969. Franklin Watts retired again in 1976....
published her book, Metric Puzzles, followed shortly thereafter by Math Puzzles and Geography Puzzles. In 1976 Adler remarried and for a brief time, in the early 1990s, worked under the name of Peggy Adler Robohm.
Investigations
In 1990, she began a decade of work under the license of a private InvestigatorPrivate investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
, doing research and document retrieval at town halls and court houses in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, for civil and criminal cases for the defense.
In 1991, she was retained by self proclaimed arms dealer and money launderer, Richard Brenneke, to co-author his autobiography. Discovering that he was a con artist who was drawing her into literary fraud, she contacted former CIA agent-turned-journalist, Frank Snepp
Frank Snepp
Frank Warren Snepp is a journalist and former chief analyst of North Vietnamese strategy for the Central Intelligence Agency in Saigon during the Vietnam War. Five out of eight years in the CIA, he worked as interrogator, agent debriefer, and chief CIA strategy analyst in the US Embassy, Saigon...
, and with him, exposed Brenneke and subsequently proved that the October Surprise conspiracy
October surprise conspiracy
The October Surprise conspiracy theory refers to an alleged plot to influence the outcome of the 1980 United States presidential election between incumbent Jimmy Carter and opponent Ronald Reagan ....
was a hoax, as chronicled in the series of articles Snepp wrote for the Village Voice with Adler's research assistance. Her work was the subject of a chapter in Robert Parry
Robert Parry
Robert Parry is an American investigative journalist. He was awarded the George Polk Award for National Reporting in 1984 for his work with the Associated Press on the Iran-Contra story and uncovered Oliver North's involvement in it as a Washington-based correspondent for Newsweek. In 1995, he...
's book, "Trick or Treason: The October Surprise Mystery" and she was interviewed by PBS' "Frontline" in this regard. In mid-1992, learning that a Congressional Task Force was investigating whether or not there actually had been an October Surprise, she contacted investigative journalist and author Steven Emerson
Steven Emerson
Steven Emerson, is an American journalist and author, who writes about national security, terrorism, and Islamic extremism.Emerson is the author of six books, and co-author of two more. His television documentary Jihad in America won the 1994 George Polk Award for best Television Documentary, and...
, who put her in touch with the Task Force so that she could turn over to them the seventy cartons of documents she'd hauled east from Brenneke’s home in Portland, Oregon, in order to write his memoirs. Subsequently, she worked as a consultant to the Task Force, and assisted in drafting and editing a portion of the Brenneke section of their final report. Adler divorced Robohm in the mid-1990s and resumed the use of her maiden name.
In 2000 and 2001, she was the researcher for journalist and author Ron Rosenbaum
Ron Rosenbaum
-Life and career:Rosenbaum was born into a Jewish family in New York City, New York and grew up in Bay Shore, New York. He graduated from Yale University in 1968 and won a Carnegie Fellowship to attend Yale's graduate program in English Literature, though he dropped out after taking one course...
's "long but not probing" articles about Yale's fabled Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones is an undergraduate senior or secret society at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. It is a traditional peer society to Scroll and Key and Wolf's Head, as the three senior class 'landed societies' at Yale....
, which were published in The New York Observer.
Community involvement
Adler is active in local affairs in the town where she lives. In 2005, Adler complained to the city's Board of Ethics that Clinton, ConnecticutClinton, Connecticut
Clinton is a town located on Long Island Sound in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 13,094 at the 2000 census. The town center along the shore line was listed as a census-designated place by the U.S...
selectman Arthur Isaacson had violated conflict of interest rules by voting on the city's purchase of properties. Isaacson was cleared of any wrongdoing by the Board of Ethics, although Adler claimed that the Board had misinterpreted both state law and the town charter. Adler subsequently asked John Bennett, Town Attorney for Clinton, to review the Board's decision. Bennett's official opinion was that the Board of Ethics had the final say over such matters and that its decision would stand. Adler also sought unsuccessfully to have the Board's decision reviewed by Richard Blumenthal
Richard Blumenthal
Richard Blumenthal is the junior United States Senator from Connecticut and a member of the Democratic Party. Previously, he served as Attorney General of Connecticut....
, the Connecticut Attorney General at the time. She is currently a Police Commissioner in Clinton, having been elected to that position in 2005. There, she has also served on the Design Review Board, Historic District Commission, and Charter Revision Commission.
Intelligence work
In July, 2000, the Association of Former Intelligence OfficersAssociation of Former Intelligence Officers
The Association of Former Intelligence Officers , formerly known as the Association of Retired Intelligence Officers is a non-profit, non-partisan advocacy organization founded in 1975 by David Atlee Phillips to counter widespread criticism of the United States intelligence community coming from...
held a meeting in Northampton, Massachusetts
Northampton, Massachusetts
The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population of Northampton's central neighborhoods, was 28,549...
. Adler served as the program coordinator; as such one of her duties was to prevent the entry of uninvited guests. Describing the purpose of the association, Adler was quoted as saying "A big part of what we try to do is to dispel the misconception that intelligence work is just like what they show in James Bond movies." The meeting was also attended by approximately 20 protestors, about whom Adler said "Well, I suppose it's their constitutional right." In 2001, Adler was awarded the General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Richard G. Stilwell
Richard G. Stilwell
General Richard Giles Stilwell served as Commander, United States Forces Korea from 1973 to 1976, and Acting Commander of the U.S. Army, Pacific from September to December 1974...
Chairman’s Award by the Association of Former Intelligence Officers.
External links
- Peggy Adler Collection, Children's Literature Collections, University of Minnesota